Comments on: The Best Part Of The President’s Speech & How I’ll Use It

By: Two Dishes

Two Dishes — Tue, 03 Aug 2010 01:05:24 +0000

Wow, so good. I surfed here from the Edutopia site.
I too teach in an urban school, in Brooklyn.
I think I will go over part of President Obama’s speech with my kids in September. I wish I could post it on the wall somehow but it is kind of wordy. I may put some on the projector one day and hand some out another day. Now that I’ve taught for a few years I am increasing my pep talks and this speech is a great pep talk.
Thanks for posting it!

By: Patti

Patti — Fri, 11 Sep 2009 12:45:30 +0000

I would add that real students ask questions! And that helps us learn throughout life, as it leads us to think critically, and not just swallow everything we see and hear.

By: Mary E. Haas

Mary E. Haas — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 13:17:52 +0000

Some parents are LUCKY and have perfect children who believe and do what their parents say. Those parents whose children are not like this need all of the help they can get. The same can be said for teachers. It is a help that the most powerful person in the world , who is admired by children and youth, takes the time to address the youth and to deliver a message that MOST parents and teachers try very hard to get over to their youth. In teaching I found that it was helpful for me to point out that the public through the laws of the state indicates that these are qualities needed and that doing class assignments and group were just not my expectations, but those of the citizens of the entire state. I noticed surprised looks on the faces of many teens who did not realize that things are expected of them by society and it was just not a teacher or parent trying to take away their freedom.

By: Larry Ferlazzo

Larry Ferlazzo — Tue, 08 Sep 2009 00:13:25 +0000

Claus,

Thanks for the kind words.

You’re right on target about the dangers of pushing immediate gratification. Of course, in order to avoid that trap, teachers have to spend time developing relationships with their students to learn what their visions and goals are so that they can structure their learning “propositions” (an old organizer term) effectively.

Larry

By: Claus

Claus — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 23:18:18 +0000

This is a wonderful post, Larry, and your set of goals sounds terrific. It’s nice to see the president using his bully pulpit to promote goal-setting, responsibility and hard work.

His text points to another issue as well. Student engagement shouldn’t necessarily mean instant gratification. I often worry that some school reformers OVERsell engagement as if it would eternally remove every difficulty involved in learning. Students who are truly engaged will wait for deferred rewards and develop persistence when things get tough. The president’s speech makes this point well.

By: Keishla Ceaser-Jones

Keishla Ceaser-Jones — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 17:46:22 +0000

Perfect!!! This is what I say to students EVERY year, and how powerful it will be to hear from the president. I can’t believe how crazy people have gotten over the possibility of their child hearing words of ENCOURAGEMENT from the president!

I hope all teachers do this!

By: [Blocked by CFC] Winslow Eliot

[Blocked by CFC] Winslow Eliot — Mon, 07 Sep 2009 17:38:08 +0000

Beautifully posted – good to make President Obama’s words even more personal for our students. I’m going to do the same thing, thanks to this.