1
00:00:12,768 --> 00:00:15,400
Host: Please welcome
to the TEDxSonomaCounty stage,

2
00:00:15,400 --> 00:00:16,760
Todd Rose.

3
00:00:16,760 --> 00:00:19,760
(Applause)

4
00:00:24,161 --> 00:00:27,948
Todd Rose: It's 1952,
and the Air Force has a problem.

5
00:00:28,748 --> 00:00:32,533
They've got good pilots
flying better planes,

6
00:00:33,063 --> 00:00:35,135
but they're getting worse results.

7
00:00:35,135 --> 00:00:37,058
And they don't know why.

8
00:00:37,468 --> 00:00:40,404
For a while, they blamed the pilots.

9
00:00:40,984 --> 00:00:43,140
They even blamed the technology.

10
00:00:43,500 --> 00:00:46,471
They eventually got around
to blaming the flight instructors.

11
00:00:47,151 --> 00:00:50,528
But it turned out that the problem
was actually with the cockpit.

12
00:00:51,161 --> 00:00:52,414
Let me explain.

13
00:00:53,644 --> 00:00:55,970
Imagine you're a fighter pilot.

14
00:00:56,970 --> 00:00:58,985
You're operating a machine

15
00:00:58,985 --> 00:01:02,656
that in some cases can travel faster
than the speed of sound,

16
00:01:04,266 --> 00:01:08,208
and where issues
between success and failure,

17
00:01:08,208 --> 00:01:10,072
sometimes life and death,

18
00:01:10,072 --> 00:01:12,408
can be measured in split seconds.

19
00:01:13,268 --> 00:01:15,099
If you're a fighter pilot,

20
00:01:15,689 --> 00:01:18,472
you know that your performance

21
00:01:18,472 --> 00:01:23,811
depends fundamentally
on the fit between you and your cockpit.

22
00:01:24,632 --> 00:01:28,751
Because after all, what good
is the best technology in the world,

23
00:01:28,751 --> 00:01:30,760
if you can't reach
the critical instruments

24
00:01:30,760 --> 00:01:32,500
when you need them the most?

25
00:01:33,420 --> 00:01:36,360
But this presents a challenge
for the Air Force.

26
00:01:36,980 --> 00:01:39,960
Because obviously,
pilots are not the same size.

27
00:01:42,490 --> 00:01:43,961
So, the issue is:

28
00:01:43,961 --> 00:01:49,733
how do you design one cockpit
that can fit the most individuals?

29
00:01:51,521 --> 00:01:52,953
For a long time,

30
00:01:52,953 --> 00:01:58,015
it was assumed that you could do this
by designing for the average pilot.

31
00:01:59,642 --> 00:02:01,808
That almost seems intuitively right.

32
00:02:01,808 --> 00:02:06,271
If you design something
that's fit for the average sized person,

33
00:02:07,071 --> 00:02:09,127
wouldn't it fit most people?

34
00:02:10,087 --> 00:02:13,048
It seems right but it's actually wrong.

35
00:02:13,512 --> 00:02:15,108
And 60 years ago,

36
00:02:15,108 --> 00:02:18,090
an Air Force researcher, Gilbert Daniels,

37
00:02:18,090 --> 00:02:21,080
proved to the world
just how wrong this really is,

38
00:02:21,080 --> 00:02:22,995
and what it was costing us.

39
00:02:23,835 --> 00:02:25,500
Here's how he did it.

40
00:02:26,530 --> 00:02:30,360
He studied over 4,000 pilots

41
00:02:31,330 --> 00:02:34,744
and he measured them
on ten dimensions of size,

42
00:02:35,334 --> 00:02:37,750
and he asked a very simple question:

43
00:02:38,750 --> 00:02:42,670
how many of these pilots
are average on all ten dimensions?

44
00:02:43,540 --> 00:02:44,990
(Laughter)

45
00:02:44,990 --> 00:02:48,971
The assumption was
that most of them would be.

46
00:02:49,761 --> 00:02:51,718
Do you know how many really were?

47
00:02:52,918 --> 00:02:54,096
Zero.

48
00:02:55,016 --> 00:02:56,431
Gilbert Daniels proved

49
00:02:56,431 --> 00:02:59,883
there was no such thing
as an average pilot.

50
00:03:01,813 --> 00:03:04,050
Instead, what he found

51
00:03:04,900 --> 00:03:11,313
was that every single pilot
had what we call a jagged size profile.

52
00:03:12,232 --> 00:03:13,290
Right?

53
00:03:13,970 --> 00:03:17,970
It means no one is the same
on every dimension.

54
00:03:18,290 --> 00:03:19,521
And this makes sense.

55
00:03:19,521 --> 00:03:22,391
Just because you're the tallest person

56
00:03:22,391 --> 00:03:24,235
doesn't mean you're the heaviest,

57
00:03:24,235 --> 00:03:26,328
doesn't mean you have
the broadest shoulders,

58
00:03:26,328 --> 00:03:27,920
or the longest torso.

59
00:03:28,650 --> 00:03:33,109
But this is tricky because if every pilot
has a jagged size profile

60
00:03:33,737 --> 00:03:36,277
and you design a cockpit on average,

61
00:03:37,107 --> 00:03:39,726
you've literally designed it for nobody.

62
00:03:41,236 --> 00:03:44,273
So, the Air Force
realized they had a problem.

63
00:03:45,563 --> 00:03:47,668
And their response was bold.

64
00:03:49,288 --> 00:03:51,140
They banned the average.

65
00:03:51,770 --> 00:03:53,250
(Laughter)

66
00:03:53,250 --> 00:03:54,879
Meaning that moving forward,

67
00:03:54,879 --> 00:03:57,298
they refused to buy fighter jets

68
00:03:57,968 --> 00:04:01,525
where the cockpit was designed
for an average sized pilot.

69
00:04:02,921 --> 00:04:07,210
And instead, they demanded
that the companies who built these planes

70
00:04:08,071 --> 00:04:11,602
designed them to the edges
of dimensions of size.

71
00:04:12,092 --> 00:04:15,712
Meaning that rather than design
for, say, the average height,

72
00:04:15,712 --> 00:04:17,950
they wanted a cockpit
that could accommodate

73
00:04:17,950 --> 00:04:21,198
as close to the shortest pilot
and the tallest pilot

74
00:04:21,198 --> 00:04:23,120
as the technology would allow.

75
00:04:23,880 --> 00:04:27,620
Now, the companies that made these planes,
as you could imagine,

76
00:04:27,620 --> 00:04:29,770
weren't happy, right?

77
00:04:30,161 --> 00:04:32,885
They argued, and lobbied, and they said,

78
00:04:32,885 --> 00:04:37,044
it's going to be impossible
or at least impossibly expensive

79
00:04:37,504 --> 00:04:39,298
to build a flexible cockpit.

80
00:04:40,236 --> 00:04:44,392
But once they realized
that the Air Force wasn't going to budge,

81
00:04:44,830 --> 00:04:46,721
suddenly, it was possible.

82
00:04:47,191 --> 00:04:49,680
And it turned out
it wasn't that expensive.

83
00:04:50,020 --> 00:04:52,751
And in fact, they made great strides

84
00:04:53,661 --> 00:04:55,709
leveraging simple solutions

85
00:04:55,709 --> 00:04:58,550
that we all take for granted
in our everyday life,

86
00:04:58,550 --> 00:05:00,320
like adjustable seats.

87
00:05:01,510 --> 00:05:03,392
And as a result,

88
00:05:03,392 --> 00:05:05,070
the Air Force not only

89
00:05:05,070 --> 00:05:08,369
improved the performance
of the pilots that they already had,

90
00:05:09,189 --> 00:05:12,060
but they dramatically
expanded their talent pool.

91
00:05:13,020 --> 00:05:17,361
And today, we have the most diverse
pool of fighter pilots ever.

92
00:05:17,841 --> 00:05:19,231
But here's the thing,

93
00:05:19,231 --> 00:05:24,494
many of our top pilots would have never
fit in a cockpit designed on average.

94
00:05:26,211 --> 00:05:29,410
So, most of us have never sat

95
00:05:29,410 --> 00:05:33,486
in the cockpit of a $150 million
fighter jet, right?

96
00:05:34,506 --> 00:05:36,949
But we've all sat in the classroom.

97
00:05:38,289 --> 00:05:40,010
And I would argue

98
00:05:40,010 --> 00:05:41,942
(Laghter)

99
00:05:41,942 --> 00:05:45,012
(Applause)

100
00:05:46,081 --> 00:05:50,656
I would argue that these are
the cockpits of our economy,

101
00:05:51,386 --> 00:05:55,014
and I think we all know
that we have some problems.

102
00:05:56,290 --> 00:05:58,817
We're spending more money
than ever before,

103
00:06:00,127 --> 00:06:02,277
but we're getting worse results.

104
00:06:02,897 --> 00:06:06,317
Whether we're talking about
declining test scores in math and science

105
00:06:07,510 --> 00:06:09,436
or our dropout crisis.

106
00:06:10,946 --> 00:06:12,195
You probably know,

107
00:06:12,735 --> 00:06:16,174
that we have over 1.2 million dropouts

108
00:06:16,174 --> 00:06:18,969
every single year
in high school in this country.

109
00:06:20,489 --> 00:06:21,859
What you may not know

110
00:06:22,877 --> 00:06:27,798
is that at least 4% of those dropouts
are known to be intellectually gifted.

111
00:06:29,239 --> 00:06:34,759
That means we're losing over 50,000
of our brightest minds every single year.

112
00:06:36,710 --> 00:06:38,550
So, we know we have a problem.

113
00:06:40,359 --> 00:06:41,920
But do we know why?

114
00:06:43,740 --> 00:06:46,261
So far, we've been content
to blame the students.

115
00:06:47,810 --> 00:06:49,059
We blame the teachers.

116
00:06:50,060 --> 00:06:51,651
We even blame the parents.

117
00:06:53,092 --> 00:06:54,630
But here's the thing ...

118
00:06:54,630 --> 00:06:57,020
I think back to the Air Force example,

119
00:06:58,241 --> 00:07:00,011
and I can't help but wonder:

120
00:07:00,011 --> 00:07:03,451
how much of this problem
is just bad design?

121
00:07:05,682 --> 00:07:06,802
Here's what I mean.

122
00:07:07,471 --> 00:07:11,788
Even though we have
one of the most diverse countries

123
00:07:11,788 --> 00:07:13,195
in the history of the world,

124
00:07:13,766 --> 00:07:16,216
and even though it's the 21st century,

125
00:07:16,840 --> 00:07:18,990
we still design our learning environments,

126
00:07:18,990 --> 00:07:22,162
like textbooks, for the average student.

127
00:07:23,217 --> 00:07:24,192
No kidding.

128
00:07:24,591 --> 00:07:26,001
We call it age-appropriate.

129
00:07:26,461 --> 00:07:28,140
And we think it's good enough.

130
00:07:28,792 --> 00:07:30,272
But of course, it's not.

131
00:07:30,810 --> 00:07:32,342
I mean, think about it.

132
00:07:32,342 --> 00:07:35,488
What does it even mean
to design for an average student?

133
00:07:36,579 --> 00:07:39,288
Because a student is not one-dimensional,

134
00:07:39,679 --> 00:07:41,350
like struggling to gifted.

135
00:07:41,739 --> 00:07:44,589
Students vary on many
dimensions of learning,

136
00:07:45,380 --> 00:07:47,549
just like they vary on dimensions of size.

137
00:07:48,502 --> 00:07:50,219
Here are a few obvious ones.

138
00:07:51,630 --> 00:07:53,291
And just like size,

139
00:07:54,890 --> 00:07:57,141
each student, every single one of them,

140
00:07:57,900 --> 00:07:59,591
has a jagged learning profile.

141
00:08:01,452 --> 00:08:03,082
Meaning, they have strengths,

142
00:08:03,631 --> 00:08:05,721
they're average at some things,

143
00:08:05,721 --> 00:08:07,081
and they have weaknesses.

144
00:08:07,621 --> 00:08:08,698
We all do.

145
00:08:09,172 --> 00:08:11,282
Even geniuses have weaknesses.

146
00:08:12,491 --> 00:08:13,552
But ...

147
00:08:14,462 --> 00:08:17,222
if the fighter pilot example
has taught us anything,

148
00:08:17,892 --> 00:08:18,992
it's this.

149
00:08:19,682 --> 00:08:22,442
If you design those
learning environments on average,

150
00:08:23,354 --> 00:08:26,182
odds are you've designed them for nobody.

151
00:08:28,504 --> 00:08:30,933
So, no wonder we have a problem.

152
00:08:31,823 --> 00:08:36,025
We've created learning environments
that because they are designed on average,

153
00:08:36,025 --> 00:08:39,496
cannot possibly do
what we expected them to do,

154
00:08:39,884 --> 00:08:42,355
which is to nurture individual potential.

155
00:08:43,804 --> 00:08:46,335
But think about
what that could really costs us.

156
00:08:47,584 --> 00:08:50,974
Because every single student
has a jagged learning profile,

157
00:08:52,107 --> 00:08:55,026
it means that the average hurts everyone,

158
00:08:55,468 --> 00:08:57,252
even our best and brightest.

159
00:08:58,566 --> 00:08:59,926
Even for them,

160
00:09:00,895 --> 00:09:05,567
designing on average
destroys talent in at least two ways.

161
00:09:06,907 --> 00:09:10,547
First, it makes your talent a liability.

162
00:09:11,256 --> 00:09:13,037
We all know kids like this.

163
00:09:13,647 --> 00:09:16,857
So unbelievably gifted in one area

164
00:09:18,604 --> 00:09:21,887
that their educational environment
can't challenge them.

165
00:09:23,186 --> 00:09:24,989
We also know what happens.

166
00:09:25,559 --> 00:09:30,148
They get bored, and a shockingly
high number of them drop out.

167
00:09:31,969 --> 00:09:33,198
The second way

168
00:09:33,538 --> 00:09:36,319
that designing on average destroys talent

169
00:09:37,188 --> 00:09:40,919
is that it means your weakness
will make it hard for us to see,

170
00:09:41,579 --> 00:09:43,960
let alone nurture, your talent.

171
00:09:45,449 --> 00:09:47,350
We all know kids like this as well.

172
00:09:47,990 --> 00:09:52,570
Like the kid who's gifted in science
but who is a below average reader.

173
00:09:53,960 --> 00:09:55,851
Because our science textbooks


174
00:09:56,461 --> 00:09:58,940
assume that every kid
is reading at grade level,

175
00:09:59,761 --> 00:10:00,990
this kid's in trouble.

176
00:10:02,130 --> 00:10:03,691
Because for her,

177
00:10:03,691 --> 00:10:06,732
science class is first
and foremost a reading test.

178
00:10:08,732 --> 00:10:13,103
And it's doubtful that we will ever see
what she's truly capable of.

179
00:10:15,273 --> 00:10:19,350
Now, it's one thing when our technology

180
00:10:19,350 --> 00:10:22,673
does not allow us to do anything
other than average.

181
00:10:23,624 --> 00:10:25,263
But it is a whole other thing

182
00:10:26,214 --> 00:10:29,650
when the technology changes
and we can do more,

183
00:10:29,993 --> 00:10:31,503
but we don't realize it.

184
00:10:32,744 --> 00:10:34,046
That's where we are today.

185
00:10:35,685 --> 00:10:39,955
In the last few years, education,
just like the rest of society,

186
00:10:39,955 --> 00:10:41,305
has gone digital.

187
00:10:42,345 --> 00:10:44,673
If you don't believe me,
just consider this fact:

188
00:10:45,275 --> 00:10:49,616
U.S. public schools are one of the largest
buyers of iPads in the world.

189
00:10:50,317 --> 00:10:54,277
Right? So, the question isn't
do you want the technology?

190
00:10:54,865 --> 00:10:57,710
It's already here.
You've already paid for it.

191
00:10:57,960 --> 00:11:00,757
The question is:
what do you want it to be?

192
00:11:02,337 --> 00:11:04,706
And this is where it really gets exciting.

193
00:11:06,307 --> 00:11:07,985
We have a chance, right now,

194
00:11:09,617 --> 00:11:12,976
to use this technology
to create learning environments

195
00:11:12,976 --> 00:11:14,418
that are so flexible

196
00:11:14,878 --> 00:11:19,387
that they truly can nurture the potential
of every single individual.

197
00:11:20,507 --> 00:11:23,259
Now, you might think
that sounds expensive, right?

198
00:11:23,670 --> 00:11:24,949
Doesn't have to be.

199
00:11:25,769 --> 00:11:27,479
In fact, we can get a long way,

200
00:11:28,358 --> 00:11:32,479
we can make great strides
with simple solutions

201
00:11:33,355 --> 00:11:35,950
that we take for granted
in our everyday digital lives.

202
00:11:36,240 --> 00:11:37,961
Here I am thinking about basic stuff

203
00:11:37,961 --> 00:11:41,720
like language translation,
support for reading, vocabulary,

204
00:11:41,720 --> 00:11:45,840
you know, even the ability of a machine
to pronounce a word for you,

205
00:11:45,840 --> 00:11:47,831
or read a passage if you want.

206
00:11:47,831 --> 00:11:49,071
Basic stuff.

207
00:11:50,201 --> 00:11:52,320
But while these are simple solutions,

208
00:11:52,751 --> 00:11:53,987
you'll be surprised

209
00:11:53,987 --> 00:11:58,401
at how big of an impact they actually have
on the lives of individuals.

210
00:11:59,222 --> 00:12:02,260
I know I was, the first time
that I saw it happen.

211
00:12:03,993 --> 00:12:06,873
I was observing a fourth-grade classroom

212
00:12:06,873 --> 00:12:08,103
a few years ago,

213
00:12:08,653 --> 00:12:10,793
and they were participating in a study

214
00:12:10,793 --> 00:12:14,553
where we were testing the effectiveness
of a new digital science curriculum.

215
00:12:15,104 --> 00:12:16,893
Now, I'll be the first to say

216
00:12:17,324 --> 00:12:19,556
this new digital version wasn't fancy.

217
00:12:20,195 --> 00:12:21,795
In fact, it was pretty basic.

218
00:12:23,424 --> 00:12:25,551
The thing that it had going for it though,

219
00:12:26,074 --> 00:12:28,063
was that it did not assume

220
00:12:28,063 --> 00:12:31,794
that every student in that classroom
was reading at grade level.

221
00:12:33,334 --> 00:12:36,595
Now, one of my favorite things
about this particular classroom

222
00:12:36,595 --> 00:12:37,705
was the teacher.

223
00:12:38,334 --> 00:12:40,335
Because she hated technology.

224
00:12:40,335 --> 00:12:41,805
And I know this

225
00:12:41,805 --> 00:12:44,795
because it's the first thing
that she told me when I met her.

226
00:12:45,333 --> 00:12:46,895
And my response was,

227
00:12:47,345 --> 00:12:51,526
"OK, why did you sign up for a study
that's about technology?"

228
00:12:54,237 --> 00:12:55,276
She told me

229
00:12:55,875 --> 00:12:57,735
she was willing to go through this

230
00:12:58,086 --> 00:13:01,645
in the hopes that it might help
one kid in her class.

231
00:13:02,906 --> 00:13:04,176
His name was Billy.

232
00:13:05,287 --> 00:13:09,347
And Billy, as she told me,
had a mind for science.

233
00:13:10,376 --> 00:13:13,427
But he was one of those kids
who was a below average reader.

234
00:13:15,478 --> 00:13:17,668
And she was hoping this
might reach him now

235
00:13:17,668 --> 00:13:19,618
while he's still learning to read.

236
00:13:20,987 --> 00:13:23,317
Now, I have to say,
that actually made me nervous.

237
00:13:23,758 --> 00:13:26,838
Because as I said,
the technology was pretty basic.

238
00:13:27,929 --> 00:13:29,739
And I didn't want to disappoint her.

239
00:13:30,228 --> 00:13:31,589
So, you can imagine


240
00:13:32,489 --> 00:13:35,950
how pleasantly surprised I was
about halfway through the study,

241
00:13:37,260 --> 00:13:39,990
the teacher reaches out to say,
"Hey, guess what?"

242
00:13:39,990 --> 00:13:42,610
Not only has Billy taken to the technology

243
00:13:43,560 --> 00:13:46,700
but I'm starting to see
improvement in his performance.

244
00:13:47,631 --> 00:13:48,750
So, that was nice.

245
00:13:50,110 --> 00:13:51,371
But nothing,

246
00:13:51,901 --> 00:13:54,372
nothing prepared me for what I saw

247
00:13:54,372 --> 00:13:57,731
when I went back to that classroom
at the end of the study.

248
00:13:59,842 --> 00:14:02,921
Billy had become the de facto
smartest kid in the class.

249
00:14:03,682 --> 00:14:04,991
No kidding.

250
00:14:04,991 --> 00:14:06,591
And everybody knew it.

251
00:14:06,981 --> 00:14:10,092
In fact, the first thing that I saw
when I walked through the door

252
00:14:10,523 --> 00:14:14,547
was six or seven kids
huddled around Billy's desk

253
00:14:15,203 --> 00:14:17,706
asking him questions about the assignment.

254
00:14:18,222 --> 00:14:19,781
And boy did he have answers,

255
00:14:19,781 --> 00:14:20,812
it turns out.

256
00:14:21,512 --> 00:14:26,426
The thing is, all we really gave Billy
and his classmates

257
00:14:27,804 --> 00:14:30,463
was the learning equivalent
of adjustable seats.

258
00:14:31,744 --> 00:14:32,784
And in return,

259
00:14:33,194 --> 00:14:35,155
we got a glimpse of Billy's talent.

260
00:14:36,315 --> 00:14:40,308
And sure, you might say, "Well, look，
that's one kid in one classroom,"

261
00:14:41,341 --> 00:14:42,336
but then again,

262
00:14:42,336 --> 00:14:44,074
that's one kid in one classroom.

263
00:14:44,806 --> 00:14:47,025
And isn't that what it's actually about?

264
00:14:47,606 --> 00:14:49,685
Nurturing individual potential.

265
00:14:51,996 --> 00:14:56,066
Jonas Salk was one individual
and he cured polio.

266
00:14:58,226 --> 00:15:00,407
What if Billy is the next Jonas Salk?

267
00:15:02,077 --> 00:15:04,557
What if the cure for cancer
is in his mind?

268
00:15:05,637 --> 00:15:06,626
Who knows?

269
00:15:07,587 --> 00:15:11,488
But I do know that we came
dangerously close to losing his talent

270
00:15:11,488 --> 00:15:13,618
before he even left grade school.

271
00:15:14,047 --> 00:15:16,618
Not because he didn't understand science,

272
00:15:16,968 --> 00:15:19,079
but because he was still learning to read.

273
00:15:20,278 --> 00:15:21,349
And that's what I mean

274
00:15:21,349 --> 00:15:25,394
when I say that simple solutions
can have a profound impact on individuals.

275
00:15:26,247 --> 00:15:28,117
So, the real question to me

276
00:15:28,117 --> 00:15:31,648
is how do we get these
adjustable seats for learning

277
00:15:31,648 --> 00:15:35,058
in the hands of every student
as fast as possible

278
00:15:35,687 --> 00:15:37,278
without spending more money?

279
00:15:38,578 --> 00:15:42,833
Here, I actually think the Air Force
has given us the formula for success.

280
00:15:44,873 --> 00:15:47,269
What if we ban the average in education?

281
00:15:48,279 --> 00:15:50,099
We know it destroys talent.

282
00:15:51,669 --> 00:15:55,079
Instead, what if we demanded
that the companies

283
00:15:55,079 --> 00:15:57,630
that sell these materials
into our classrooms

284
00:15:58,704 --> 00:16:01,526
design them not to the average
of dimensions of learning

285
00:16:01,891 --> 00:16:03,242
but to the edges?

286
00:16:04,270 --> 00:16:06,139
It would be a bold move.

287
00:16:06,139 --> 00:16:09,099
It would certainly send
a strong signal to the market:

288
00:16:09,782 --> 00:16:11,071
the game's changed.

289
00:16:12,121 --> 00:16:13,162
But trust me,

290
00:16:13,632 --> 00:16:14,771
if we do this,

291
00:16:16,010 --> 00:16:19,961
not only will we increase the performance
of the kids in our classrooms today,

292
00:16:20,468 --> 00:16:23,022
we will dramatically
expand our talent pool.

293
00:16:23,610 --> 00:16:24,752
Because right now

294
00:16:24,752 --> 00:16:27,651
there are so many students
we simply cannot reach

295
00:16:28,271 --> 00:16:30,370
because we design on average.

296
00:16:31,720 --> 00:16:33,794
Design to the edges
and we will reach them,

297
00:16:34,504 --> 00:16:36,192
and we'll get their talent.

298
00:16:37,472 --> 00:16:38,781
And I have to say I know,

299
00:16:38,781 --> 00:16:40,713
because I was one of those students.

300
00:16:41,472 --> 00:16:44,993
So today, I'm a faculty member at Harvard.

301
00:16:46,393 --> 00:16:48,693
But I'm also a high school dropout.

302
00:16:49,534 --> 00:16:50,545
It gets better.

303
00:16:50,545 --> 00:16:54,118
I was a high school
dropout with a 0.9 GPA.

304
00:16:54,118 --> 00:16:55,271
(Laughter)

305
00:16:55,271 --> 00:16:57,723
For those of you who don't know,
that's pretty bad.

306
00:16:57,723 --> 00:16:59,922
(Laughter)

307
00:17:01,024 --> 00:17:02,442
But here's the thing.

308
00:17:03,393 --> 00:17:06,303
I've been to the very bottom
of our educational system

309
00:17:08,173 --> 00:17:09,793
and I've been to the very top.

310
00:17:10,274 --> 00:17:11,240
I'm here to tell you

311
00:17:11,240 --> 00:17:15,064
we are wasting so much talent
at every single level.

312
00:17:17,275 --> 00:17:18,340
And the thing is,

313
00:17:18,340 --> 00:17:20,355
because for every one person like me

314
00:17:21,235 --> 00:17:26,445
there are millions who worked as hard,
who had the ability,

315
00:17:27,295 --> 00:17:28,986
but who were unable to overcome

316
00:17:28,986 --> 00:17:32,366
the drag of an educational environment
designed on average.

317
00:17:33,186 --> 00:17:35,316
And their talent is forever lost to us.

318
00:17:36,896 --> 00:17:38,162
The thing is

319
00:17:38,162 --> 00:17:40,097
we can't really afford to lose them.

320
00:17:41,458 --> 00:17:42,514
The good news is

321
00:17:42,514 --> 00:17:44,237
we don't have to anymore.

322
00:17:45,848 --> 00:17:49,768
I'm telling you we have
a once in a lifetime chance, right now,

323
00:17:50,858 --> 00:17:53,518
to fundamentally re-imagine
the very foundation

324
00:17:54,218 --> 00:17:55,871
of our institutions of opportunity

325
00:17:55,871 --> 00:17:57,170
like education,

326
00:17:57,170 --> 00:18:00,535
in ways that nurture the potential
of every single individual;

327
00:18:01,175 --> 00:18:03,012
therefore, expand our talent pool,

328
00:18:03,012 --> 00:18:05,257
make us far more competitive in the world.

329
00:18:06,697 --> 00:18:08,018
We can do this.

330
00:18:08,876 --> 00:18:10,468
We know the formula.

331
00:18:10,468 --> 00:18:12,055
And it's time we demand it.

332
00:18:12,055 --> 00:18:13,104
Thank you.

333
00:18:13,104 --> 00:18:16,139
(Applause)