Everyone is Smart: TEDEd Example

Bradley Lands

27 Mar 201404:17

EducationalLearning

32 Likes 10 Comments

TLDRIn 'Everyone is Smart' by Bradley Lands, the author shares his personal struggle with standardized testing, feeling less intelligent due to his inability to excel effortlessly. Despite his challenges, he managed to achieve good grades and a successful career in teaching. It was through reading 'Mindset' by Dr. Carol Dweck that he embraced the concept of a growth mindset, realizing that intelligence can be developed through effort. Lands learned that everyone possesses unique strengths and intelligences, as proposed by Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences. He encourages individuals to identify and leverage their strengths while improving weaknesses, emphasizing that education, practice, and hard work can lead to personal growth and success.

Takeaways

📚 The speaker struggled with tests from a young age, indicating that traditional testing is not the only measure of intelligence.
🤔 The tendency to overthink during tests highlights the impact of anxiety on performance, not necessarily a lack of knowledge.
👥 The speaker observed that peers seemed to excel in tests more easily, suggesting that intelligence manifests in different ways for different people.
📉 Despite initial low SAT scores, the speaker was able to succeed academically, demonstrating resilience and the importance of perseverance.
📈 Tutoring and additional practice helped improve the speaker's confidence, showing the value of targeted support in learning.
📉 A second, lower SAT score was a setback, but it didn't prevent the speaker from getting into a good college, reinforcing that a single test does not define one's capabilities.
🎓 Success in college and securing a teaching job further illustrates that standardized test scores are not the sole determinant of future achievements.
💡 The concept of 'growth mindset' introduced by Dr. Carol Dweck was a turning point for the speaker, emphasizing that intelligence can be developed with effort.
🚀 The realization that everyone is smart in their own way encourages a broader understanding of intelligence beyond traditional academic measures.
🌟 Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences was enlightening, suggesting that there are various types of intelligence beyond academic smarts.
💪 The speaker's journey encourages leveraging personal strengths and working on weaknesses, advocating for a balanced approach to personal development.
🏆 The message is one of empowerment, urging individuals to be proud of who they are and to understand that abilities can always be enhanced through education and hard work.

Q & A

What was the narrator's experience with tests since childhood?
-The narrator has always found tests difficult since kindergarten, often needing to study hard, practice for hours, and get extra help to do well.
Why did the narrator often choose the wrong answer on multiple-choice tests?
-The narrator often got nervous or anxious and overthought the questions, which led to choosing the wrong answers.
How did the narrator's belief in multiple solutions affect their test-taking?
-The belief that there is more than one right answer to a question made it difficult for the narrator to choose the right answers on tests.
What was the narrator's perception of their intelligence due to their test-taking struggles?
-The narrator grew up thinking they were not smart because they had to work harder than their peers to get good grades.
How did the narrator's friends' test-taking abilities make them feel?
-The narrator felt frustrated because their friends seemed to pass tests easily without studying, which made them feel inadequate.
What was the narrator's initial SAT score and how did it make them feel?
-The narrator's initial SAT score was 1000 out of 1600, which was equivalent to a 63%. They were very disappointed with this result.
What steps did the narrator take to improve their SAT score?
-The narrator decided to get a tutor and worked with them twice a week for a few months to improve their score.
How did the narrator's SAT score change after tutoring?
-Surprisingly, after tutoring, the narrator's SAT score dropped to 980, which was worse than their initial score.
What helped the narrator get into a good college despite their SAT scores?
-The narrator was able to get into a good college due to their good grades in school and the hard work they put into their studies.
What was the turning point for the narrator's understanding of their own intelligence?
-The turning point was when the narrator read the book 'Mindset' by Dr. Carol Dweck, which introduced the concept of a growth mindset and the idea that intelligence can be developed.
What are the three valuable lessons the narrator learned from 'Mindset'?
-The three lessons were: 1) Anyone can get smarter through education and practice, 2) The narrator's intellectual strength lies in divergent, creative thinking, and 3) Difficulties in life should be seen as challenges and opportunities for growth.
What is the concept of Multiple Intelligences as introduced by Howard Gardner?
-The concept of Multiple Intelligences suggests that everyone has at least one type of intelligence, such as music smart, body smart, or people smart, and that no one type of intelligence is necessarily better than the others.
What challenge does the narrator issue to the audience at the end of the script?
-The narrator challenges the audience to identify their strengths and weaknesses, to leverage their strengths, and to work on improving their weaknesses, emphasizing that everyone can always improve their abilities with education, practice, and hard work.

Outlines

00:00

📚 Struggling with Tests and Self-Perception

Bradley Lands shares his personal struggles with testing from a young age, highlighting the difficulty he faced with multiple-choice tests and his tendency to overthink questions. He often felt less intelligent compared to his peers who seemed to pass tests effortlessly. Despite his challenges, he managed to perform well academically by studying hard and seeking extra help. However, his SAT scores were disappointing, and even tutoring didn't improve his results. Nevertheless, he was able to secure a good college education and a successful teaching career, attributing his achievements to hard work rather than test-taking ability.

💡 Embracing the Growth Mindset and Multiple Intelligences

The speaker's perspective on intelligence shifted after reading Dr. Carol Dweck's book 'Mindset', which introduced the concept of a 'growth mindset'. This idea posits that intellectual abilities can be developed through dedication and effort. The author learned that everyone has unique strengths and that intelligence is not a one-dimensional trait. Drawing from Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences, the speaker realized that different types of intelligences, such as musical, bodily-kinesthetic, or interpersonal, are all valuable. He encourages viewers to identify and leverage their strengths while working on their weaknesses, emphasizing that everyone can improve through education, practice, and perseverance.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Test-taker

A test-taker is an individual who participates in a test or examination. In the context of the video, the speaker identifies as someone who has always struggled with tests, needing to study hard and practice extensively. This concept is central to the video's theme, as it sets the stage for the speaker's journey of self-discovery and realization of their own intelligence.

💡Multiple-choice tests

Multiple-choice tests are a type of assessment where respondents are given a question and several possible answers, out of which they must choose the correct one. The speaker mentions a particular difficulty with these tests, often leading to anxiety and incorrect choices, which underscores the challenges faced by individuals who do not naturally excel in traditional testing environments.

💡Anxiety

Anxiety is a feeling of nervousness or unease, typically about an imminent event or something with an uncertain outcome. The script describes how the speaker would get nervous or anxious during tests, which affected their ability to choose the right answers and contributed to their perception of not being smart.

💡Intellectual skills

Intellectual skills refer to the abilities of the mind to reason, understand, and apply knowledge. The video discusses the idea that these skills can be developed through effort, as introduced by Dr. Carol Dweck's concept of a 'growth-mindset'. This idea is pivotal to the video's message, suggesting that intelligence is not fixed but can be cultivated.

💡Growth-mindset

A growth-mindset is a concept introduced by Dr. Carol Dweck, which posits that human qualities, including intellectual skills, can be improved and developed through dedication and hard work. This concept is central to the video's narrative, as it helps the speaker to understand and embrace their own intelligence and potential for growth.

💡Divergent thinking

Divergent thinking is a thought process that involves generating multiple solutions or ideas to a problem, rather than just one correct answer. The speaker identifies their intellectual strength as divergent, creative thinking, which contrasts with the traditional testing methods that often require convergent thinking towards a single correct answer.

💡Challenges

Challenges are difficult tasks or obstacles that one must overcome. The video encourages viewing difficulties in life as challenges and opportunities for growth, which aligns with the theme of personal development and the idea that struggles can lead to learning and improvement.

💡Multiple Intelligences

Multiple Intelligences is a theory proposed by Howard Gardner, suggesting that there are various types of intelligence beyond just the academic, such as musical, bodily-kinesthetic, and interpersonal intelligences. This theory is mentioned in the video to emphasize the diversity of human capabilities and to challenge the traditional notion of a single definition of 'smart'.

💡Strengths and weaknesses

Strengths and weaknesses refer to the positive and negative attributes or capabilities of an individual. The speaker encourages identifying one's own strengths and weaknesses and using them to one's advantage. This concept is integral to the video's message of self-awareness and leveraging personal attributes for success.

💡Education and practice

Education and practice are key components in the development of skills and knowledge. The video emphasizes the importance of education and practice in improving abilities, suggesting that with dedication and effort, one can enhance their intellectual skills and overcome perceived shortcomings.

💡Self-improvement

Self-improvement is the process of enhancing one's abilities, knowledge, or situation. The video's message is one of self-improvement, advocating for the continuous effort to better oneself through education, practice, and hard work, regardless of initial perceived abilities.

Highlights

The speaker admits to never being a good test-taker since childhood.

Difficulty in tests, especially multiple-choice, due to nervousness and overthinking.

Belief in multiple right answers and solutions, hindering test performance.

Self-perception of not being smart due to test-taking struggles.

Comparisons with peers who found tests easy, causing feelings of inadequacy.

The speaker's approach to rereading questions and second-guessing answers.

Despite challenges, the speaker achieved good grades through hard work.

Initial SAT score of 1000, a disappointment for the speaker.

Enlisting a tutor to improve SAT score, but experiencing a drop to 980.

Overcoming test score challenges to get into a good college and a great teaching job.

Introduction to the concept of 'growth-mindset' from Dr. Carol Dweck's book 'Mindset'.

Three key lessons learned from the book: anyone can get smarter, intellectual strength in divergent thinking, and viewing difficulties as growth opportunities.

Understanding that everyone is smart in their own unique way.

Howard Gardner's theory of Multiple Intelligences and the recognition of various types of intelligence.

The importance of celebrating differences and multiple intelligences in society.

A challenge to identify personal strengths and weaknesses and use them to advantage.

Encouragement to leverage strengths, improve weaknesses, and believe in one's ability to improve through education and practice.

Transcripts

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How to Be Smarter | 8 Types of Intelligence | Theory of Multiple Intelligences

Being your Own Life Coach | John Muldoon | TEDxShanghaiAmericanSchoolPuxi

Everyone is Smart: TEDEd Example

Takeaways

Q & A

What was the narrator's experience with tests since childhood?

Why did the narrator often choose the wrong answer on multiple-choice tests?

How did the narrator's belief in multiple solutions affect their test-taking?

What was the narrator's perception of their intelligence due to their test-taking struggles?

How did the narrator's friends' test-taking abilities make them feel?

What was the narrator's initial SAT score and how did it make them feel?

What steps did the narrator take to improve their SAT score?

How did the narrator's SAT score change after tutoring?

What helped the narrator get into a good college despite their SAT scores?

What was the turning point for the narrator's understanding of their own intelligence?

What are the three valuable lessons the narrator learned from 'Mindset'?

What is the concept of Multiple Intelligences as introduced by Howard Gardner?

What challenge does the narrator issue to the audience at the end of the script?