TED Community » Justin Garrard

Comments

• TEDCred score: +0.80 TEDCred reflects your contribution to the TED community.

• +2

  A comment on Conversation: How can we best engage college students in the idea of learning instead of just getting a degree?

  Mar 17 2013: I've read a number of the posts here, and I'd like to give my two cents.
  
  As a student:
  My job is to get good grades, in order to get scholarships for the next year, in order to get money, in order to get a degree, in order to get a job, in order to get money. It starts at good grades.
  Everyone has their own opinion on grades. Some people consider them harmful to learning, others essential. In my experience, it depends wholly on the teacher. "Get a good grade" can translate to a lot of things. It could mean "demonstrate the material", or "repeat after me", or "participate in class", or "think on your own".
  Different base purposes lead to different results, but more so than that, different ways of executing those base purposes lead to positive or negative results. In short, it's not the format of the class, it's how the format is used.
  
  As a teacher:
  I need to make sure my students get a good balance of "what is needed to pass the test" and "what is needed to actually do something".
  I've been teaching martial arts for four years now. There is a significant divide between knowing the katas and using the martial art. Students need to know the kata to pass the test. Practical application is often implied, but rarely tested. Knowing the kata trains students in the proper technique, without which they would hurt themselves using the art. Using the art though, is why you learn the katas in the first place.
  I think the important lesson to take from this is that the majority of students will learn what you test them on, but not much farther.
  
  
  We then return to the original topic. The test format parallels the martial arts tests. Students want a degree (or their next belt). They will learn whatever is required of them to do so, but not any farther. To go farther requires a different mentality, or a different way of teaching. The teaching is part format, part execution. Set a goal that relates to further learning, then execute it in a way that encourages further learning.
• +1

  A comment on Conversation: What is the biggest problem you want to solve?

  Dec 14 2012: Fixing people would be my first choice. Removing apathy, installing better education, etc.
  
  But I too am an Electrical Engineering undergraduate, and I realize that as far as projects go that one is a bit out of our fields. So, something in the field:
  
  1. Set up a household energy monitoring system.
  
  This was one I proposed my senior year of high school, but lacked the electronics knowledge to design an actual product. Make products that perform the same function as electrical outlets and switches, but with wireless (induction-based?) sensors that transmit energy consumption data to a hub. Also, make them remotely operable so that home/business owners can shut off or turn on lights on command.
  
  2. Find a good way to repurpose old desktop computers.
  
  This one falls more under computer science than EE, but I think a case could be made for it. Find a way to do something either with all the raw materials of the computers or the processing/disk space of older machines.

• A comment on Conversation: What are the limitations that keep new educational designs from being implemented tomorrow in schools and especially in higher education?

  Nov 22 2012: I am a first year college student as well. To answer your questions in order...
  
  Yes, I believe the current education models are woefully inadequate.
  
  I believe it's caused by a wide variety of factors. Economics and sociology are but two, albeit two large encompassing areas.
  
  The "academic world" is like many other societies. That is to say, it is not of a single mind. There are many professors who wish to change the way things are structured, but when students are paying $500 for tuition and textbooks the students expect a finished product. Teachers can be fired for using an off the wall approach that fails.
  
  The corporate world is all for higher education so long as it means you can do your job better. in fact, they'll even help fund some of the research on better education practices if it's in their interest (particularly tech companies).
  
  Governmental systems each have their own unique take on the situation. Some actively promote changes in education. Others very aggressively resist it.
  
  The education systems of today aren't something I would say can be "solved". Rather, I believe they will evolve. As can be seen in your Related Talks list, a number of technologies and practices have been proposed for building a better system. Many schools are taking note, and making conservative moves towards a transition. For example, the concept of a fully online class was inconceivable two decades ago. Now, almost every college (and even some high schools) are utilizing them. As technologies and methods are tried and tested, they will become more accepted.
  
  All of this, however, doesn't solve your immediate problem of dull classes. My personal advice is to learn the material they teach, and then learn past it on your own. Independent study is much more enjoyable than rote. Additionally, it's fueled by your motivation rather than your teacher's. Google Coursera and pick a class that interests you, or one you aren't satisfied with.
  
  Best of luck Joao.
• +2

  A comment on Conversation: How can America wean itself from fossil fuels when fossil fuels are so cheap?

  Nov 13 2012: It has been my experience that you should not expect individuals to lower their quality of life purposefully. It is possible, some willingly choose to replace flush toilets with composers or make their homes "green". These people are outliers though. They do not represent the majority of people.
  
  The best way to turn an ideal like green energy into a commonly accepted reality is to make it worthwhile. We can spend all day decrying the evils of capitalism, but the bottom line is an important consideration. Fossil fuels are, in a monetary sense, cheap. Green energy costs extra.
  
  Green energy has the potential to overtake fossil fuels though. Indeed, I believe it to be inevitable. Every ton of coal consumed is one ton less on the planet, which will eventually lead to the cost of coal increasing by the laws of supply and demand. Sunlight, wind, and hydro aren't bound by the same constraints. They will only get cheaper as the technology to utilize them improves.
  
  The big question, then, is how do we speed up the process?

• A comment on Conversation: What motivates you?

  Sep 26 2012: To grow, change, and experience the world around me.
  To honor those that have put their hope in me.
  To change the world for the better, to do something more than complain.
  To help others at micro and macro levels, in a strangely twisted form of altruism.
  To find new motivations, and analyze why.
• +3

  A comment on Conversation: Are there any teens on this site?

  Aug 6 2012: Hello.
  I am 18 years old as well. I understand your feeling of isolation from your age group, as well as the developing (for lack of a better term) arrogance.
  
  It's difficult. The rest of our age group, heck, even the world, seems to be fluttering about aimlessly. Precious few people seem willing to talk in depth about anything. Don't despair though, they're out there. You'll find them, though you may have to seek them out. They can become some of the most wonderful friends you'll ever meet. They will help you reach new levels of understanding and development.
  
  A word of caution though; beware that feeling of superiority. You are special, and likely more intelligent than many of your friends. Don't look down at them though. Every individual, no matter how frivolous or uninspired, has something to teach. They have feelings, emotions, and thoughts as well. Treat them with kindness and empathy. Do your best to understand them, and why they are who they are. Learn from them, and never belittle them. And if you can, try to coax them to grow a little. Never force it, but gently touch upon it.
  
  Good luck to you all in your endeavors. I hope that someday I have the chance to meet some of you in person.

• A reply on Conversation: How is the school you would dream you or your children to go to? What is your wish for tomorrow's education?

  Feb 9 2012: I would like to elaborate even more upon the truth you stated, that "we don't learn anything about relationships in school."
  The high school I attended was a charter school with an emphasis on technical and professional education, emphasis on professional. During my time at the school I dated I wonderful girl from my engineering class. Two months into our relationship, the principal pulled us aside and gave us a talk. He outlined that there would be no kissing at the school, that hugs were to be limited to three a day for no more than five seconds, and that holding hands was allowed.
  As time went on, she became something of a representative for our school at the state level, and then the national level. I became an assistant martial arts instructor with 300 students (quite a number in the small town we lived in). The restrictions scaled with our rank. Outside of school we were constantly bumping into people that we worked with. More and more we were confined to expectations. We needed to act appropriately and professionally, as representatives and leaders. Which meant that we couldn't be caught kissing or making eyes at one another.
  This is understandably appropriate for a professional environment, but keep in mind, we were fifteen. How are we to learn of relationships when we aren't allowed to be in relationships?