Blog Post #7

Randy Pausch's Last Lecture
This video was an hour long, but in that hour I learned so much about Randy Pausch. He is a very educated, determined, motivated, and overall just a good person. His personal value system is amazing. Randy does not only believe in making his life better, but he also strives to make the lives of other people better. Randy believes in karma, and so do I. He sticks to his morals and values and clearly it has worked great for him. He has been able to accomplish all of his dreams by working hard and never giving up!

Randy Pausch kept going back to a statement about a brick wall. I think this is what stood out to me the most about his lecture. He says that brick walls are not made to keep everyone out...they are made to keep out the people who do not want something bad enough. I think this is so true. Everything is attainable, but everything is not given to you. You have to work hard for what you want and never take no as an answer. Randy gave many examples of brick walls he has had to overcome, and with much persistence he has! This was just such valuable information, and very inspiring to see what hard work and dedication can bring to your life.

Another thing that Randy continued to bring up were "head fakes". He explained them as ways to teach students certain things without letting them know that is what you are trying to teach them. Having students learn in fun and entertaining ways, so that they actively participate, and having them learn things along the way they didn't even know they were learning. I think this is a very effective way to teach students. You have to be creative and think of ways that you can do this, but I think the reward in the end will be very satisfying. To be able to see your students having fun and enjoying the learning process would be awesome. For them to realize that they learned so much more than they thought, and without dreading it the whole time, is amazing.

One thing that also stood out to me was a piece of advice one of his mentors gave to him. Randy was so impressed with his students work he did not know what to say to his students. He called one of his mentors and they told him to not set a bar for his students. He told him he should go into the classroom and tell his students "this work was good... but you can do better," even though he was already blown away. By not setting a bar his students would never settle. They would not have a stopping point, and therefore, they would not STOP. They would continue to grow, learn, expand, and they would have no limits. I think this is so important because when you set limits, most people will only work as hard as it takes to meet that limit. If you want your students to go above and beyond they have to feel like there is an above and beyond. There are endless possibilities when there is no bar.

This video was very inspiring. It was well worth watching, and I think the lessons were priceless. His techniques were amazing and I think all teachers should aspire to be as motivated and dedicated to their work as Randy Pausch was.