Isn’t this a fairly typical TED talk?

Pharyngula 2021-05-04

Vic Berger is calling this the cringiest TED talk of all time. He should have just said “this is a TED talk by Benny Johnson of Turning Points USA” to lower my expectations.

I’ve noticed over the years that a lot of students are really shy — even terrified — of in-class presentations. Especially now, when it’s so easy to hide behind a black screen on zoom. Maybe I should preface any presentation assignment with this video, and tell them that all they have to do is do better than this guy. That should boost their confidence.

By the way, one of my courses is all about writing and presenting scientific information, and our strategy there is to give them a highly structured format to start with — we do a 5-slide PowerPoint with strict time limits and tell them what kind of information has to go on each one: Title-Background-Method-Data-Conclusion. It’s basically an exercise in old-timey rhetoric with technology.

Mr Johnson would not pass my course. But then, he’d probably brag about not learning anything in a liberal university, anyway.