Blog #7

Randy Pausch’s Last Lecture:

It was clear after viewing the video that Mr. Pausch was definitely a very inspirational person. I say this because he even inspired me. While I watched his video I noticed what a great speaker he was. He had an upbeat tempo and illustrated his points very clearly. He had a way too lively up his lectures with humor too. I believe these are some of the key attributes to becoming a great teacher is learning how to become a great speaker. We have all heard long drawn out lectures we find ourselves yawning in the middle of due to the teacher sounding like the guy off the “clear eyes” commercials but this should be a thing of the past. Being able to grasp people’s attention is the first step needed to mold their minds. When you do you can start debates between fellow peers and encourage then to learn rather than drilling information in their heard. I believe the grasp you have on a student’s attention is ultimately what you are going to be able to teach them so strive to be a good speaker and set the bar high like Randy was able to.

I also liked Randy’s views on teaching. He encouraged group projects rather than numerous individual assignments. Within group assignments the other members of the group will even encourage students beyond the teacher’s control. Other members of the group will take a step necessary to make sure all others are correctly completing the assignment since it is a reflection of all of them but students will also be able to pick up learning tricks by watching how other people in the group work as well. Randy also states how many people will be working in groups as they evolve into their careers. Mr. Pausch definitely has keen thoughts and a great attitude. I couldn’t agree more on many of his points even as teachers like we are striving to be we will be forced to communicate in groups. I do believe there is good in doing individual assignments but I will try to focus my attention on encouraging students to work in groups together as well in the future.