Sunday, October 9, 2011

Blog Post #7

Randy Pausch Last Lecture: Achieving Your Childhood Dreams

In Randy Pausch's last lecture, he discusses his life and what he's achieved thus far and encourages his audience to pursue their goals and do everything in their power to reach them. Randy Pausch is such a remarkable teacher and human being. His lectures and life story are so inspiring and encourages me to be the best teacher I can be. He also encourages me to teach my students things that will better their education and that they can also use in their lives.

Randy Pausch begins his lecture by remembering his football coach who he said was hard on him in one particular practice and at the end of the practice, the assistant coach reminded him that it was for his own good that his coach was so hard on him. He taught him that when people stop telling you what you did wrong, then that means they have given up on you. I believe this is so true. It is so necessary for us as teachers to never give up on our students. Teachers, along with parents, are the guiding light for children and if we no longer have faith in them, who will? It is our responsibility to steer them in the right direction and if they make a mistake, we should teach them that mistakes are okay, as long as you learn from those mistakes and correct them in the future. I would not be the student, mother, and young woman that I am today if my teachers or parents had ever given up on me. I must remember that in my future career.

Pausch's most important piece of advice for us all would be to never give up. Of course, we've heard this so many times before. But coming from Pausch (knowing his terminally ill condition), it seemed to take on a whole new meaning. Pausch had been told by his doctors that he only had 3-6 month of a healthy life left. Many people in his position would just choose to give up on life, but Pausch continued on to lecture because it was truly his passion. He was such a leader and innovative in the classroom and implemented new techniques that had never been done before. Pausch knew how to inspire his students and to also have fun while doing so. I believe that is one of the most important aspects of being a teacher. You must know how to engage your students and make learning FUN for them. This is exactly what Randy Pausch did. I hope one day I can be half as great of a teacher as he was.

Lastly, Pausch's lecture makes me think about my own future goals and what I hope to accomplish in the future and what I have already accomplished thus far. What will my legacy be? I am young, and I still have my life ahead of me but as Randy Pausch so eloquently demonstrated, life can sometimes be shorter than we think so it is important for me to start working towards my goals now. I think my most important goal is to be a successful teacher who leaves a mark on my students. I don't want to be one of those teachers who students don't even remember once they graduate. I want to be an outstanding educator who goes the extra mile for my students, so when they graduate from high school and even college, they will remember me as their elementary school teacher who always pushed them to work harder and to do things that they never thought were possible.

Randy Pausch

2 comments:

  1. Hi Kayla,
    I have also been inspired by Dr. Pausch. I would have loved to have met him. After listening to his lecture I thought about it for days.
    I like that you refer to teachers as a "guiding light". It's sad but often times parents don't have faith in their own children. As teachers we have a chance to restore some of that lost faith. I think that you will definitely leave a positive mark on your students, just keep up that "Pausch Mindset". :)

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  2. A powerful lecture. I am moved every year when i watch it again. And he has some very important lessons about teaching and learning which you have identified.

    Well done!

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