Ted Talk Response #1 Sir Ken Robinson

1.    1.  What I first took away from this video is how I felt like I knew where Sir Ken Robinson was coming from. Many of my thoughts recently have been similar to his that he expressed. I also took away this somewhat new perspective of children – the way in which he described them: hopeful, already creative… it really made me think. When we think of kids we think of Crayola markers and scribbles… but he mentioned this idea of not being afraid of being wrong. This made me think of what is wrong and what is right, and it made me consider what we are taught today.

2.     2. Sir Ken Robinson has many effective speaking techniques. Obviously, he is quite funny and likes to interact with the audience and make them laugh. In addition, he laughs at himself as well, making his level of relaxation and ease increase, which in turn makes the audience feel more comfortable and more involved... like they want to be talked with. I also noticed how when he described a concept, he used the pronoun “we,” which tells the audience that he is one of them and that he feels a connection to what he speaks about.

3.     3. Sir Ken Robinson’s presentation style is completely relaxed. He does not move around, but this is made up for because he brings in personal experiences and funny examples to keep the audience interested at all times. The presentation appears to be rehearsed and practiced – but only in the sense of the information presented. It is possible to note, however, that every aspect of the presentation was probably rehearsed, not just the informational piece. The key is that Sir Ken brings in funny stories used as examples in such a way that it seems he had just remembered them… as if they weren’t a part of the original scripted presentation. This works wonders on the audience because they feel connected with the speaker due to his relaxation and his personal connections. Examples drawn from reality make it easier to get a point across. In addition, Sir Ken expresses concepts without completely telling the audience what to think. There is a moment used to draw in the audience, to make them understand, and most importantly… room to let them think about the concept.

4.     4. What matters from this video is the concepts presented. Like mentioned above, each concept did not appear to be telling the audience what exactly to think – but each concept appeared to express one different view of reality. Each aspect of the presentation had importance in itself. This video connects to me personally in the ways in which I felt I had had similar thoughts. Often I think of college entrance and what it means to be intelligent. In the sense of education and the world, this video matters because of people. People are all different. It is important to consider exactly what is being taught – and what exactly is considered right or successful - in order to realize that what it appears to be may not be what it actually is.