Blog 5: Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie "The Danger of a Single Story" TED Talk

In “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie argues the need to look beyond a single story describing a person or place because in doing so society will start to see people and places in a more complete manner. From when Adichi was a little girl in Nigeria, to a college student in the United States, to a tourist in Mexico, Adichie has learned the value of a single story. However, from what Adichie has learned, she has been able to determine that a single story distorts the reality of a person or place. To avoid stereotyping a person, Adichie emphasizes that society needs to see the completed series of someone’s stories. If society is able to reject a single story and “realize there is never a single story about any place,” (Adichie) society will be able to “regain a kind of paradise” (Adichie).

Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie effectively utilized personal stories, pacing, and pausing to create an inspiring TED Talk. Adichie’s speech was primarily based on stories throughout her life that helped her to realize the danger of a single story. Her stories made the talk easier to understand and relate to, while also making it more authentic and personal. During her talk, Adichie was well paced, never stumbling over her own words yet never speaking so slowly that she lost the audience’s attention. The pace at which Adichie spoke also helped to craft her stories and demonstrate their importance. Finally, Adichie was able to sufficiently integrate pauses into her talk. Her effective use of pauses was an element to her speech that added an exceptional amount of importance to the lessons she learned through her anecdotes. Through personal stories, pacing, and pausing effectively, Adichie was able to create an inspiring and informative TED Talk.

In “The Danger of a Single Story,” Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie correctly emphasizes why society needs to look past stereotypes and single stories because failure to do so will lead to a judgmental and divided world. Adichie believes, “...that is how to create a single story, show a people as one thing, as only one thing, over and over again, and that is what they become” (Adichie). As the repetition of one story becomes more prominent in daily life, largely due to the role of media, places, people, and groups become increasingly and erroneously stereotyped. According to Adichie, “...the problem with stereotypes is not that they are untrue, but that they are incomplete. They make one story become the only story” (Adichie). During World War II, many stereotypes were applied to the Germans; while many were true for some Germans, most were not true for the German people. Oskar Schindler, an ethnic German and a Catholic, would have been dubbed an Aryan who hated Jews because of the stories that had been broadcasted showing the hatred Germans felt towards Jews. However, by the end of the war, “Schindler had saved one thousand Jews from deportation to Auschwitz,” (United States Holocaust Memorial Museum) the infamous concentration camp in Poland. Schindler’s wife, Emilia, helped to employ another one thousand Jewish forced laborers, who had been relocated from the Krakow ghetto in Poland.

(Yad Vashem)

If someone were to meet Schindler during the time, he or she would have been likely to stereotype him as a typical Aryan German who disliked Jews. While this would have been one story that made up Schindler’s image, it was an incomplete image that could not have been further from the truth. Those who chose to listen and accept the other stories told about Schindler, truly witnessed his complete image. The stigma that had been appointed to Germans spawned division and judgment not only through your Europe, but around the world. Unfortunately, during World War II, not enough helpful Germans were able to make their story known to the public, thus leading to their fragmented image. Just as Germans were stereotyped during the war, Arapahoe High School easily could have been stereotyped as a school with various flaws and issues after the event that occurred on December 13. The students did not want Karl’s story to be the only one publicized and made negative by the media. Rather, many students shared their stories of forgiveness of Karl and concern for his family and how, through this tough time, they would be ‘Warrior Strong’ and treat others with love and kindness. The students refused to be seen as poor, helpless victims in the eyes of their close friends outside of school.

(Pray 4 Claire Fence)

Adichie explains, “Stories have been used to dispossess and malign, but stories can also be used to empower and to humanize” (Adichie) and through this paradox of tragedy, the students of Arapahoe utilized the power of story to change the stereotype that loomed over them. Rejection of a single story allowed the Arapahoe community to regain paradise and strength and diminish judgment and division. As technology advances, it is becoming easier for people to share their perspectives and stories on an issue. In “How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World” Clay Shirky described how people in communities and even around the world are collaborating ideas and stories to create something bigger than themselves. When Ory Okolloh and two other programmers created Ushahidi they revolutionized the way Kenyans shared their stories about the violence that occurred after disputed elections. Ushahidi has since been used to track snow in Washington, D.C. and, most famously, used in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake in Haiti. But the rise of Ushahidi and other forms of cognitive surplus have enabled people all over the world to share numerous different stories about one subject, area, or event.

(Knight Foundation)

As more and more people are utilizing free time, they are crafting stories to help bring unity among others. Just as the world is made up of trillions of atoms, the world is also made of a multitude of stories. And just as all these atoms are important to our existence, so are the stories that are created to make the world more understanding and complete. Without the rejection of a single story, society will never regain paradise but instead will be judgmental and divided.

Works Cited

Adichie, Chimamanda Ngozi. "The Danger of a Single Story." TED.com. TED Conferences, July 2009. Web. 25 Apr. 2014. <http://www.ted.com/talks/chimamanda_adichie_the_danger_of_a_single_story>.

Knight Foundation. N.d. Knight Blog. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. <http://www.knightfoundation.org/blogs/knightblog/2011/8/9/ushahidi-helps-bring-crowdsourcing-technology-to-132-countries/>.

Pray 4 Claire Fence, Arapahoe High School. Personal photograph by author. 2013.

United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. "Oskar Schindler." United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. United States Holocaust Memorial Council, 10 June 2013. Web. 25 Apr. 2014. <http://www.ushmm.org/wlc/en/article.php?ModuleId=10005787>.

Ushahidi. "About Us - Ushahidi." Ushahidi. Ushahidi, n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2014. <http://ushahidi.com/about-us/>.

Wikipedia. "Ushahidi." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Apr. 2014. Web. 26 Apr. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ushahidi>.

Yad Vashem. N.d. Yad Vashem. Web. 27 Apr. 2014. <http://collections.yadvashem.org/photosarchive/en-us/11826.html>.

Blog 4: Clay Shirky "How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World" TED Talk

In Clay Shirky’s TED Talk “How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World,” he explains that cognitive surplus will change the world because the world has one trillion hours of free time and that time is now being devoted to creating civic value through cognitive surplus. Shirky describes cognitive surplus through the example of the lawyer Ory Okolloh, in Kenya. Okolloh began blogging, on her website, Kenyan Pundit, about the violence that occurred after disputed elections. Soon there after the government imposed a media blackout. Okolloh’s blog went from being commentary “to a critical part of the media in trying to understand where the violence was” (Shirky). Two programmers who had read her blog offered to help her publish information that was coming in through the comments and in seventy-two hours they created Ushahidi. Ushahidi takes reports from the field and then publishes and makes that information known to the world. Shirky describes this as cognitive surplus: “It represents the ability of the world’s population to volunteer to contribute and collaborate on large, sometimes global projects” (Shirky). Through cognitive surplus, Shirky believes the world can collaborate and change in a positive manner.

Clay Shirky’s TED Talk was successful due to his effective speaking techniques such as hand movements, different voice inflections, and engaging visuals. Throughout his speech, Shirky constantly gesticulated. At some points there was too much hand movement, but overall it was very effective in helping visualize and get his point across to the audience. Shirky also utilized many different voice inflections. Sometimes his voice would be high, sometimes low and quiet. His different tones of voice helped the audience and viewers know what was more important and what was just extra details. The different voice inflections also prevented the speech from becoming too monotone and kept the audience from zoning out. Finally, Shirky had many engaging and supportive visuals. Shirky’s visuals always related to the example that he was talking about. When talking about the LOLcats, he had pictures of the LOLcats to help visualize what he was describing and back up his point. Clay Shirky’s gesticulations, voice inflections, and visuals all coming together  culminated in a very informative and outstanding speech.

Clay Shirky in “How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World,” correctly depicts why cognitive surplus will change the world because now people are having more activities to do and things to create during their free time. Shirky informs that in one year, “the world has over a trillion hours a year of free time to commit to shared projects” (Shirky). According to Shirky, in the past, “people weren’t couch potatoes because we liked to be. We were couch potatoes because that was the only opportunity given to us” (Shirky). The twenty first century has been a century encapsulated by technology and the social media created from that. However, the twenty first century has also been a time of emergence of the third Drive, according to author Dan Pink. Pink describes the third drive as being a type of motivation where people are motivated by self will and the want to improve at something purely out of enjoyment. This motivation is known as intrinsic motivation. When it is added up, free time + intrinsic motivation + creativity= cognitive surplus changing the world. The key variable of the equation to create a change in the world because of cognitive surplus is creativity. In his TED Talk “How Schools Kill Creativity,” Sir Ken Robinson describes how schools are educating kids out of creativity. If children are not allowed to be creative during the eight hours they spend in school, then they must save that for their free time. According to Pink, in a world where society is coming upon the Conceptual Age, creativity is becoming just as important as being literate (Robinson). The second vital part is intrinsic motivation. People will always have free time, but if they are not intrinsically motivated to do something productive, then they will continue to sit in front of the television. Cognitive surplus is dependent on intrinsic motivation. To have civic or even communal value, people have to be willing to put an effort into something that will not give them a reward such as money. And thus, through adding free time, intrinsic motivation, and creativity together, something such as Kony2012 can be created and brought to the eye of the public. The Kony2012 video portrayed Joseph Kony, central African warlord, and his Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) committing atrocities such as raping young girls and making boys join the resistance. Over ten days, the thirty minute video received over 75 million views and the hashtag, #kony2012, had been tweeted over half a million times (Chaput). The Kony2012 video was produced by a group called the Invisible Children who try to bring public attention to conflicts and help create action to solve the situation. Kony2012 is a form of civic value because it is a type of cognitive surplus in which society benefits and can change the world based off its creation. If not for the creativity of the video, the intrinsic motivation of the Invisible Children, and lots of free time, Kony would not have been exposed to the public eye. On the opposite hand, the creation of LOLcats is a form of communal value. In order to create the LOLcats meme someone had to have lots of free time and a bout of creativity to produce this hilarious and adorable meme. In his speech, Shirky describes LOLcats as “the stupidest possible creative act...but here’s the thing: the stupidest possible creative act is still a creative act” (Shirky). This perfectly outlines the reason why cognitive surplus will change the world. Although LOLcats could be argued to be one of the stupidest creations ever, it is nonetheless a creative act. And this creative act could lead to more creative acts causing a chain reaction of cognitive surplus around the world. Each new creation derives off of a previous invention and it is never ending now that people have become intrinsically motivated and want to spend their free time being creators. Wikipedia is a prime example of the ideal product of blending the third drive and free time together. On January 15, 2001 Wikipedia was formally launched and gave rise to a theory now known as cognitive surplus. With the use of technology in daily lives increasing, people now had ways to contribute to activities during their free time. Technology, free time, and intrinsic motivation all decided to get together and have a baby and they named it Wikipedia. Wikipedia was based off the idea that all different types of people should be able to contribute their perspective and knowledge on an issue into one big ‘pool’ of knowledge. The only catch was that none of the contributors would be paid. These contributors would be making contributions based on the sole fact that their motivation was self motivation and not by money or some other reward. In one of the most primitive, modern day examples of civic valued, cognitive surplus, Wikipedia has become a  landmark for all cognitive surplus creations to follow. The increasing presence of technology, free time, intrinsic motivation and creativity help fuel the fire of changing the world through cognitive surplus.

Works Cited

Chai, Barbara. "How to Stay Motivated-- and Get That Bonus." The Wall Street Journal. Dow Jones & Company, 31 Dec. 2009. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. <http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052748704152804574628230428869074>.

Chaput, Luke. "Our Online Wiki Guide Won't Be the New Kony 2012 – but It Doesn't Need to Be." Theguardian.com. Guardian News and Media, 14 Mar. 2012. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. <http://www.theguardian.com/voluntary-sector-network/2012/mar/14/online-wiki-kony-2012-be>.

"Cognitive Surplus." Urban Dictionary. Urban Dictionary, 25 May 2008. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. <http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=cognitive%20surplus>.

Greenblatt, Alan. "Joseph Kony Is Back In The News. Do Teenagers Still Care?" NPR. NPR, 25 Mar. 2014. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. <http://www.npr.org/blogs/parallels/2014/03/25/294315138/joseph-kony-is-back-in-the-news-do-teenagers-still-care>.

Invisible Children. "About." Invisible Children About Comments. 5ifty&5ifty, n.d. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. <http://invisiblechildren.com/about/>.

Robinson, Sir Ken. "How Schools Kill Creativity." TED.com. TED Conferences, Feb. 2006. Web. 22 Apr. 2014. <http://www.ted.com/talks/ken_robinson_says_schools_kill_creativity>.

Shirky, Clay. "How Cognitive Surplus Will Change the World." TED.com. TED Conferences, June 2010. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. <http://www.ted.com/talks/clay_shirky_how_cognitive_surplus_will_change_the_world>.

Wikipedia. "History of Wikipedia." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 22 Apr. 2014. Web. 23 Apr. 2014. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Wikipedia>.

Wired Magazine. "Cognitive Surplus: The Great Spare-Time Revolution | Magazine | WIRED." Wired.com. Conde Nast Digital, 22 May 0010. Web. 24 Apr. 2014. <http://www.wired.com/2010/05/ff_pink_shirky/2/>.

Blog 3: Dan Pink "The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us"

In Dan Pink’s “The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us,” Pink indicates the need for change not only within businesses but the world because of society’s changing approach to becoming motivated. Through many different studies and data, Pink is able to illustrate why and how people are becoming more intrinsically and less extrinsically motivated and what effect this is having on the world. Without change, businesses and the economy will not recognize the success it used to and wishes to see. Through Pink’s talk, he describes the importance of change in the world because of the growth of more intrinsically motivated workers.

To create a casual yet informative talk, Dan Pink effectively uses different voice inflections and the animated video efficiently uses animated drawings. Throughout his talk, Pink’s tone of voice was always changing. This constant changing made his talk more lively and enabled the audience to recognize what Pink wanted to emphasize more and what was used just as extra information to reinforce the facts and point he was trying to get across. The animated video allows for an easier and more visual way to follow what Pink is saying, helped to add some humor, and made it easier for younger viewers to understand what was being discussed. RSA’s animations also kept the viewer more entertained and attentive to the talk. The animated words that were written in the video corresponded with Pink’s major points, further emphasizing the most important details in his speech. Effective voice inflections and video animations enabled Pink to have a successful, explanatory talk.

Dan Pink in his talk “The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us,” accurately describes the demand to change society’s ‘inner workings’ because of the growth of intrinsically motivated people. Gone are the days when bosses could increase pay or give large bonuses and expect more effective work from employees. While some people are still extrinsically motivated, more people are starting to prefer to be motivated by themselves and their goals. Although most scoffed at the beginning of its creation, Wikipedia has become “...the 16th most visited site on the web” (Zhang and Zhu). To this day, Wikipedia has become one of the most well known and most visited websites on the world wide web. The trick about Wikipedia is that it thrives completely off intrinsically motivated people. From the beginning, no one was paid to add information to the website and yet it continued to grow (article we read). “The number of articles doubles every ten weeks from the beginning to March 2002 and ever 30 weeks March 2002 to October 2002. The rate stabilizes at at about doubling every 40 weeks afterwards...During the first year, the number of users doubles every 10 weeks, and after that, the number doubles every 22 weeks” (Zhang and Zhu). Other websites and businesses have had to change how they operate because of Wikipedia successful product from self motivated people, but the rest of the world must follow. Websites and business appear to be far ahead as far as adapting to the changing ways of motivation in their field. Since the Industrial Age businesses have become  more technology based thus making it easier for resulting in work that is more meaningful to the younger generation; meaningful work is one way to create a positive and successful intrinsic environment (Thomas). However, schools need to find a way to catch up and discover new ways to motivate students. Often today students are very unmotivated and procrastinate, or do not even complete homework. Getting good grades appears to not be a strong extrinsic motivation factor for most high school students. So why not create an environment where students are transformed into intrinsically motivated students. In order to change and generate avid learners schools need to make classes more applicable to daily life. Too often in school, the subject being taught has no use to students in their daily life (Kirk); thus leading to lack of motivation to complete assignments. Teachers also need to create a classroom environment in which everyone assists and motivates one another. “Perceived competence represents the extent to which a person believes that she has performed or is able to perform well at an activity...The higher the perceived competence, the higher is the motivation to exert effort for the group goals” (Zhang and Zhu). The converse of perceived competence is also true; if a person feels like their effort is going to waste, their motivation will decline. In order restore motivation and high educational status to America’s fine, young students, schools need to adapt to a more intrinsic friendly style of teaching and motivation. Refusal to adapt and change with the slowly evolving, intrinsically motivated world, will result in underachievement of businesses, economy, and society.

Works Cited

Kirk, Karin. "Motivating Students." Motivating Students. On the Cutting Edge, n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014. <http://serc.carleton.edu/NAGTWorkshops/affective/motivation.html>.

Thomas, Kenneth. "THE FOUR INTRINSIC REWARDS THAT DRIVE EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT - Ivey Business Journal." Ivey Business Journal. N.p., Nov.-Dec. 2009. Web. 20 Apr. 2014. <http://iveybusinessjournal.com/topics/the-workplace/the-four-intrinsic-rewards-that-drive-employee-engagement#.U1RkN-ZdXno>.

Zhang, Xiaoquan (Michael), and Feng Zhu. "Intrinsic Motivation of Open Case Contributors: The Case of Wikipedia." N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Apr. 2014. <http://butlercommonplace.org/thoughts/images/d/d8/ZhangZhu2006.pdf>.

Blog 2: Sarah Kay "If I Should Have a Daughter" TED Talk

In Sarah Kay’s “If I Should Have a Daughter,” Kay explains the importance of walking through life with open arms because without doing so, society will not be able to appreciate the aspects that make life worth living. For Kay, that was opening up her arms to spoken word poetry and embracing the risks. Without Kay having open arms to this new situation, she never would have opened all the doors that lead her to the helpful life she leads now. Through Kay’s TED Talk, she has illustrated the importance of walking through life ready to embrace everything, even the pain.

Sarah Kay’s TED Talk was interesting and easy to follow because of her effective speaking techniques. Her techniques involved being very vocal, maintaining eye contact, having appealing posture, and speaking at a perfect speed. Throughout her talk, Kay spoke loud and clear and maintained eye contact, helping to keep the audience involved. She also always stood with good posture; indicating that she was not nervous and did in fact want to be giving her talk. Finally, she spoke in a clear and perfectly paced voice. Except when telling anecdotes or spoken word poetry, Kay maintained an impeccable pace. She never spoke too slow or bored her audience, but she also never spoke so fast  that the audience could not decipher what she was saying. Kay’s effective speaking techniques allowed her TED Talk to appear well rehearsed and well put together, resulting in an outstanding speech.

Sarah Kay, in her TED talk “If I Should Have a Daughter,” correctly illustrates the importance of being vulnerable because without vulnerability, society loses its identity of being human. Kay portrays how when people walk through life guarded, they miss all the pain and sorrow, but they also miss the happiness and joy. When people walk through life guarded, they become unable to feel emotions. People are so focussed on guarding themselves and nothing else, that they begin not to feel. Kay believes it is necessary to walk with arms open to anything because although “you protect yourself from all the unexpected miseries and hurt that might show up...when beautiful amazing things fall out of the sky, I am ready to catch them” (Kay). Kay is not afraid to feel and is not afraid to be human. According to Rachael Oakes- Ash, a writer for The Sydney Morning Herald, “Vulnerable-apparently now represents courage and the ability to be real. Vulnerability makes us approachable, human, humble, and honest.” (Oakes-Ash). Oakes-Ash’s article about vulnerability describes how being defenseless is the new way to be strong, approachable, and real. No longer is vulnerability tied to hysterics, but to strength and genuine humanity. Opening up to others and to oneself can ultimately help one to rediscover what it is to not be a controlled robot. Kay also points out if one allows oneself to be exposed and, “to express yourself and have the courage to present those opinions and stories, you could be rewarded with a room full of your peers, or your community who will listen…” (Kay).  If everyone in society walks through life in a guarded stance, there is no chance to be vulnerable and feel the emotions that make people human.

Works Cited

Kay, Sarah. "If I Should Have a Daughter." Sarah Kay:. TED Talks, Mar. 2011. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.

Oakes-Ash, Rachael. "Why Vulnerable Is the New Confident." The Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax Media, 28 Jan. 2014. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.

Blog 1: Sir Ken Robinson "How Schools Kill Creativity" TED Talk

In Sir Ken Robinson’s “How Schools Kill Creativity,” Sir Ken Robinson illustrates the importance of changing school systems because without this change, creativity will disappear. During his talk, Robinson constantly describes the epidemic of children in school being educated out of creativity. The common discipline in schools is to keep children away from being interested in the outlying subjects such as art or music. This discipline limits and ultimately kills creativity. Sir Ken Robinson in “How Schools Kill Creativity,” describes the need to discover a cure for putting and end to imagination and originality.

Sir Ken Robinson utilized many effective techniques such as being very easygoing, having lots of humorous anecdotes to ease tension, and using proper voice inflection to get his point across. Throughout his TED Talk, Robinson was very laid back. He was never tense or nervous and made his talk very conversational which helped to make the talk casual and more informal. Robinson was able to give a light air to the conversation by also telling many humorous anecdotes. While the anecdotes sometimes dragged away from the point, the humor made it easier to relate to the points that Robinson wanted to make. Finally, Robinson used different voice inflections to make it known when the point was supposed to be serious or funny. The different voice inflections kept the speech from sounding boring and unimportant. Being casual, humorous, and utilizing different voice inflections were the most effective techniques that Sir Ken Robinson incorporated into his speech.

In his TED  Talk, “How Schools Kill Creativity,” Sir Ken Robinson correctly describes why it is crucial to “radically rethink what education looks like” because without doing so, people will always be afraid to be wrong or creative. According to the Huffington Post, out of all the developed countries in the world, the United States only ranks seventeenth in terms of education and Finland ranking first. That means sixteen other countries have more effective school systems than the U.S. which creates warning signs that the country needs to change now before it is too late. There are two big reasons as to why Finland schools are so successful: kids do not take ONE standardized test until the end of their senior year of high school and there are no rankings, comparison, or competition between students (Hancock). By seemingly eliminating standardized testing, this puts less pressure on students and less emphasis on the classes on top of the social pyramid (math, science, humanities, and world languages). With this lesser amount of focus on core subjects, children are able to think more creatively and outside the box since they do not have to stress about taking intimidating standardized tests. There is also no separation between smarter and less smart students or rich and poor students. All students learn the same things at the same pace. This allows ‘outlying’ students, students more interested in elective type classes, to not be “educated out of creativity.” Classes are not favored in terms of core or elective, each student has a chance to be creative in their own way. Keeping the existing school systems in place could lead to accidentally killing off potential creative geniuses. Creativeness needs to not be discriminated against or medicated if it is going thrive within the human world. In one of Robinson’s anecdotes, he narrates a snippet of Gillian Lynn’s life, a woman who is a renowned choreographer. Early on in school Gillian had trouble staying still, now known as ADHD, but during the 1930s ADHD had not been invented. Gillian went to see a specialist with her mom and after about 20 minutes of conversation the doctor and her mom ‘left’ to talk privately; on the way out the doctor turned the radio on. As soon as Gillian’s mom and doctor had left, she began dancing. The doctor told Gillian’s mom to take her to a dance school, and when they finally went Gillian described it as a room full of people just like her. Robinson goes on to describe how someone could have decided to give Gillian medications thus putting her unknown talents to rest (Robinson). The problem today is, rather than help children discover their talents, doctors medicate one’s issues and kill creativity that could blossom into an extreme talent. In order to avoid killing creativity, it is vital that people need to rethink the ways in which education is thought of and presented to children. To further increase creativity within schools and children, students should be allowed to choose their own schedules, teachers, and how many days a week the class is. I believe that it is still important to have all four core classes required; I believe you should be able to choose how many days a week a particular class is, but students should not be allowed to have a class less than one day a week unless it is a lab. Through this type of scheduling students can choose classes more related to their strengths and interests. Say there is a student who loves music, they should be able to take as many band and/or music classes as he or she would like.  This way, the student can expand learning on their passions and talents and not be forced to fit in with the image of a typical student. By expanding this area of a student’s power, schools should see numerous students flourish in something creative and different. If society refuses to “rethink what education looks like” creativity will meet a quick extinction.

Works Cited

"History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places | Smithsonian." History, Travel, Arts, Science, People, Places | Smithsonian. Smithsonian Magazine, Sept. 2011. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.

Robinson, Sir Ken. "Ken Robinson: How Schools Kill Creativity." Ken Robinson: How Schools Kill Creativity. TED Talks, Feb. 2006. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.

Zhao, Emmeline. "Best Education In The World: Finland, South Korea Top Country Rankings, U.S. Rated Average." The Huffington Post. TheHuffingtonPost.com, 27 Nov. 2012. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

Ben Franklin PLN

“They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety” Ben Franklin ,1759

Benjamin Franklin, in his quote, states that those willing to give up personal rights for more security don’t deserve either. Franklin explains if people are willing to give up some personal rights to gain a small amount of protection, they deserve neither.

Benjamin Franklin was accurate when he expressed that giving up personal rights for security is an act of cowardice, in which the person deserves neither freedom or safety. Everything begins with a small act and then grows bigger. If I let the NSA search my phone, which is only a small invasion of my privacy,  they will begin to feel as if they have the authority to search my computer, my backpack, then my locker, and they will progressively start to become more invasive. The NSA can say they are intruding and invading my property if it is in the name of safety and security. Yet slowly they are taking away my freedoms and my personal rights. And in the end because I wanted to have more security, I would deserve neither because I made a naive decision. Franklin’s statement was also correct because America was founded on giving people more freedoms not more security. This is evident in the Bill of Rights, which are the most iconic freedoms that Americans have and is the reason why many people immigrate to America. If Americans were to give up personal freedoms for security, our country may as well not have even started a revolution against Britain or written the Bill of Rights. Americans could’ve had any imperialistic nation surveil us 24/7, but to sacrifice our rights to our own government contradicts what we “stand” for. It is impossible to be “...the land of the free..” (Star Spangled Banner) if we sacrifice our freedoms for security, making us deserving of neither.

Technology Videos S/R Response

Karl Fisch, in his video “Did You Know?” depicts how American students will be the future leaders of our country, but are behind other countries educationally.

In Karl Fisch’s video “Did You Know?”, he accurately portrays the change needed to occur in the United States education systems, if America wants to innovate and challenge other countries educationally and technologically. As the video begins the words “did you know?” flash across the screen which are then followed by the fact, “China has more honors kids than America has kids”(Fisch, “Did”). Right off the bat, Karl Fisch utilizes this fact to prove that students in the United States are educationally behind one of the most potent challengers to the United States, China. If America is to challenge China in the future, it will have to ramp up education so that their are more honors students who can eventually help invent innovative technology. In Dr. Michael Wesch’s video “A Vision of Students Today” students in a regular college class hold up signs, beginning with two stating, “My average class size is 115,” “18% of my teachers know my name”(Wesch, “A Vision”). Dr. Michael Wesch is trying to convey that most college classes are more about quantity rather than quality of work. As average class sizes grow bigger, teachers are not able to give students the one on one attention they deserve to grow and learn as a student who could potentially become an innovator for the future. If students’ education continues to lack in quality, then America will not be able to, according to Fisch and Wesch, “move ahead” of other countries and challenge them.