“Shut up and listen!” These words are like lyrics to one of the anthems of childhood. Truth be told, we’d probably hear them a lot still, if it weren’t for the fact that adults are afforded more respect simply because they’re adults. Here’s another truth:
When it comes to our relationships with children, teachers and parents talk too much and don’t listen nearly enough.
If you’re someone who fears speaking in public, you are not alone. In fact, you’re in the same boat as 74% of the world’s population who also suffer from glossophobia; the fancy name for this fear. There’s a biological imperative for having this fear. It goes back millennia and is embedded in our DNA and neurological pathways. Continue reading “Eek! They want me to speak!”
“According to most studies, people’s number one fear is public speaking. Number two is death. Death is number two. Does that seem right? That means to the average person, if you have to go to a funeral, you’re better off in the casket than doing the eulogy.” Jerry Seinfeld
Having always been one of the freakish minority who actually enjoy speaking in public, I have often wondered why people allow themselves to continue through life with this very real phobia, without doing something about it. I mean, we all have to do it at some point; may as well learn how to enjoy it, right? Continue reading “Glossophobia: fear of public speaking”
Yesterday South Africa “celebrated” Human Rights Day. I use the quotation marks as March 21st marks the anniversary of the Sharpeville Massacre; hardly something worth celebrating. I guess we should celebrate the country we have now; our freedom, our constitution, our democracy … or perhaps the promise of how great a country we COULD have.
When I was living and teaching in California, in the early 2000’s, I was lucky enough to attend some wonderful teaching conferences and seminars. A particularly inspirational speaker (whose name I wish I’d written down, or committed to memory) said something that made a huge impression on me:
“Never deny a student their right to fail.”
The Learning Coach 