Educating Different Kinds of Minds | Temple Grandin | TEDxCSU

Our educational system may be screening out creative people in the fields of art, music, science, and computer programming. The question I wish to ask is: What would happen to the great innovators such as Einstein or Michelangelo in today’s educational system? Educators need to understand that they have different kinds of minds. Temple Grandin is a professor of animal science and a designer of livestock handling systems. Her equipment designs and animal welfare guidelines have been used around the world. She is also autistic and her visual thinking skills helped her understand animals. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at www.ted.com/tedx

[@DookyButter]

I love how this woman has no filter. "Legal documents? Yuck." It's so wonderful to see people throw their personalities out there. It's so raw but truthful, and there is nothing more moving than the truth.

[@Webangel1111]

It is not, 'how smart you' are, it is, 'how are you smart'. Dr. Grandin, thank you for your GREAT works for the animal industry and your drive to excel. My grandson has autism and he is perfect!!! I always think of you and your motivation to be the best person you can be!!! You give hope to people with autism to transcend the stereotype and be the perfect person they were meant to be!!! Thank You!!!

[@PaulSmith-pf2uq]

Temple Grandin for Education Minister!!!

[@Hoganply]

I intended to watch this properly later and ended up watching the whole thing immediately. Temple's that captivating.

[@quinkydinkers3102]

6:42 Literally playing a game while listening to this in the background...in the basement... This didn't hit like a truck, it hit like a wrecking ball

[@ettazak]

Educators agree with this. However, our hands are tied by the belief people have in standardized tests. We know about Harold Gardner's multiple intelligences. Please, help us to honor, challenge, and support all of the learners we teach.

[@nattheis8779]

Ugh, I wish people understood how much standardized testing limits us all. My grandpa is Autistic and worked for IBM for 30 years which is why I was so shocked when I found his high school report cards - that man never got higher than a C in English, History, or Latin. But in math? He was taking college classes at age 16 and building computers in his school basement by 17 (back in 1961!). Today though, his average ACT score would be brought down to something like a 23 or 24 (just because of his low humanities scores) which is 3 points lower than his alma mater’s average ACT score. It makes me sad to think about all the tears I wasted in high school. I wish I could have just focused on being a kid and learning about who I was, but instead I was trying to conform to the federal government’s definition of “smart.”

[@choblgobblrr1074]

You might be happy to learn that many colleges dropped SATs and ACTs about 2.5 years ago, and many more continue to drop them.

[@joyceesays9919]

Crying listening to Temple. My hero. My son's in the spectrum. Visual thinker as well. Love ya for blazing trail

[@benlackenby7583]

Haven't even seen the video yet but just liked to say that this is one of the few channels that is actually productive on KZbin 👏

[@InfinitesParadize]

Do you KZbin ?

[@dcraexon134]

That’s interesting that you believe that, eventually you may notice an underlying theme .

[@lm-ml]

PsychToGo

[@doofy28]

Some good cool rolemodels on KZbin chould actually make the world a much better place.

[@doofy28]

All the other repliers complain instead of leading. boys

[@nurseratched5537]

I've been watching Temple for years. She is so inspirational. I love her tell it how it is attitude. We need her instead of Betsy Devoss!

[@eleanorlebrecht]

YES!

[@MiyahSundermeyer]

I have presented alongside her and I did a podcast with her last year. She is a very interesting women.

[@MiyahSundermeyer]

Also my second podcast interview is coming out with her tonight. My show is called “Hello World with Miyah.”

[@LyndaColterBergh]

I had the opportunity to meet Temple and hear a very personalized talk about how different brains learn. Her insight was profound. She also knew its hasd multiple concussions based on how I perceived written words. Printed words often flutter. I loved her description of how an astrophysicist perceive a church steeple versus how she perceived one.

[@rilanstar2150]

Really

[@ErutaniaRose]

Totally a visual thinker here. I once was tested for learning disabilities (because I failed Chemistry) and I literally scored so high on the visual tests that I broke it. So....yeah. 😅 I love learning, but I hated school. I am not a conformist, and the way things were taught didn't resonate with me, so...I was considered a failure. But, outside of school, I wrote short stories, did artwork professionally, took photos on trips, and all these other artistic endeavours. Yet, I was a failure.

[@stanhensley3082]

She is my Hero!!

[@allsheeverwanted1991]

Would be such a dream to have a conversation with Temple. It’s amazing to be told our minds are important since since the dawn of time we have been the rejects, who created the world around them for others benefits. It’s time to make our world a much better place.

[@catcatm]

Fantastic, inspirational talk. Schools need to change.

[@marymungai4429]

I love hearing wisdom whisper to my ears. most people do not appreciate the different kinds of minds they try to change us or shun us instead of letting us be. Thank you Dr Temple for sharing

[@nicholaslui2239]

13:15 - I remember hearing this a few years ago and applying it to how I teach my autistic daughter after she was first diagnosed (at about 5). She was on the bottom 1% of the spectrum. The doctors told us our best hope for her was for her to be institutionalized. I told them flat out: "I look forward to proving you wrong." It's been the hardest thing I've ever done - but she can speak in sentence fragments. She can almost dress herself. She can almost use the toilet. I train her similar to the way I used to train soldiers when I was in the army - with firm but compassionate discipline. Like the soldiers I used to train, I know if I don't equip her with the skills to go off on her own and be independent, it could literally mean her life. I'm so proud of my little girl and hearing Dr. Grandin gives me enormous hope for her.

[@karynprelc4350]

Loved this. The world DOES need all kinds of minds!! 🙌

[@maxineboxer9714]

This is vital information and could help so many people. Just an excellent presentation, and what a difference it could make.

[@pamela74h]

Thank you Templefor this great speech; the first 5 minutes of you describing your thinking, is totally me. It made me cry the way you described it so well.

[@marie22213]

I love her honesty, he boldness, and her ability to work past her struggles. This is a short and simple yet great speech that hits the nail on the head. I'm 29 and I remember in my 20's wondering how we're gonna fix stuff because it seemed a lot a people didn't know anyone, but I though I was nuts. Guess not 🤷 lol

[@ejsilk2101]

How invaluable! Thank you Temple. As an instructor to people with different kinds of minds. I hope many educators and especially parents hear your message. We are loosing people with gifts that can enhance our lives every day by misinformed administrators and mislead parents and family members.

[@alanhenderson53]

So glad she is finally being listed to!

[@jennifercoopman]

Always love to hear Dr. Grandin speak! Thanks for giving her a Ted talk!

[@dankmoody9925]

I keep hearing that some students should not be pushed to show their work in math. I was personally one of those students who didn’t need to show my work and my consistency/accuracy improved dramatically once It became habit. I expect all of my students to at least try to show their work, but I am also flexible and fair about it.

[@SarahDale111]

I could get to the right answer, but I couldn't show how. So all the kids who got the answer wrong but showed how they got there got better grades than me. I gave up on math even though I had a mind for it. God how I hated school.

[@mdgtluver]

When I first introduced a new math concept, I want my students to show their work. Eventually, as the unit progess, they don't need to show their work but I would ask them how they got their answers.

[@dankmoody9925]

Sarah Dale I struggled with it too but it really is a necessary skill. It’s like doing an experiment without explaining the results. It is correct, but can you prove it? While it may not be fun to learn to show your work, it is even less fun to reach a point in math when you can’t progress because you don’t have the working memory to solve a tough problem in your head. I personally don’t punish students harshly for not showing work (maybe like 10%) but you do need to for full credit. While I agree we need to cater to individual learning styles as teachers, kids need to learn to cater to other styles as well to become more well rounded and flexible in the real world. Of course there are exceptions like Temple Grandin, but Temple is anything but the norm with how she thinks.

[@dankmoody9925]

mdgtluver Yeah that is the same approach I used in reality once they demonstrated understanding. Practicing mental math has its own merits after all. On tests I always require work to be shown for a few select problems. I also give a ton of partial credit to encourage students to at least try rather than wildly guess.

[@MsOldmom]

Temple has helped me deal with my son, who is now 23 and in college.

[@cynthiahawkins2389]

Hurrah for you, Ms. Grandin!! I was exposed to the Spanish language when I was ...like 8 years old. 1) mom and dad were getting divorced, and 2) Florida was far enough away to escape the stress of my breaking up, NY home, and 3) this was still the 1950's so people would fly to Havana (pre Castro), thus... 4) Nearly all the schools in Miami Beach - taught Spanish!! To this day, (I am now 74), I can chat in Spanish. With enough command, that my Mexican husband , whose first language IS Spanish ,brags about me all the time. But most important - the wealth of opportunity having a second language (my bilingual mind?) has given me over the decades. Beyond counting...These days I create tiny hats out of recycled felt, made from plastic water bottles. I adore working up these little treasures, and when I go out on my 'brag-walks' I always take a hat with me. Talk about it, then hand someone the hat...People are floored, and ask, "How did you MAKE this?"..Ahem....Cheers from New Orleans.

[@MokeleMbembeLives]

I feel so seen and I love her so much.

[@hydrangeaism]

THANK YOU, DR. T.G. for my own personal validation deeply felt with your Talk. I have been an advocate for all the subjects you mentioned. I quit the public school teaching gig ("For THIS I went to college?") primarily because of the greed I observed of school districts , particularly those administrators making/taking TOO MUCH of state allocated funding. Thievery straight up. A business model that cheats the core intended consumer (students) long term by forcing a curriculum that has, by some twisted design, taken away skills for critical thinking. Cursive writing should not be now extinct in favor of digital modernism. The developing brain of human children must have the brain to digits coordination encouraged pre-pre school. It is the indexing to which life-long learning can be achieved.

[@Talkinglife]

Up until the end of the nineteenth century, the study of mind and brain was a matter of speculative philosophy, but the results were inconclusive and there was little agreement. Then came psychology with such great pioneers as Hermann Ebbinghaus who in the 1880s provided a laboratory-based approach, which made the study of mind a matter of science rather than philosophy

[@MoonShadow333]

I almost missed a year of high school because I had an F in Math and Chemistry. I had perfect grades in all Language related classes and Art though. I had good grades in Physics too, which made many teachers think I was just lazy. However, I am sure it was because Math was just too abstract for me. I used to say my mom I just couldn't get a hold of them in my head. I am a teacher now and it breaks me how the system makes some kids feel useless because they do not fit. I try to guide them to alternative paths like putting their own businesses or go to specialized colleges to pursue their true passions, but they parents are set into getting them into formal education. This talk was inspiring and I wish more people could see it.

[@Titina7183]

Temple is such an inspiration. I read her animals in translation book years ago which I devoured. Great to see her here

[@jayd3337]

Love this ted talk. Speaking directly to me.

[@carollyn8885]

A wonderful and beautiful mind calling for all other minds! I hear you!! I promise to keep learning and spreading needed and fundamental knowledge so we can all be closer to a more knowledgeable and aware world 🌎.

[@My10centsWorth]

Brilliant Talk! It explains so much about areas in my life I felt like a failure in. Thank you so much for sharing the information.

[@TheShadowChesireCat]

Also, let kids (especially weird kids) tailor their schooling. I am hugely verbal, ADHD and Dyspraxic. I LOOOOATHED math but had to keep it till year 10. I really could have used more languages or international geography/history time. I love Tourism and marketing and cultures. My special ADHD interests. I'm reeeeeeal persuasive. It's my career choice too. In training, I had a bunch of mentors basically thrust me at the sales behind the scenes with recommendations to start with the behind sales (to the industry) with the goal of learning the base to move into marketing. But my math teachers at high school and I regularly cried cause I just didn't get algebra (Economic math, with a calculator, or lots of time and a sheet of paper is more my speed; even if there's algebra seeming equations, you have all the numbers, you just correlate what goes where to figure it out, not actually calculate). We do have to shift from academics. Essays really aren't useful in my opinion, unless you want to be in academics or journalism (or documentaries). We had one creative writing assessment in my 11 and 12th grade high school English classes. And that got cancelled cause one class started late and the make up test was another essay. It's one of the symptoms of Dyspraxia that you're generally not good at essays. It just hurts the weird kids to be never showing their strengths. Which leads to so many psychological problems. I did feel seen by this. Thank you. (Also, Dyspraxic people are very good at safety problem solving too, cause we're normally the ones having the accidents. You get good at figuring risk factors and fixing issues if the issues happen to you most of the time :D )

[@shaunkruck7658]

I've seen the HBO movie she was talking about! She is (or was) a teacher at CSU in the town I live in! My son has disabilities that I hope will turn out like hers. He is a great kid and graduated this year from high school.

[@PriestBeats]

Good luck 😊

[@francy4385]

🍀

[@ashlaraye4682]

Class 2020 represent!

[@muslimah42]

My son is 2.5 y non verbal and he may be diagnosed next month. She gave me hope i want to help him so bad.

[@minahoevertsz]

Thank you for your no nonsense, straightforward, clear and inspirational talk.

[@marcijunebug]

“When you’re weird you’ve got to show your work!” PREACH! 🙌

[@kristelbirao185]

Super powerful talk. Impressive! Dr. Temple Grandin, you are an inspiration.

[@traveldreamer4616]

You hit the nail on the head.

[@tashapeterson7726]

I agree schools need to bring back hands on stuff to learn. I was mainstreamed because I was not fast enough but I pushed my self to learn how to read and read at my grade level and ones the iPhone and iPad came out I started to learn how to spell better. Then I pushed my self to go to college and ended up with a AA associates degree and then I could not understand bachelor level classes so then I decided to take a break and got job at post office and I been happy ever since and never looked back.. I am still happy I tried to go to college and did not regret anything. Teacher do not try hard enough to help. I was told I would never do well in college but I went for it. Do not listen to the negativity talk just do what your dream is. I need up with anxiety because of the school system so don't give up your dream.

[@alice_rabbit8345]

Thank you, thank you!! I’m a visual thinker and learning certain things frustrates me !!

[@dking4772]

Excellent information. Thank you!!!!!!!!

[@freakofnature9580]

Temple Grandin is just one of the greatest, most productive, most intelligent people ever. Period.

[@GetsumJ]

Best and most educated speaker ever. Love this woman

[@souravdspartan]

I'm an architect, she is a great inspiration. I can totally relate to hand drafting and machine drafting.

[@mc-mo5zj]

Temple , thank you.

[@paulwarren8832]

Amazing! I would have benefitted from having this level of articulation- both as a child with Aspergers in the school system and an educational practitioner in the post-compulsory sector. Some great work has been accomplished, but sometimes I wonder whether it’s “their” thinking that needs to change rather “ours”… Thanks for sharing TG, you’re a star! 🙏🏼

[@prishoh]

It is so inspiring to listen to Dr Temple Grandin. She gives hope to all

[@raulgonzalezgonzalez4747]

Her outfit makes this 10x better!

[@UARChannel]

Nice sharing 👍😊, TQ

[@peggyradeck9016]

I really enjoy all of Ms Grandin’s talks, etc

[@skinnyway]

Always a pleasure to listen to you Temple. I'll tell you what - not many people have any sense - common or not! Its a sad thing!

[@luisaortega1889]

I remember I had the same teacher for 4 years in primary school. She had a PhD in Spanish and Poesy. And one of the extra subjects that we had was Poesy it made me gag, I learnt very little from it, as a kid I wanted stuff that were practical and mentally stimulating, but if you were in one of her math class she would ridicule/make fun of you for not knowing the answer. She would literally discriminate those who struggle or think differently. She was terrible. The education system needs to change

[@valhalla1240]

on the outside I'm a petite italian woman but in my soul I am this woman.

[@kimsmith819]

My Dad would not let me take art in high school. He said that I would never get a job as an artist.

[@PaulSmith-pf2uq]

I knew two sisters who's parents had forbidden them to draw, full stop. They were both very talented and couldn't stop drawing, so I was inviting them to my work studio to draw as much as they wanted. I know one of them went to university to study graphics. I moved countries and lost touch, unfortunately. I hope you managed to do something about art!

[@MissingRaptor]

@@PaulSmith-pf2uq that was a very kind thing to do for them

[@sridevishanmugam3632]

Yeap that's right people think art has no value.

[@cestrumnocturnum7771]

Ha..my Dad said the same.

[@Ratigan2]

“Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life,” -Confucius

[@leannwinzenrith250]

This woman is so inspiring.

[@mmatrainee]

OMG I love Dr. Temple, I talk about her like a celebrity in my house, thank you Dr. Temple!!!!!

[@greeneyedparadox6609]

I appreciate unique thinking and problem solving.

[@ahmedelfajj4495]

Wow it finished so quickly I've never finished a video here B4 Except this one. So much energy with the best advices to seek what you're looking for. I'm really greatful to see this right now I really need it, thanks a lot🙏✌️

[@sherryhibbs2804]

It's a shame what our educational system is not better at these things. Some brilliant kids may be left behind.

[@mustafazafer9999]

I wish I was introduced to programming earlier, I am graduating in Computer Sciences, and I was always good with Math, I got into programming when I was playing video games and started tinkering with the game, started making scripts and other sort of stuff related to programming and it was in 2016-2017. Ever since I started programming, I have learnt a lot of stuff, but It would be have been better if I was doing it from my childhood.

[@annieschulz8219]

Brilliant. Thank you 🙏

[@mohawkinson6536]

Thank you for your input

[@garrettlane6715]

One of the best parts of FFA was learning about Temple Grandin

[@StartupFundingEventGlobal]

Great talk! We all have different minds, we absorb knowledge differently :)

[@doofy28]

My grandma dressed and looked just like Temple. Kinda confusing when I was young and no one even knew what it was.

[@holzerisms]

Snuggletummy whats this style

[@holzerisms]

It’s kind of a vibe

[@doofy28]

I know almost nothing about fashion but I felt she wore it for herself and not to change the idea of what others thought of her.

[@SarahDale111]

Cowgirl! But without ruffles. Tomboy cowgirl?

[@doofy28]

@@SarahDale111 Yes.

[@lynnmorley9094]

Love you Temple

[@officialkxdc7984]

Thank you!

[@davescruton2829]

Love you Temple!

[@georginabuziak5110]

LOVE HER!!!!! SPOT ON 100%!!!!!

[@CesarLopez-oi7ko]

Amazing!!!

[@pinkpanda5696]

She is amazing!

[@Praytogod01]

Thank u for this...

[@bertabeca1246]

Muito bom ouvi la. Tenho sobrinho autista.

[@suhasinivemuri6836]

Excellent video I have seen in my life. Thank you mam.. I liked the way you explained about the education system and need for change..

[@Ms-yv5li]

I Love Ms.Temple♡

[@LluviaSelenita]

She's wonderful ✨

[@somebodyu.used2know]

Collaborating! I love her

[@wen-natureza]

Yes, bring back all classes like sewing and cooking classes that require kids to try different things not just reading and math.

[@JadeTrading]

Cool presentation! 👍

[@rgtcchannel]

Temple is amazing 🤩

[@phoebej7806]

I don’t fit into any of these set “categories”... I get that different people have different strengths, and these different strengths are essential to our society, but labeling people as visual or auditory really contradicts with one of her main points: that everyone thinks differently, or uniquely. Everyone has a unique balance of traits that can morph over the course of their life - no categories.

[@sulac4gaming171]

That's why she noted, that there can be mixtures/hybrids of these types. She should also have said, that the model may be incomplete. I also get the restrictive nature about categories you are implying and in fact suffered from category-restricted thinking myself for a time. But now I think, that categorization is an essential function of our mind. Let me explain why: Reality is indefinitely complex and diverse. And that's something we can't comprehend with our somehow limited thinking. For this reason we come up with thought models and categories, which try to depict reality in a simplified manner to make it less complex and therefore comprehendible and speeding up our thinking by simplifying "data". Take for example the human psyche ... incredible complex and absolutely impossible to be understood by itself. You probably would go crazy in trying to only understand your own psyche fully, not even taking about all psyches ... and as soon as you instead try to get a general understanding of the human psyche (instead of every single one separately) you would have started generalizing, simplifying and also categorizing. The thing we need to learn better, is NOT to get rid of categories altogether. The thing we really need to do is instead, to learn how to deal with them in a constructive/openminded/dynamic (not restrictive and not forcing complex human beings in little boxes) manner and to communicate them better (them beeing simplified and potentially incomplete depictions of reality and so on) as well as allowing ourself and others to continuously test, correct and expand them, whenever they limit our thinking instead of furthering it (keeping them dynamic) ... because in the end thought models and categories are essential in our single as well as collective comprehending and in dealing with reality as well as in evolvement of thinking. A world without categorization would of course by very diverse ... but moreover it would be a world, where we understand nothing (neither ourself, nor other people, nor anything about nature ...), because, as already stated, reality is far to complex in its pure form.

[@RadekPilich]

Because these types of thinking apply to autistic minds. If you are not autistic, your mind is less specialized and more balanced.

[@RadekPilich]

Everyone is different because there are many dimensions / categories that define us. However most of these categories and dimensions are pretty simple, having no more than 2, 3 or 4 poles. Conceptualising and understanding these dimensions is the best tool we have for understanding similarities and differences among different individuals.

[@mikeike83]

To refer to what suLac4gaming wrote, you can go to 2:51 at the bottom~

[@phoebej7806]

Daniel Hostetler haha I think you phrased this really well. I didn’t mean that each person has unique traits and is entirely original, I meant something closer to what you said - that each of us thinks in our own blend or balance of the different ways of thinking. I commented what I did because when she showed her slide with the four different types of thinking, it seemed to me like she was implying everyone could fit snugly into those and wasn’t acknowledging that people could fit into multiple categories. I looked back and it was noted on her slide that there can be mixtures of the thinking types, and it was quite a clear footnote lol. Still, I don’t think she pointed out the footnote or elaborated on any blends between the types of thinking on that slide in the rest of her talk. Maybe she did at one point and I just missed it, but the thing that brushed me the wrong way was just simply her lack of acknowledging the grey area. Again, I think the way you phrased your clarification was really great, and I agree completely

[@DrLouellLSala]

Very inspirational

[@mguarin912]

Wow. Just fell in love and admiration. 😊

[@marianncastellihier7059]

Spot on! 👏

[@kevin2140]

We, humans, can do a better job of trusting that when something feels good it is right for us to do it. Adults can help kids thrive by supporting their passions. As Joseph Campbell put it " follow your bliss".

[@suryaprakashtiwari8341]

Fantastic 👌👌👌

[@jasonformann4980]

I feel like she actually gets so much that our world needs. This person would be labeled with a hundred labels and put in special education and loaded up with drugs and discarded.

[@ritahall2378]

Please reach out to public school systems terribly outdated and failing our children miserably- love your mind

[@StephanieElizabethMann]

Brilliant.

[@nusaocvirk5128]

Thank you 💖💗❤️

[@Gulia1423]

You are Amazing !!!!! 🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗🤗

[@benverzijlbergen2968]

This was way too little time for her. I love the way her mind seems to work - I'm going to find more out about her.

[@breynneryamidacevedo8254]

I totally agree about she has accounted for.All the educational system around the world need to change the way clasess are lectured since It is very important creating a base on normal real life situations. Nowadays our children do not know how to fix a hose,a chair, or make the bed it is so gloomy.

[@denisemorrell8212]

Awesome

[@ajoe1977]

Thinking and learning different the story of my Life!🧐

[@yb9812]

She is great

[@TropeOlogy]

I adored this video, and am a bit of a Temple Grandin fan...! ....so yay for new autism relevant stuff! :)