Salman Khan - Khan Academy: Education Reimagined - VoiceTube: Learn English through videos!

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[music playing]
[applause]
- SO WELCOME TO THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY
OF NASA AMES RESEARCH CENTER
AND TO THE DIRECTOR'S COLLOQUIUM SUMMER SERIES.
KNOWLEDGE IS POWER.
KNOWLEDGE IS FREEDOM.
THE ONLY THINGS THAT YOU TRULY OWN
IS WHAT YOU LEARN
AND YOUR RELATIONSHIPS WITH THE WORLD.
SO KNOWLEDGE IS THE GREATEST GIFT YOU CAN GIVE
AND RECEIVE.
THE KHAN ACADEMY MAKES KNOWLEDGE ACCESSIBLE
TO EVERYONE,
KNOWLEDGE THAT WILL CHANGE THEIR LIVES
AND THE WORLD.
TODAY'S TALK IS ENTITLED
"KHAN ACADEMY: EDUCATION REIMAGINED"
AND WILL BE PRESENTED BY SALMAN KHAN.
MR. KHAN IS THE FOUNDER OF THE KHAN ACADEMY,
A NONPROFIT ORGANIZATION WITH A MISSION
OF PROVIDING FREE, HIGH-QUALITY EDUCATION
FOR ANYONE ANYWHERE IN THE WORLD.
HE GRADUATED FROM MIT
WITH TWO BACHELOR OF SCIENCE DEGREES--
ONE IN MATHEMATICS AND ONE IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING
AND COMPUTER SCIENCE
AND A MASTER'S OF SCIENCE DEGREE IN ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING.
HE ALSO HOLDS A MASTER'S OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
FROM HARVARD BUSINESS SCHOOL.
FOR HIS WORK, SALMAN HAS RECEIVED MANY PRESTIGIOUS AWARDS
AND HONORS.
PLEASE JOIN ME IN WELCOMING SALMAN KHAN.
[applause]
- THANKS SO MUCH.
SO VERY EXCITING TO BE HERE.
I ALWAYS LIKE TO START THESE CONVERSATIONS
REALLY JUST GETTING A SENSE OF WHO'S IN THE ROOM.
HOW MANY OF Y'ALL ARE--
ARE USERS OF KHAN ACADEMY IN SOME--
OH, GOOD. YES. HOW MANY OF Y'ALL--
HOW MANY OF THOSE ARE EXISTING STUDENTS?
OKAY, HOW MANY OF Y'ALL ARE IN HIGH SCHOOL?
OKAY. OH, THERE'S A GOOD CROWD HERE.
HOW MANY OF Y'ALL ARE IN COLLEGE?
OH, WOW. GRAD SCHOOL?
A FEW. OKAY, VERY-- THIS IS--
MIDDLE OR ELEMENTARY, ANY? [laughter]
OH, VERY GOOD. OH, YEAH. OH, LOOK. OH, THERE.
VERY GOOD, AND HOW MANY OF Y'ALL ARE PARENTS WHO--
OKAY.
AND HOW MANY OF YOU HAVE NO IDEA WHAT KHAN ACADEMY IS?
GOOD. I'M GONNA BE TALKING TO YOU TODAY.
[laughter]
SO AS--
IT SOUNDS LIKE MOST OF Y'ALL ARE PROBABLY FAMILIAR.
KHAN ACADEMY IS OFTEN ASSOCIATED
WITH A COLLECTION OF VIDEOS THAT I STARTED MAKING,
NOW, YOU KNOW, A DECENT NUMBER OF YEARS AGO.
BUT AS WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT OVER THE COURSE
OF THIS CONVERSATION IS
IT'S NOW MUCH, MUCH, MUCH MORE THAN JUST VIDEOS.
IN FACT, IN MY MIND, THE VIDEOS ARE A SMALL PART
OF WHAT KHAN ACADEMY IS AND WHAT IT'S GOING TO BE.
BUT TO GET EVERYONE ON THE SAME PAGE,
AND ESPECIALLY FOR THE GENTLEMAN WHO DOESN'T--ISN'T FAMILIAR
WITH KHAN ACADEMY, I WILL SHOW A QUICK MONTAGE
OF VIDEOS.
ALL THESE INTERACTIONS ARE JUST DUE TO THE GRAVITY.
- THIS IS AN AGE RIGHT AFTER ISAAC NEWTON--
- I'M TOLD THE HUMIDITY MAKES IT FEEL HOTTER.
WHY IS THIS?
- EXCELLENT QUESTION, LEBRON.
- AND YOU CAN JUST SEE THE PLEASURE HE HAD.
- CAN YOU DETERMINE WHICH LIGHT BULB IS BEING SWITCHED?
- THINGS ACTUALLY CAN INTERBREED,
ALTHOUGH FOR THESE TWO IN PARTICULAR,
IT SEEMS LIKE THE MECHANICS WOULD GET KIND OF--
[laughter]
- KEEP PLAYING AROUND WITH THESE NUMBERS
AND SEE WHAT KIND OF COLORS I CAN COME UP WITH.
- IF THIS DOES NOT BLOW YOUR MIND,
THEN YOU HAVE NO EMOTION.
[laughter]
- HAD A FEELING THIS CROWD WOULD APPRECIATE EULER'S IDENTITY.
BUT AS I MENTIONED, IT'S NOT JUST VIDEOS.
THIS RIGHT OVER HERE, THIS IS OUR COMPUTER SCIENCE PLATFORM.
IT'S A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN GO, YOU CAN CODE.
AND OUR WHOLE GOAL HERE IS, YOU KNOW,
FOR ALL OF US WHO HAVE EVER PROGRAMMED,
WE ALWAYS GOT INTO IT SAYING, "HEY, I WANT TO CREATE A GAME.
I WANT TO CREATE A SCREENSAVER. I WANT TO CREATE AN ANIMATION."
AND THEN WE JUST LEARNED WHAT IT'D TAKE TO BUILD
THAT ANIMATION, WHICH ISN'T HOW IT'S TRADITIONALLY TAUGHT.
TRADITIONALLY, IT'S LIKE,
"HEY, THIS IS A FOR LOOP. THIS IS A VARIABLE."
AND SO WE REALLY WANTED TO GIVE THAT CREATIVE SPIRIT
THAT I THINK ALL PROGRAMMERS ORIGINALLY GOT INTO IT FOR
TO THE LEARNER, AND THEY CAN HAVE PROFILES,
AND THEY CAN BUILD, AND THEY CAN GET PEER FEEDBACK
BASED ON WHAT THEY'RE DOING.
THIS IS WHAT MOST OF OUR TEAM IS FOCUSED ON.
I GUESS YOU COULD CALL THIS THE MEAT OF KHAN ACADEMY.
IT'S OUR INTERACTIVE MATH EXPERIENCE.
AND THE IDEA HERE IS A STUDENT CAN GO, LOG ON,
THEY'LL TAKE A DIAGNOSTIC, AND ALL THIS IS FREE.
IT'S ALL AVAILABLE.
AND BASED ON HOW THE STUDENT'S PERFORMING,
IT'LL BUILD A STATISTICAL MODEL OF WHAT THEY KNOW
AND DON'T KNOW, AND THEN BASED ON THAT,
GUIDE THEM THROUGH EXERCISES, GIVE THEM FEEDBACK.
IF THEY HAVE A TEACHER OR A PARENT,
IT CAN GIVE THE TEACHER OR THE PARENT REPORTS
ON HOW THEY'RE DOING,
AND OBVIOUSLY, A WHOLE SERIES OF GAME MECHANICS
TO HOPEFULLY KEEP THE STUDENTS AS MOTIVATED AS POSSIBLE.
SO THIS IS WHERE WE ARE RIGHT NOW.
KHAN ACADEMY IS BEING USED IN SOME WAY, SHAPE, OR FORM
IN ALMOST EVERY COUNTRY ON THE PLANET.
OVER 300,000 EDUCATORS
HAVE REGISTERED AND ARE USING IT IN SOME WAY.
10 MILLION UNIQUE STUDENTS EVERY MONTH
ARE USING THE SITE.
AND THEY'VE DONE OVER 2 BILLION EXERCISES,
AND YOU SAW A LITTLE SAMPLE OF WHAT THOSE EXERCISES LOOK LIKE.
BUT BEFORE KIND OF GOING MORE INTO WHERE WERE GOING,
I WILL TAKE A STEP BACK, AND I CAN SENSE
THAT MANY OF YOU ALL ARE FAMILIAR WITH THIS.
BUT I'LL GIVE A LITTLE BIT OF TEXTURE
OF HOW ALL OF THIS GOT STARTED.
AND IT'S EXCITING TO SPEAK HERE,
BECAUSE IT ALL GOT STARTED, FRANKLY, NOT TOO FAR FROM HERE.
IF YOU REWIND TO SUMMER OF 2004,
SO ALMOST EXACTLY TEN YEARS AGO,
I WAS A YEAR OUT OF BUSINESS SCHOOL.
I HAD JUST GOTTEN MARRIED,
AND I WAS BASED IN BOSTON AT THE TIME.
AND I HAD A BUNCH OF FAMILY VISITING ME FROM NEW ORLEANS.
THAT'S WHERE I WAS BORN AND RAISED, AS WELL.
AND IT JUST CAME OUT OF CONVERSATION
THAT ONE OF MY COUSINS, NADIA--
HER MOM TOLD ME THAT NADIA WAS HAVING TROUBLE WITH MATH.
AND SO WHEN NADIA CAME INTO THE ROOM,
I ASKED HER, "WHAT'S GOING ON?"
SHE SAID, "WELL, I TOOK A--
YOU KNOW, I'VE BEEN A DECENT STUDENT.
I'VE BEEN GETTING B-PLUSES, A-MINUSES."
BUT THERE WAS A PLACEMENT EXAM AT THE END OF SIXTH GRADE,
AND IT HAD UNIT CONVERSION ON IT--
YOU KNOW, OUNCES TO GALLONS, MILES TO KILOMETERS--
AND ACCORDING TO NADIA, SHE JUST, YOU KNOW,
COULDN'T PROCESS IT.
SHE'S JUST NOT GOOD AT UNIT CONVERSION.
AND SO I TOLD HER, "LOOK,
I THINK YOU COULD EASILY OVERCOME THAT."
I THINK SHE THOUGHT IT WAS KIND OF AN EMPTY PEP TALK.
SO I SAID, "NO, NO, SERIOUSLY. WELL, IF YOU'RE UP FOR IT,
HOW ABOUT WHEN YOU GO BACK TO NEW ORLEANS,
WE'LL GET ON THE PHONE AND WHATEVER ELSE WE CAN USE
AND I'LL TUTOR YOU?" AND SHE WAS UP FOR IT.
SO SHE WENT BACK, AND SO STARTING AUGUST OF 2004,
EVERY DAY AFTER SCHOOL FOR HER,
EVERY DAY AFTER WORK FOR ME, GOT ON THE PHONE.
WE EVENTUALLY FIGURED OUT A WAY TO SEE EACH OTHER'S SCRAWLS ON--
YAHOO! INSTANT MESSENGER HAD A LITTLE DOODLE FUNCTIONALITY
AT THE TIME.
AND SO WE JUST STARTED WORKING,
AND, YOU KNOW, THE FIRST MONTH WAS TOUGH.
SHE ESSENTIALLY HAD PSYCHED HERSELF OUT.
SHE HAD CONVINCED HERSELF THAT SHE'S JUST NOT GOOD AT MATH.
BUT SLOWLY BUT SURELY, SHE STARTED TO ENGAGE,
SHE STARTED TO REALLY KIND OF OWN AND TACKLE THE PROBLEMS.
AND THEN SOMETHING CLICKED,
AND SHE NOT ONLY GOT UNIT CONVERSION,
SHE STARTED TO ACTUALLY GET A LITTLE BIT AHEAD OF THE CURVE
OF WHERE YOU WOULD EXPECT A SEVENTH GRADE STUDENT TO BE.
AND AT THAT POINT, I BECAME WHAT I CALL
A TIGER COUSIN. [laughter]
SO I CALLED UP HER SCHOOL, AND I SAID,
"YOU KNOW, I REALLY THINK NADIA RAHMAN
SHOULD RETAKE THAT PLACEMENT EXAM FROM LAST YEAR."
THEY SAID, "WHO ARE YOU?" [laughter]
I POINTED OUT THAT I'M HER COUSIN.
AND SOMEWHAT SURPRISING,
THEY DID ALLOW HER TO RETAKE THE PLACEMENT EXAM,
AND SHE WENT FROM BEING TRACKED IN THE REMEDIAL CLASS
TO NOT JUST THE AVERAGE CLASS, BUT INTO THE ADVANCED CLASS.
AND, YOU KNOW, AND I COULD GO ON AND ON ABOUT NADIA.
I MEAN, THAT SAME NADIA, JUST TO FAST-FORWARD A LITTLE BIT,
WHO, YOU KNOW, AT AGE 12,
THOUGHT SHE COULDN'T GET UNIT CONVERSION,
BY AGE 14, WAS TAKING CALCULUS
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF NEW ORLEANS.
AND THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE JUST--
YOU KNOW, AND I'VE SEEN MORE AND MORE
THE MORE THAT KHAN ACADEMY HAS GROWN.
BUT AS--REWIND BACK TO FALL OF 2004,
I WAS EXCITED.
IT WAS THIS KIND OF VERY SMALL THING THAT I DID WITH MY COUSIN.
IT SEEMED TO REALLY HELP HER OUT,
SO I STARTED WORKING WITH HER YOUNGER BROTHERS.
THEN A FEW THINGS HAPPENED OVER THE NEXT TWO YEARS.
THE FIRST IS I WAS AN ANALYST
AT A SMALL INVESTMENT FIRM, AND--
VERY SMALL, IT WAS ME, MY BOSS, AND HIS DOG, AND--
[laughter] THE DOG WAS THE CHIEF ECONOMIST.
AND WE-- [laughter]
WE ACTUALLY HAD CARDS PRINTED.
AND HIS WIFE--
MY BOSS' WIFE, NOT THE--
BECAME A PROFESSOR AT STANFORD LAW SCHOOL.
SO WE MOVED THE FIRM OUT HERE.
AND SO I WAS NOW BASED OUT HERE
IN PALO ALTO AND THEN MOVED TO MOUNTAIN VIEW.
AND THE OTHER THING THAT HAPPENED
IS WORD GOT AROUND IN THE FAMILY THAT FREE TUTORING WAS GOING ON.
[laughter]
SO I WAS WORKING EVERY DAY AFTER WORK
WITH ABOUT 10 OR 15 COUSINS, FAMILY FRIENDS
ALL OVER THE COUNTRY.
AND TO HELP SCALE THAT UP A LITTLE BIT,
YOU KNOW, I WAS WORKING WITH--
EVEN WHEN I WAS WORKING WITH NADIA, BUT THEN ESPECIALLY
AS I STARTED WORKING WITH MORE AND MORE COUSINS,
I SAW THAT EVEN THE ONES THAT WERE PRETTY GOOD STUDENTS,
THEY ALL HAD GAPS IN THEIR KNOWLEDGE.
AND I WANTED THEM TO BE ABLE TO PRACTICE MORE,
AND FOR ME, AS THEIR TUTOR, TO SEE WHAT THEY KNEW
AND WHAT THEY DIDN'T KNOW,
SO I STARTED WRITING A LITTLE-- A QUIZZING PIECE OF SOFTWARE,
A WEB-BASED THING THAT WOULD GENERATE PROBLEMS FOR THEM.
AS THEY MASTERED ONE CONCEPT,
IT WOULD MOVE THEM ON TO THE NEXT ONE.
AND THAT WAS ACTUALLY THE GENESIS OF KHAN ACADEMY.
IT WAS LITERALLY-- I REMEMBER THE DAY,
I WAS LIKE, "OH, WHAT DO I CALL THIS THING?"
AND I LOOKED FOR, LIKE, FIVE OR SIX DOMAIN NAMES.
COULDN'T--AND ALL OF THEM WERE TAKEN.
I'M LIKE, "WHAT ABOUT KHAN ACADEMY?"
AND IT WAS AVAILABLE.
AND--BUT AT THAT TIME, IT HAD NOTHING TO DO WITH VIDEOS.
BUT THEN YOU FAST-FORWARD TO FALL OF 2006,
I WAS AT A DINNER PARTY RIGHT HERE IN SAN MATEO,
AND, YOU KNOW, I WAS SHOWING THIS SOFTWARE OFF
TO A BUNCH OF MY FRIENDS.
AND THEY ALL KNEW I HAD THIS CRAZY PROJECT
WITH MY COUSINS.
AND THE HOST, I GIVE HIM FULL CREDIT,
ZULI RAMZAN,
HE SAYS, "WELL, YOU KNOW, SAL, THIS IS COOL AND EVERYTHING,
BUT HOW ARE YOU ACTUALLY SCALING UP YOUR ACTUAL TUTORIALS?"
AND I SAID, "YOU KNOW,
I'M ACTUALLY HAVING TROUBLE WITH THAT."
WHEN, YOU KNOW--WHAT I WAS ABLE TO DO ONE-ON-ONE WITH NADIA,
I CAN'T DO WHEN THERE'S FIVE PEOPLE ON THE PHONE.
OR SOMETIMES I'D COVER SOMETHING WITH ONE COUSIN,
AND THEN THE NEXT WEEK I'M COVERING IT AGAIN
WITH ANOTHER COUSIN, AND I WISH SOMEHOW
THAT THEY WERE THERE FOR IT THE FIRST TIME.
AND SO ZULI SAYS, "WELL, LOOK, YOU KNOW, I'VE GOT AN IDEA.
WHY DON'T YOU MAKE SOME OF YOUR TUTORIALS AS VIDEOS
AND UPLOAD 'EM ON TO YOUTUBE FOR YOUR COUSINS?"
AND I IMMEDIATELY SAID, "NO, THAT'S A HORRIBLE IDEA.
YOUTUBE IS FOR CATS PLAYING PIANO."
[laughter]
"IT IS NOT FOR SERIOUS MATHEMATICS."
BUT I WENT HOME THAT WEEKEND,
GOT OVER THE IDEA THAT IT WASN'T MY IDEA.
AND I-- [laughter]
AND I DECIDED TO GIVE IT A SHOT.
AND SO I MADE THOSE FIRST FEW VIDEOS ON LEAST COMMON MULTIPLE,
ADDING FRACTIONS WITH UNLIKE DENOMIN--
JUST TOPICS THAT I SAW A LOT OF MY COUSINS
WERE HAVING QUESTIONS ABOUT.
AND I--YOU KNOW, AFTER I MADE ABOUT 20 OR 30 OF 'EM
OVER THE NEXT MONTH, I STARTED TELLING MY COUSINS,
"WELL, YOU KNOW, WHY DON'T YOU WATCH THESE FOR REVIEW,
AND THEN WHEN WE GET ON THE PHONE, YOU CAN DIG DEEPER?
AND THEN BASED ON THAT, I CAN EVEN MAKE MORE VIDEOS
BASED ON WHAT QUESTIONS I'M GETTING."
AND AFTER ABOUT A MONTH OF THEM, I ASKED FOR THEIR FEEDBACK,
AND THEY SOMEWHAT FAMOUSLY AND BACKHANDEDLY TOLD ME
THAT THEY LIKED ME BETTER ON YOUTUBE THAN IN PERSON.
[laughter]
AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK THAT--
AND THAT IS TRUE,
BUT I THINK IT BEARS-- IT'S WORTH PARSING
WHAT THEY WERE SAYING AND WHAT THEY WEREN'T SAYING.
THEY WEREN'T SAYING THAT THEY DIDN'T APPRECIATE
HAVING ME IN THEIR LIFE, TAKING INTEREST,
BEING THERE TO ANSWER THEIR QUESTIONS,
TO MENTOR THEM, TO COACH THEM.
THEY, I BELIEVE, DID APPRECIATE THAT.
BUT WHAT THEY WERE SAYING IS,
IS THAT THE FIRST TIME YOU'RE LEARNING SOMETHING--
AND WE'VE ALL EXPERIENCED THIS-- IT'S ACTUALLY REALLY STRESSFUL.
AND THE LAST THING YOU NEED IS EVEN A WELL-WISHER
WAITING FOR YOU TO UNDERSTAND IT.
"DO YOU GET THIS YET?"
YOU'RE AFRAID THAT YOU'RE GONNA WASTE THEIR TIME.
IF YOU'RE IN NINTH GRADE
AND YOU FORGOT A LITTLE BIT OF YOUR FIFTH GRADE DECIMALS,
YOU'RE EMBARRASSED.
YOU DON'T WANT TO ADMIT IT, EVEN TO A WELL-WISHER.
BUT NOW, WITH THE VIDEOS, NO ONE'S GOING TO JUDGE THEM.
THEY CAN ACCESS IT WHENEVER, WHEREVER,
REPEAT AS MUCH AS NECESSARY, SO I JUST KEPT GOING.
I MADE MORE AND MORE AND MORE VIDEOS.
AND THEN IT SOON BECAME CLEAR
THAT PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT MY COUSINS WERE WATCHING.
[laughter] AND MAYBE EVEN A FEW--
ACTUALLY, WHO HERE WAS--
WATCHED AS EARLY AS, LIKE, 2007?
ANYBODY? OKAY, THERE'S A FEW.
SO Y'ALL ARE NOT MY COUSINS.
THAT'S--SO Y'ALL WERE SOME OF THE EARLY ADOPTERS OF IT.
BUT--AND, YOU KNOW, IT WAS NEAT FOR ME
TO JUST SEE THE VIEWERSHIP GROW,
BUT THEN PEOPLE STARTED WRITING COMMENTS BELOW THE VIDEOS.
AND SOME OF THE COMMENTS WERE JUST A SIMPLE "THANK YOU,"
AND EVEN THAT WAS A BIG DEAL.
I DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH TIME Y'ALL SPEND ON YOUTUBE.
MOST OF THE COMMENTS ARE NOT "THANK YOU."
[laughter] THEY ARE--
THEY ARE SOMEWHAT EDGIER THAN--
BUT THEN-- BUT THEN, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE--
I STARTED TO GET, "HEY, I PASSED MY ALGEBRA EXAM
BECAUSE OF THIS VIDEO," OR, "THIS IS A VIDEO
AFTER RETIRING FROM THE MILITARY,
I'M ABLE TO GO BACK TO COLLEGE AND REENGAGE IN MATHEMATICS."
I REMEMBER, THIS WAS EITHER 2-- I THINK IT WAS MID-2007,
I GOT AN E--KIND OF A YOUTUBE MESSAGE
FROM A MOTHER, AND I BROUGHT MY WIFE OVER TO READ IT.
IT WAS REALLY INCREDIBLE.
SHE SAID HER SONS HAD A LEARNING DISABILITY.
THEY WERE FALLING BEHIND,
AND THESE VIDEOS WERE THE ONLY THINGS THAT WERE ALLOWING THEM
TO KEEP UP WITH THEIR CLASS,
AND BECAUSE OF THAT, HER AND HER ENTIRE FAMILY
WERE PRAYING FOR ME AND MY ENTIRE FAMILY EVERY NIGHT.
AND YOU GOT TO IMAGINE WHAT A STRANGE FEELING THAT WAS.
I WAS AN ANALYST AT A HEDGE FUND.
[laughter]
I WASN'T USED TO PEOPLE PRAYING FOR ME.
IT WAS VERY--
SO--AT LEAST IN THAT WAY.
AND SO I JUST KEPT GOING.
AND THEN YOU FAST-FORWARD TO 2009,
YOU KNOW, THE VIEWERSHIP KEPT GROWING AND GROWING AND GROWING.
BY FALL OF 2009, I FRANKLY HAD TROUBLE FOCUSING
ON MY DAY JOB, AND, YOU KNOW, WE--
MY WIFE AND I, WE HAD A LITTLE BIT OF SAVINGS,
ESSENTIALLY FOR A DOWN PAYMENT ON A HOUSE.
AND--BUT, YOU KNOW, SHE SAW THAT THIS IS WHERE MY MIND WAS,
THIS IS WHERE MY PASSION WAS.
I START--YOU KNOW, WE GOT A LITTLE BIT OF PRESS.
AND I SAID, "WELL, YOU KNOW,
IT FEELS LIKE THERE'S SOMETHING REAL HERE."
I SET IT UP AS A NOT-FOR-PROFIT.
AND, YOU KNOW, I THINK WHENEVER--
WHEN YOU DO ANYTHING ENTREPRENEURIAL,
WHETHER IT'S FOR PROFIT OR NOT FOR PROFIT,
YOU ALMOST HAVE TO START
FROM A SOMEWHAT DELUSIONALLY OPTIMISTIC POINT OF VIEW.
AND FOR ME, IT WAS LIKE, YOU KNOW, LOOK,
THE SOCIAL RETURN ON INVESTMENT HERE IS OFF THE CHARTS.
YOU KNOW, JUST ME, I CAN DO THIS,
BUT IF I COULD HAVE SOME MORE PEOPLE TO HELP ME,
WE COULD BUILD OUT THE SOFTWARE,
WE COULD REACH MORE AND MORE PEOPLE IN THE WORLD,
AND SO I WAS LIKE, "SURELY SOMEONE WILL FUND THIS."
AND, YOU KNOW, SO I QUIT MY JOB.
THIS WAS AUGUST OF 2009,
AND LIKE MOST ENTREPRENEURIAL STORIES,
IT DOESN'T NECESSARILY WORK OUT THE WAY YOU PLANNED.
AND SO THOSE FIRST FEW MONTHS, I PROBABLY--
YOU KNOW, I PROBABLY HAD CONVERSATIONS
WITH ON THE ORDER OF 20, 30 FOUNDATIONS
AND DIFFERENT GROUPS,
AND THERE WAS A LOT OF, "HEY, THIS IS REALLY INTERESTING,
BUT IT'S NOT QUITE WHAT WE DO."
IT'S KIND OF A STRANGE NOT-FOR-PROFIT,
WHERE IT'S, YOU KNOW, ONE GUY ESSENTIALLY MAKING VIDEOS,
AT THAT POINT IN TIME.
AND YOU FAST-FORWARD TO MAY OF 2010,
NOW NINE MONTHS HAVE PASSED.
I'M STARTING TO GET PRETTY PARANOID ABOUT THIS.
MY SON HAD BEEN BORN, OUR EXPENSES HAD GROWN,
WE HAD JUST STARTED RENTING A HOUSE HERE IN MOUNTAIN VIEW.
AND I WAS QUESTIONING, YOU KNOW, WHAT HAVE I DONE?
I GAVE UP A REALLY GOOD CAREER.
I EVEN, IN SOME WEAK POINTS, STARTED UPDATING MY RESUME.
AND I WAS GETTING SOME DONATIONS.
I WAS GETTING--YOU KNOW, THERE WERE $5, $10 DONATIONS.
THEY WERE AMOUNTING TO, YOU KNOW, ABOUT $100, $200 A MONTH.
IF IT WAS ANY OF YOU, THANK YOU.
BUT IT--OBVIOUSLY, WE WERE STILL DIGGING INTO SAVINGS,
BUT THEN MAY OF 2010,
ALL OF A SUDDEN, A $10,000 DONATION COMES IN.
SO I SEE WHO IT IS. HER NAME'S ANN DOERR.
SHE'S BASED IN PALO ALTO.
SO I IMMEDIATELY EMAIL HER BACK.
AND I SAID, "THANK YOU SO MUCH
FOR THIS INCREDIBLY GENEROUS DONATION.
THIS IS THE LARGEST DONATION
THAT KHAN ACADEMY HAS EVER RECEIVED.
IF WE WERE A PHYSICAL SCHOOL,
YOU WOULD NOW HAVE A BUILDING NAMED AFTER YOU"...
[laughter]
WHICH IS, I THINK, QUITE INEXPENSIVE.
AND ANN IMMEDIATELY EMAILS BACK.
SHE'S LIKE, "WELL, I'M LOCAL.
I'VE BEEN USING YOUR SITE MYSELF.
I'VE BEEN USING IT WITH MY DAUGHTERS.
I'D LOVE TO MEET AND FIND OUT MORE ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING."
AND SO I THINK IT WAS TWO OR THREE DAYS LATER,
WE MET IN DOWNTOWN PALO ALTO ON UNIVERSITY AVENUE
AT AN INDIAN BUFFET RESTAURANT,
AND OVER LUNCH, ANN ASKS ME, "SO WHAT'S YOUR GOAL HERE?"
AND I TOLD HER, YOU KNOW, WHEN YOU FILL OUT THE PAPERWORK
TO BE A NOT-FOR-PROFIT WITH THE IRS,
THERE'S A PART OF THE FORM THAT SAYS "MISSION:"
AND THERE'S, LIKE, A LINE AND A HALF.
AND I FILLED OUT "A FREE WORLD-CLASS EDUCATION
FOR ANYONE ANYWHERE."
AND ANN SAID, "THAT'S AMBITIOUS."
[laughter]
"HOW DO YOU SEE YOURSELF DOING THAT?"
AND I TOLD HER, "I DON'T KNOW. THIS IS A MISSION STATEMENT.
I DON'T EXPECT TO JUST CHECK IT OFF TOMORROW
AND THEN MOVE ON TO HEALTH CARE OR SOMETHING."
[laughter]
"BUT I THINK WE CAN MAKE A LOT OF PROGRESS HERE."
AND SO I SHOWED HER--I HAD A BIG STACK OF THESE LETTERS
AND TESTIMONIALS THAT PEOPLE WERE SENDING.
I SHOWED HER THE VIEWERSHIP FROM THE VIDEOS.
I HAD ALL THESE SCREENSHOTS FROM THE SOFTWARE
THAT I HAD BEEN--AND I WAS STILL WORKING ON FOR MY COUSINS,
THE TEACHER TOOL KIT THAT HAD BEEN USED
AT A COUPLE OF SUMMER CAMPS IN THIS AREA.
AND SO ANN SAYS, "YOU KNOW, YOU'VE BEEN ABLE TO DO
A SURPRISING AMOUNT
WITH, IT SEEMS LIKE, VERY LITTLE RESOURCES.
I HAVE ONE QUESTION.
HOW ARE YOU SUPPORTING YOURSELF?"
AND IN AS PROUD OF A WAY AS POSSIBLE,
I SAID, "I'M NOT." [laughter]
AND SO ANN KIND OF PROCESSES THAT,
AND WE PART WAYS.
AND TEN MINUTES LATER, I'M DRIVING INTO MY DRIVEWAY
HERE IN MOUNTAIN VIEW,
AND I GET A TEXT MESSAGE, AND IT'S FROM ANN.
AND IT SAYS, "YOU REALLY NEED TO BE SUPPORTING YOURSELF.
I'VE JUST WIRED YOU $100,000."
SO THAT WAS A GOOD DAY.
THAT WAS-- [laughter]
AND FRANKLY, IT JUST GOT--
YOU KNOW, THE--CRAZIER AND CRAZIER SERIES OF EVENTS.
ABOUT A MONTH LATER, THIS IS SUMMER OF 2010,
I WAS RUNNING A LITTLE SUMMER CAMP IN PORTOLA VALLEY
AT A MIDDLE SCHOOL, A VERY SMALL--
IT WAS ME AND A FRIEND. WE WERE--
AND IT WAS REALLY AROUND THIS IDEA OF,
"HEY, I'M THIS VIRTUAL GUY.
YOU CAN GET LECTURES ON DEMAND NOW.
WHAT COULD YOU NOW DO WITH A PHYSICAL CLASSROOM?"
I NEVER VIEWED THIS VIRTUAL STUFF
AS SOMEHOW BEING A REPLACEMENT.
I ALWAYS VIEWED IT AS LIBERATING THE PHYSICAL CLASSROOM.
AND SO THE SUMMER CAMP WAS A WAY TO EXPERIMENT WITH THAT.
AND WE HAD KIDS DOING DIALOGUE AND SIMULATIONS
AND MAKING PROJECTS, AND WE WERE IN THE MIDDLE OF ONE--
IT WAS A BUNCH OF MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS--
IT WAS A SIMULATION THAT I CAME UP WITH.
WE HAD SIX KIDS PLAYING A GAME OF RISK,
WHILE THE OTHER 20 TRADED SECURITIES
BASED ON THE OUTCOME OF THE GAME OF RISK.
[laughter] IT'S A GOOD GAME.
AND WHILE THAT WAS HAPPENING,
ALL OF A SUDDEN, I START GETTING TEXT MESSAGES FROM ANN,
WHICH YOU COULD IMAGINE I NOW TAKE VERY SERIOUSLY.
[laughter]
AND SO--AND IT WAS ACTUALLY HARD TO READ,
'CAUSE THEY WERE DISJOINTED,
AND IT WASN'T CLEAR WHICH CAME BEFORE WHICH,
BUT THEY READ ALONG THE LINES OF,
"I'M AT THE ASPEN IDEAS FESTIVAL IN ASPEN, COLORADO.
I'M IN THE MAIN PAVILION. BILL GATES IS ONSTAGE.
LAST FIVE MINUTES TALKING ABOUT KHAN ACADEMY."
SO I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO MAKE OF THIS.
SO I IMMEDIATELY BOOT THE NEAREST SEVENTH GRADER
OFF OF A COMPUTER. [laughter]
AND I START LOOKING FOR SOME EVIDENCE OF THIS EVENT
THAT ANN IS TALKING ABOUT.
AND IT TOOK ABOUT 20 MINUTES,
AND I DID EVENTUALLY FIND THE FOOTAGE.
IT WAS LITERALLY WALTER ISAACSON,
HEAD OF THE ASPEN INSTITUTE, ONSTAGE WITH BILL GATES.
AND HE ASKS BILL-- I CALL HIM BILL NOW--
[laughter]
HE ASKS BILL, "WHAT ARE YOU EXCITED ABOUT?"
AND HE JUST RANDOMLY STARTS GOING, "WELL, THERE'S THIS SITE,
KHAN ACADEMY. I USE IT WITH MY KIDS.
I USE IT MYSELF," AND HE WENT ON AND ON AND ON ABOUT IT.
I MEAN, HE CLEARLY SPENT A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF TIME
WITH THE SITE.
AND YOU COULD IMAGINE HOW I FELT.
YOU KNOW, AT FIRST, THIS JUST FELT LIKE A DREAM.
THIS WAS SURREAL.
BUT THEN THE VERY NEXT IMPULSE,
I ACTUALLY BECAME REALLY NERVOUS.
I WAS LIKE, THOSE VIDEOS WERE FOR NADIA...
[laughter] NOT BILL GATES.
AND FRANKLY, I DIDN'T--
YOU KNOW, I WENT HOME THAT EVENING.
I TOLD MY WIFE ABOUT IT.
A COUPLE OF MY FRIENDS HEARD ABOUT IT
AS, YOU KNOW, THEY EMAILED ME OR CALLED ME.
AND THEN I--IT-- I WAS CONFUSED.
YOU KNOW, WHAT DO I DO NOW?
WHAT'S THE PROTOCOL? DO I CALL HIM?
[laughter] I'M GUESSING HE'S NOT LISTED.
AND THEY LEFT ME IN THAT LIMBO FOR ABOUT TWO WEEKS.
TWO WEEKS LATER, I'M IN MY WALK-IN CLOSET,
ABOUT TO RECORD A VIDEO.
AND-- [laughter]
AND CELL PHONE RINGS, AND IT'S A SEATTLE NUMBER.
I ANSWER IT. "HELLO."
"HI, THIS IS LARRY COHEN. I'M BILL GATES' CHIEF OF STAFF.
YOU MIGHT HAVE HEARD THAT BILL'S A FAN."
"YEAH, I'VE HEARD THAT." [laughter]
"AND IF YOU'RE FREE IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS OR WEEKS,
WE'D LOVE TO FLY YOU UP TO SEATTLE
AND FIND OUT MORE ABOUT HOW WE MIGHT BE ABLE TO WORK TOGETHER
OR POTENTIALLY SUPPORT WHAT YOU'RE DOING."
AND I WAS LOOKING AT MY CALENDAR
FOR THE MONTH--
COMPLETELY BLANK. [laughter]
I SAID, YEAH, MAYBE NEXT WEDNESDAY
AFTER CUTTING MY NAILS, MAYBE DO SOME LAUNDRY,
BUT I THINK I CAN-- I THINK I CAN MEET BILL GATES.
AND SO WE HAD THE MEETING.
AND IT WAS ACTUALLY VERY SIMILAR TO THE MEETING WITH ANN.
AND RIGHT AROUND THE SAME TIME,
SOME FOLKS FROM GOOGLE REACHED OUT.
AND I'VE TRIED TO SEE IF THERE WAS ANY CONNECTION,
BUT THESE WERE ALL INDEPENDENT EVENTS.
SOME FOLKS FROM GOOGLE REACHED OUT,
AND THEY SAID, "HEY, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU KNOW,
BUT A LOT OF THE TEAM HERE HAS BEEN USING KHAN ACADEMY
WITH OUR CHILDREN. WE LOVE THE SITE.
WE'D LOVE TO THINK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, WHAT YOU COULD DO
IF YOU HAD MORE RESOURCES.
SO, YOU KNOW, WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU HAD--
WHAT WOULD YOU DO IF YOU HAD $2 MILLION?"
AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, "IS THIS AN OPEN QUESTION?"
[laughter]
BUY NEW PANTS OR SOMETHING. NO.
BUT I--VERY, VERY SIMILAR TO THAT CONVERSATION,
SO ALL OF A SUDDEN, 2010,
IT ALL--YOU KNOW, ALL THE STARS ALIGNED.
AND THE GATES FOUNDATION AND GOOGLE WERE THE FIRST
TO KIND OF REALLY ALLOW KHAN ACADEMY
TO BECOME A REAL ORGANIZATION
SO THAT WE COULD START HIRING OUR FIRST--
THE BEGINNINGS OF OUR TEAM
AND THEN GET OFFICE SPACE, ET CETERA, ET CETERA.
AND WHAT WE IMMEDIATELY STARTED, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY,
INVESTING IN OR WORKING ON
WAS THE INTERACTIVE MATH PART OF KHAN ACADEMY.
AND WHAT YOU SEE HERE, THIS IS WHAT WE CALL OUR KNOWLEDGE MAP,
AND IT'S NO LONGER OUR PRIMARY NAVIGATION INTERFACE
ON KHAN ACADEMY.
IT WAS BACK WHEN IT WAS BEING USED FOR MY COUSINS.
BUT IT'S STILL THERE.
BUT WE--I LIKE TO SHOW THIS BECAUSE IT SHOWS
HOW WE THINK ABOUT MATHEMATICS.
SO EACH OF THOSE CIRCLES THERE ARE A CONCEPT IN MATH,
AND THE ONES AT THE TOP ARE BASIC MATHEMATICS.
THEY'RE THINGS LIKE BASIC ARITHMETIC--
ONE PLUS ONE EQUALS TWO.
AND AS YOU GO FURTHER AND FURTHER DOWN,
IT GOES ALL THE WAY TO COLLEGE LEVEL STATISTICS AND CALCULUS,
AND OUR GOAL IS TO JUST KEEP GOING ON AND ON AND ON
AND EVENTUALLY INTO OTHER SUBJECTS, AS WELL.
YOU SAW, THE VIDEOS ARE MUCH BROADER THAN JUST MATH.
AND THE IDEA IS, ONCE A STUDENT SHOWS MASTERY
IN A BASIC CONCEPT,
IT THEN MOVES THEM ON TO A MORE ADVANCED CONCEPT.
AND THOSE LINES SHOW THAT DEPENDENCY.
AND AT SOME LEVEL, THAT'S COMMON SENSE.
THAT'S THE WAY YOU WOULD PLAY A VIDEO GAME.
YOU BEAT-- YOU KEEP TRYING ON LEVEL ONE
UNTIL YOU BEAT THE LEVEL ONE BOSS, AND YOU GO TO LEVEL TWO.
IT'S THE WAY YOU WOULD LEARN A MARTIAL ART.
YOU KEEP PRACTICING THE WHITE BELT SKILLS,
AND ONLY ONCE YOU'VE MASTERED WHITE BELT
AND YOU PASS THE TEST, THEN YOU BECOME A YELLOW BELT.
BUT WHAT WE ALWAYS POINT OUT-- THIS IS NOT THE WAY
THAT A TRADITIONAL SCHOOL MODEL IS ARCHITECTED.
A TRADITIONAL SCHOOL MODEL--
YOU GROUP STUDENTS TOGETHER, USUALLY BY AGE,
AND THEN LATER BY AGE AND PERCEIVED ABILITY,
BUT USUALLY BY AGE,
AND THEN YOU MOVE THEM TOGETHER AT A SET PACE.
AND WHAT HAPPENS IS,
NORMALLY IN CLASS, MOST OF IT IS THE TEACHER LECTURING.
AND THEN STUDENTS GO HOME, THEY DO HOMEWORK,
THEN THE NEXT DAY YOU REVIEW HOMEWORK A LITTLE BIT
AND MAYBE GET A LITTLE BIT MORE LECTURE.
THEN YOU GO BACK, DO A LITTLE MORE HOMEWORK,
AND THEN THAT CYCLE--HOMEWORK, LECTURE, HOMEWORK, LECTURE,
HOMEWORK, LECTURE--CONTINUES FOR ABOUT TWO OR THREE WEEKS,
AND THEN YOU HAVE AN EXAM.
AND LET'S SAY THAT EXAM-- LET'S SAY THE UNIT
THAT WE WERE WORKING ON WAS BASIC EXPONENTS,
AND ON THAT EXAM, LET'S SAY I GET A 75%, YOU GET A 90%,
YOU GET A 60%,
AND EVEN THOUGH THE EXAM IDENTIFIED THOSE GAPS--
CLEAR, THE PERSON WHO GOT THE 60%
DIDN'T KNOW 40% OF THE MATERIAL--
EVEN THOUGH IT IDENTIFIED IT-- EVEN THE "A" STUDENT
WHO DIDN'T KNOW 5% OR 10% OF THE MATERIAL--
EVEN THOUGH THE ASSESSMENT IDENTIFIED THOSE GAPS,
THE WHOLE CLASS THEN MOVES ON TO THE NEXT CONCEPT,
SOMETHING THAT PROBABLY BUILDS ON THOSE GAPS,
SAY, NEGATIVE EXPONENTS OR LOGARITHMS.
AND TO PUT IT IN PERSPECTIVE,
ON SOME LEVEL, HOW ABSURD THIS IS,
IMAGINE IF WE DID OTHER THINGS IN OUR LIFE THAT WAY,
SAY, HOME BUILDING.
[laughter]
SO YOU BRING THE CONTRACTOR IN,
AND YOU SAY, "WELL, WE'VE BEEN TOLD WE HAVE THREE WEEKS
TO BUILD A FOUNDATION. DO WHAT YOU CAN."
[laughter]
SO THE CONTRACTOR DOES WHAT THEY CAN--
MAYBE IT RAINS, MAYBE THE SUPPLIES DON'T SHOW UP,
MAYBE SOME OF THE WORKERS FALL SICK.
AND AFTER THREE WEEKS, YOU GET THE INSPECTOR.
THE INSPECTOR COMES AND SAYS, "WELL, YOU KNOW, THE CONCRETE'S
STILL WET AROUND THERE.
THAT PART'S NOT QUITE UP TO CODE.
I'LL GIVE IT AN 80%."
SO GREAT, THAT'S A B-MINUS OR C-PLUS.
LET'S BUILD THE FIRST FLOOR. [laughter]
SAME PROCESS, "CONTRACTOR, WE HAVE ANOTHER THREE WEEKS.
DO WHAT YOU CAN."
AFTER THREE WEEKS, INSPECTOR COMES, "HEY, THAT'S A 90%."
"OKAY, GREAT. LET'S BUILD THE SECOND FLOOR."
AND YOU KEEP DOING THAT-- THIRD FLOOR, FOURTH FLOOR.
AND THEN ALL OF A SUDDEN, WHILE YOU'RE BUILDING
THE FOURTH FLOOR, THE WHOLE THING COLLAPSES.
AND THE REACTION THAT PEOPLE TEND TO HAVE,
OR IF WE HAVE THE SAME REACTION THAT PEOPLE OFTEN HAVE
IN EDUCATION, THEY SAY, "OH, MAYBE IT WAS A BAD CONTRACTOR,"
OR, "MAYBE WE NEEDED BETTER INSPECTION
OR MORE INSPECTION," AND WHO KNOWS?
MAYBE THAT HAD SOME PART TO DO WITH IT.
BUT THE REAL THING THAT IS GOING ON
IS THAT THE PROCESS WAS ABSURD.
YOU WERE ARTIFICIALLY CONSTRAINING
HOW LONG YOU HAD TO WORK ON SOMETHING
PRETTY MUCH ENSURING A VARIABLE OUTCOME,
PRETTY MUCH ENSURING YOU WERE GOING TO HAVE GAPS.
THEN YOU TAKE THE TROUBLE OF IDENTIFYING THOSE GAPS,
BUT ONCE YOU'VE IDENTIFIED THEM, YOU JUST COMPLETELY IGNORE THEM,
AND THEN YOU MOVE ON.
AND SO WHAT WE SAY, INSTEAD OF HOLDING FIXED
HOW LONG AND WHEN YOU LEARN SOMETHING
AND PRETTY MUCH ENSURING A VARIABLE OUTCOME--
"A," "B," "C," "D," "F"-- DO IT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.
HOLD FIXED THAT EVERY STUDENT SHOULD MASTER BASIC EXPONENTS,
SHOULD GET TO THAT "A" LEVEL,
AND THEN THE CONSTRAINT THAT GETS LOOSENED,
THE VARIABLE CONSTRAINT,
IS WHEN AND HOW LONG THEY GET TO LEARN THE MATERIAL.
RIGHT WHEN WE STARTED,
SOME LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS, LOS ALTOS, ESPECIALLY,
BUT THEN SHORTLY AFTER, MOUNTAIN VIEW
AND OTHER LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS
AND THEN MANY AROUND THE COUNTRY AND WORLD, ACTUALLY,
STARTED SAYING, "WELL, HOW COULD WE USE KHAN ACADEMY
IN A CLASSROOM?"
AND YOU KNOW, OUR POINT OF VIEW IS,
WELL, THIS COULD FREE UP THIS WHOLE "ONE PACE FITS ALL."
YOU COULD HAVE EVERY STUDENT LEARNING AT THEIR OWN PACE,
MASTERING CONCEPTS.
YOU KNOW, WE HAD ALREADY HAD SOME DASHBOARDS FOR TEACHERS,
AND WE WERE WORKING ON MORE.
AND THE IDEA--AND THIS IS-- THIS IS KIND OF--
WE STARTED SEEING THIS BEHAVIOR BY OBSERVING THESE CLASSROOMS--
IS THAT, YOU KNOW, EVEN THOUGH EVERY STUDENT IS LEARNING
AT THEIR OWN PACE,
IT WASN'T AN ISOLATED KIND OF LEARNING EXPERIENCE.
IN FACT, IT BECAME MORE INTERACTIVE
WHERE, YOU KNOW, THIS DASHBOARD THAT WE HAVE FOR TEACHERS
KIND OF ENCAPSULATES HOW A CLASSROOM COULD RUN,
WHERE EACH OF THESE COLUMNS ARE ONE OF THOSE CONCEPTS
THAT YOU SAW ON THE KNOWLEDGE MAP.
EACH OF THESE ROWS ARE A STUDENT IN THE CLASS.
AND THEN THE DEPTH OF BLUE
IS THE SYSTEM'S SENSE OF HOW WELL THE STUDENT UNDERSTANDS IT.
AND THE RED STUDENTS ARE FLAGGED THAT THIS STUDENT SEEMS STUCK.
AND SO AS A TEACHER, I COULD WALK IN,
I COULD SAY, "OH, LOOK, A LOT OF THE STUDENTS SEEM FINE
WITH SQUARE ROOTS OF PERFECT SQUARES,
BUT THERE'S A COUPLE OF STUDENTS WHO ARE HAVING TROUBLE
WITH SOLID GEOMETRY."
EITHER I COULD DO A VERY FOCUSED INTERVENTION WITH THOSE STUDENTS
WHILE LETTING EVERY OTHER STUDENT LEARN AT THEIR OWN PACE,
OR EVEN BETTER, I CAN GET SOME OF THE PEERS TO HELP EACH OTHER.
MAYBE SOME OF THE STUDENTS WHO HAVE MASTERED IT ALREADY.
LOOK AT THE ADDED BENEFIT OF YOU LEARN IT EVEN DEEPER
WHEN YOU EXPLAIN IT.
THIS IS SOME DATA FROM A LOCAL CHARTER SCHOOL
UP IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA.
AND YOU KNOW, THIS IS, YOU KNOW--
AND I'LL CAVEAT THIS.
I DON'T WANT TO GIVE ANYONE THE SENSE
THAT YOU CAN JUST DROP KHAN ACADEMY INTO A CLASSROOM,
AND ALL OF A SUDDEN, THE BUTTERFLIES WILL FLY
AND THE FLOWERS WILL BLOOM.
IT'S A TOOL, AND LIKE ALL TOOLS,
IT'S GOING TO BE AS GOOD AS HOW IT'S BEING USED.
AND, YOU KNOW, THE CREDIT TO WHAT I'M ABOUT TO TALK TO YOU
IS REALLY--THE BULK OF IT GOES TO THE TEACHING STAFF,
ESPECIALLY THEIR HEAD TEACHER, PETER MCINTOSH.
BUT WHAT WAS EXCITING-- YOU KNOW, THIS WAS A--
THIS IS A NINTH GRADE ALGEBRA CLASSROOM.
IT'S A CHARTER SCHOOL IN OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA.
THEY'RE GETTING STUDENTS FROM THE LOCAL SCHOOL DISTRICT.
MANY OF THESE STUDENTS,
TWO, THREE, FOUR YEARS BEHIND GRADE LEVEL.
SOME OF THESE STUDENTS DIDN'T KNOW
THEIR MULTIPLICATION TABLES, DIDN'T KNOW BASIC ARITHMETIC.
AND WHAT HAPPENED HERE IS--
YOU KNOW, THIS IS SOMETHING THAT PETER MCINTOSH ALWAYS BELIEVED,
IS THAT THE WAY TO ADDRESS THAT IS TO LET THESE STUDENTS,
EVEN IF THEY'RE IN ALGEBRA,
MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE THAT STRONG FOUNDATION
AND TRY TO GET THEM TO OWN THEIR OWN LEARNING,
SET THEIR OWN GOALS, LEARN AT THEIR OWN PACE.
AND HE WAS JUST LOOKING FOR A TOOL TO ALLOW HIM TO DO THAT.
AND SO THIS CLASSROOM AND ACTUALLY EVEN
THE YEAR BEFORE, EVEN, THIS SLIDE,
IN 2010, THIS CLASSROOM WAS IN THE 22ND PERCENTILE
IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
AMONGST NINTH GRADE ALGEBRA CLASSROOMS.
AND THEN THIS PAST YEAR,
THEY WERE JUST IN THE 99TH PERCENTILE
IN THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
AMONGST NINTH GRADE ALGEBRA CLASSROOMS.
I THINK THERE'S ONLY NINE CLASSROOMS IN THE STATE
THAT OUTPERFORM THEM.
AND WHAT'S BEEN NEAT ABOUT THIS--
I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE ALWAYS TALKS
ABOUT TEST SCORES, AND CLEARLY THE TEST SCORES WERE GOOD.
BUT WHAT PETER MENTIONS IS, "LOOK, THE TEST SCORES--
THAT'S ALL NICE, AND MATH LEARNING IS NICE,"
BUT HE VIEWS THAT AS REALLY A PRETEXT,
THAT THE MORE POWERFUL THING THAT HAPPENED IS
THESE WERE STUDENTS WHO CAME IN DISENGAGED
THINKING THAT THEY WEREN'T GOOD IN MATH, LIKE MY COUSIN,
LIKE NADIA, AND THEY WERE VERY PASSIVE.
"HEY, TEACHER, TELL ME HOW TO DO IT.
WHAT DO I HAVE TO DO? DO I HAVE TO MEMORIZE THAT FOR THE EXAM?"
THEY WOULD LOOK AT A PROBLEM FOR FIVE SECONDS AND SAY,
"OH, I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DO THAT. I'M NOT GOOD IN MATH."
BUT BY ALLOWING THEM TO MOVE AT THEIR OWN PACE
AND BY ALLOWING THEM TO SET THEIR OWN GOALS
AND REALLY KIND OF SHOWING THEM
THAT MASTERY IS IMPORTANT, IT'S NOT ENOUGH
TO JUST SUPERFICIALLY UNDERSTAND SOMETHING,
IT GAVE THEM OWNERSHIP OVER THEIR OWN LEARNING.
AND WHEN YOU GAVE THEM OWNERSHIP OVER THEIR OWN LEARNING,
IT CHANGED THEIR MIND-SETS FOR THE REST OF THEIR LIFE.
AND THAT OWNERSHIP IS PROBABLY A MORE IMPORTANT SKILL
THAN ANY OF THE ALGEBRA, AND THAT PAYS DIVIDENDS,
NOT JUST IN THE OTHER CLASSES,
BUT OBVIOUSLY AS YOU GO INTO CAREERS AND WHATEVER ELSE.
NOW, EVERYTHING THAT I'VE TALKED ABOUT SO FAR
HAS BEEN KIND OF A--
WELL, THIS HAS BEEN THE CLASSROOM ENVIRONMENT,
BUT OBVIOUSLY, OUT OF THE 10 MILLION STUDENTS,
NOT ALL OF THEM ARE IN CLASSROOMS.
LIKE, 9 MILLION ARE JUST INDEPENDENT LEARNERS.
AND THIS NEXT VIDEO IS A GOOD EXAMPLE
OF JUST HOW MUCH POTENTIAL THERE IS OUT THERE
IF WE JUST LET PEOPLE TAP INTO IT.
- SO I ACTUALLY DROPPED OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL TWICE,
BOTH DURING MY FRESHMAN YEAR.
AND WHEN I EVENTUALLY CAME BACK,
I WAS PUT IN, SORT OF, LOWER LEVEL MATH AND SCIENCE CLASSES
BECAUSE I WAS SO BEHIND.
THEN I DISCOVERED KHAN ACADEMY,
AND I WAS ABLE TO SKIP TWO YEARS' WORTH OF MATH
JUST THROUGH USING THE SITE.
AND I CAME INTO SCHOOL, I TOOK THE EXAM
WITH STUDENTS WHO HAD BEEN ENROLLED IN THE CLASS ALL YEAR,
AND I WAS ACTUALLY ABLE TO GET THE HIGHEST
OR THE SECOND HIGHEST SCORES IN THE CLASS.
SO FOR ME, KHAN ACADEMY REALLY CHANGED THE TRAJECTORY
OF MY ENTIRE LIFE,
BECAUSE WITHOUT IT,
I DON'T THINK I EVER REALLY WOULD HAVE BEEN INSPIRED
TO LEARN AND TO LOVE MATH AND TO LOVE SCIENCE.
I ENDED UP GRADUATING AS THE VALEDICTORIAN
AND GOING ON TO PRINCETON,
WHERE I'M NOW A COMPUTER SCIENCE MAJOR.
AND I'M ABSOLUTELY PASSIONATE ABOUT LEARNING,
ABOUT COMPUTERS, ABOUT MATH, ABOUT SCIENCE.
AND WITHOUT KHAN ACADEMY,
I DON'T THINK THAT THESE THINGS WOULD REALLY MATTER TO ME
THE WAY THAT THEY DO TODAY.
SO I'D JUST LIKE TO SAY A MASSIVE THANK-YOU
TO EVERYONE AT KHAN ACADEMY, SAL AND THE TEAM.
PLEASE KEEP DOING THE GOOD WORK THAT YOU'RE DOING
BECAUSE YOU'RE REALLY CHANGING LIVES.
- SO-- [applause]
SO THIS ACTUALLY GOT EVEN MORE INTERESTING.
SO WHEN WE FOUND OUT
THAT CHARLIE IS A COMPUTER SCIENCE MAJOR,
WE SAID, "YOU KNOW, WE HAVE INTERNSHIPS."
[laughter] AND SO HE INTERVIEWED
FOR THE INTERNSHIPS, AND HE DID VERY WELL IN THE INTERVIEW,
ACTUALLY, SO WELL THAT A COUPLE OF PEOPLE WHO INTERVIEWED HIM
SAID, LIKE, "WHO IS THIS GUY? YOU KNOW, HE'S REALLY JUST
ROCKING ALL THE ROUNDS OF THE INTERVIEWS."
AND I SAID, YOU KNOW, "WHY ARE YOU SURPRISED?
WE EDUCATED HIM."
[laughter]
BUT HE ACTUALLY GOT OFFERED, ACCEPTED THE INTERVIEW,
AND NOW HE'S INTERNING WITH US THIS SUMMER.
AND HE'S ACTUALLY HERE, SO-- YEAH. YOU WANT TO STAND UP?
ACTUALLY, CHARLIE, YOU WANT TO-- YEAH, YEAH, YEAH.
[applause]
THIS IS ACTUALLY THE FIRST TIME THAT I'M LIKE,
"WAIT, CHARLIE'S IN THE ROOM. I SHOULD, LIKE"--
I'M ALWAYS--ACTUALLY, ALL THE PEOPLE AT KHAN ACADEMY,
WHY DON'T YOU STAND UP, JUST SO EVERYONE--
WE HAVE A BUNCH OF INTERNS AND NEW FOLKS THAT WE ALL INVITED.
SO AS YOU CAN-- [applause]
AS YOU CAN TELL, I ALWAYS LIKE TO PACK THE AUDIENCE
WITH FRIENDLY PEOPLE SO THAT I CAN
MAXIMIZE THE--
SO THIS IS SOMETHING THAT SOME OF YOU ALL
MIGHT HAVE HEARD ABOUT.
COLLEGE BOARD, MAKERS OF THE S.A.T.,
ABOUT TWO MONTHS AGO ANNOUNCED THAT THEY'RE GONNA CREATE
A NEW S.A.T. IN 2016 THAT'S MORE ALIGNED
WITH WHAT STUDENTS ACTUALLY LEARN IN SCHOOL
AND IS MORE CORRELATED WITH BEING PREPARED FOR COLLEGE.
BUT AS PART OF THAT, THEY FINALLY RECOGNIZED
WHAT EVERYONE HAS ALWAYS RECOGNIZED FOR MANY DECADES NOW,
IS THAT THERE'S BEEN THIS PERCEIVED
AND MAYBE ACTUAL INEQUITY IN PREPARING
FOR THESE TYPES OF HIGH-STAKES TESTS.
YOU HAVE THIS WHOLE MULTIBILLION-DOLLAR INDUSTRY
AROUND TEST PREP THAT THE MIDDLE CLASS
AND UPPER-MIDDLE CLASS CAN AFFORD,
BUT THE PEOPLE WHO NEED IT THE MOST CAN'T.
AND SO THEY DECIDED--
THEY'VE NEVER DONE ANYTHING LIKE THIS--TO PARTNER WITH US
TO CREATE FREE TEST PREP.
AND WHAT'S EXCITING ABOUT THIS
ON BOTH SIDES OF THE RELATIONSHIP IS,
YOU KNOW, THE REASON WHY THEY PARTNERED WITH US
IS BECAUSE THEY DIDN'T-- THEY WANTED TO DO TEST PREP
ON A MUCH DEEPER LEVEL.
IT'S HISTORICALLY BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH
FAMILIARITY WITH EXAMS, HERE ARE SOME TEST-TAKING STRATEGIES,
HERE'S HOW YOU GUESS, HERE'S HOW YOU CRAM.
BUT THEY RECOGNIZE THAT WE'RE NOT ABOUT THAT.
YOU KNOW, WE'RE LITERALLY ABOUT BUILDING YOUR FOUNDATIONS,
MASTERING CONCEPTS, NOT SOMEHOW COVERING
YOUR SUPERFICIAL WEAKNESSES.
AND SO WHAT WE'RE GONNA BE BUILDING TOGETHER--
AND IT'S A VERY, VERY CLOSE RELATIONSHIP--
IS, YOU KNOW, NOT JUST FREE TEST PREP,
BUT LITERALLY THE BEST TEST PREP THAT HAPPENS TO BE FREE,
AND NOT JUST ABOUT FAMILIARITY WITH EXAMS
OR WHAT YOU DO IN THE WEEK OR TWO BEFORE THE EXAM.
BUT WHEREVER YOU ARE, HOWEVER YOU START,
WHATEVER AGE YOU ARE, WE CAN GET YOU
TO WHATEVER KNOWLEDGE STATE THAT YOU WANT TO GET TO.
WE ALSO HAVE A PARTNERSHIP WITH NASA,
WHICH I THOUGHT WOULD BE FUN TO MENTION HERE.
[applause] THIS IS--
SO THERE'S A WHOLE SERIES OF CONTENT
ON KHAN ACADEMY NOW,
SIMULATIONS AND VIDEOS ON, YOU KNOW--
AND I HAD DONE A WHOLE SERIES ON COSMOLOGY EVEN BEFORE,
BUT NOW, WE HAVE SOME REAL NASA CONTENT
ON, YOU KNOW, HOW TO-- YOU KNOW, MISSION TO MARS,
HOW DO YOU FIGURE OUT HOW FAR A STAR AWAY--
A STAR IS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO THERE'S A, YOU KNOW, VERY, VERY EXCITING PARTNERSHIP.
OBVIOUSLY, TO SOME DEGREE--
I MEAN, I WAS JUST SPEAKING TO THE FOLKS HERE,
YOU KNOW, NASA'S MISSION IS-- YOU KNOW,
IT'S OBVIOUSLY ABOUT EXPLORING SPACE,
BUT IT'S ALSO ABOUT EDUCATING, ESPECIALLY IN STEM,
TO MAKE SURE THAT WE HAVE THE TALENT
SO THAT WE CAN EXPLORE SPACE.
SO EVERYTHING I'VE TALKED ABOUT SO FAR
HAS BEEN THE WORLD THAT MOST OF US LIVE IN,
THE ENGLISH-SPEAKING WORLD, THE DEVELOPED WORLD.
MANY OF YOU ALL MIGHT BE THINKING,
WELL, YOU KNOW, WHAT ABOUT THE REST OF THE PLANET?
MAYBE THEY COULD EVEN BENEFIT MORE FROM SOMETHING LIKE THIS.
AND, YOU KNOW, AS EARLY AS 2007,
THERE WERE FOLKS TAKING KHAN ACADEMY ON,
YOU KNOW, THE VIDEOS OR SOMETIMES EVEN THE SOFTWARE,
AND TAKING THEM ALL OVER THE WORLD
ON THUMB DRIVES AND SOMETIMES ON COMPUTERS
AND MAYBE SOMETIMES SETTING UP BROADBAND,
AND ALL OF THESE ARE PICTURES OF THOSE OTHER GROUPS,
OTHER NOT-FOR-PROFITS, OTHER NGOs,
SOMETIMES GOVERNMENTS, TAKING KHAN ACADEMY OUT TO THE WORLD.
SO THESE ARE ALL KIDS USING KHAN ACADEMY IN RANDOM PLACES.
AND THEY'RE EACH PRETTY INCREDIBLE STORIES,
BUT PROBABLY THE MOST INCREDIBLE ONE
IS THE ONE ON THE TOP RIGHT.
YOU KNOW, I USED TO GIVE TALKS LIKE THIS AND JOKE THAT,
YOU KNOW, "MAYBE ONE DAY THIS WILL BE USED IN MONGOLIA,"
JUST IMAGINING THE FURTHEST PLACE ON THE PLANET,
AND THEN A FEW MONTHS LATER, I GET A LETTER FROM MONGOLIA.
AND IT'S THE YOUNG WOMAN ON THE TOP RIGHT.
HER NAME'S ZAYA, AND, YOU KNOW, SHE HAD A--
AN EMAIL AND THEN A LINK TO A VIDEO,
AND HER VIDEO IS VERY SIMILAR TO CHARLIE'S,
SAYING HOW SHE LIKED KHAN ACADEMY.
IT REALLY HELPED HER IN MATH.
AND IT WAS-- IT WAS A COOL VIDEO,
BUT I IMMEDIATELY ASSUMED THAT SHE MUST BE MIDDLE CLASS
OR UPPER-MIDDLE CLASS. HER ENGLISH WAS QUITE GOOD.
SHE HAD ACCESS TO THE INTERNET AND A COMPUTER.
BUT THEN I READ THE TEXT OF THE EMAIL MORE CAREFULLY,
AND IT TURNED OUT THAT THERE WAS A GROUP OF ENGINEERS
FROM CISCO SYSTEMS
THAT WERE USING THEIR VACATION TIME
TO GO TO MONGOLIA AND SET UP COMPUTER LABS
WITH BROADBAND IN ORPHANAGES.
AND SO WHAT YOU SEE IN THE TOP RIGHT THERE,
THOSE ARE THE ACTUAL ORPHAN GIRLS USING KHAN ACADEMY,
AND ZAYA WAS--IS--WAS ONE OF THOSE ORPHAN GIRLS.
AND THAT, BY ITSELF, WAS, LIKE,
YOU KNOW, SOMETHING OUT OF A SCIENCE FICTION BOOK,
BUT IT GOT EVEN MORE INCREDIBLE, BECAUSE ZAYA THEN WENT ON
TO BECOME ONE OF THE TOP CONTRIBUTORS OF CONTENT
IN THE MONGOLIAN LANGUAGE.
AND SO IT'S, YOU KNOW-- I GUESS IT'S VERY SIMILAR
TO CHARLIE'S STORY THAT, YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY, SHE BENEFITTED.
THEN SHE'S ABLE TO CONTRIBUTE TO HELP THE NEXT GENERATION
OF LEARNERS HERE.
WE'RE, ACTIVELY, TO BE ABLE TO REACH MORE AND MORE PEOPLE
AROUND THE WORLD, TRANSLATING THE WHOLE PLATFORM,
NOT JUST THE VIDEOS, BUT THE EXERCISES,
THE DASHBOARDS, EVERYTHING TO THE WORLD'S MAJOR LANGUAGES.
THIS IS THE SPANISH VERSION OF KHAN ACADEMY,
WHICH WE LAUNCHED IN THIS PAST FALL.
WE'VE RECENTLY LAUNCHED BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE.
WE'RE LAUNCHING SOON TURKISH AND FRENCH,
AND OUR GOAL OVER TIME
IS TO DO ALL OF THE WORLD'S MAJOR LANGUAGES.
AND TO GET A FEELING FOR WHAT SOME OF THIS--
AT LEAST THE VIDEO CONTENT FEELS LIKE IN OTHER LANGUAGES,
I'LL SHOW YOU THIS NEXT VIDEO.
[woman speaking Spanish]
[woman speaking French]
[woman speaking Mandarin]
[man speaking Hindi-Urdu]
[man speaking Arabic]
[man speaking Farsi]
[man speaking Hebrew]
[woman speaking Swahili]
[woman speaking Xhosa]
[man speaking Turkish]
[man speaking Portuguese]
- I WATCH THAT WHENEVER I GET LAZY.
[laughter]
SO THESE ARE JUST MORE PICTURES OF KHAN ACADEMY.
I MEAN, WE GET SENT THESE ALMOST EVERY DAY
OF PICTURES ALL OVER THE WORLD OF PEOPLE USING KHAN ACADEMY.
AND, YOU KNOW, WHAT I ALWAYS TELL FOLKS--
I TELL THIS TO THE TEAM ALMOST ON A WEEKLY BASIS.
I TELL IT TO OUR SUPPORTERS.
I TELL IT TO ALL OUR STAKEHOLDERS,
AND ONCE AGAIN, YOU KNOW, YOU SAW SOME OF OUR TEAM.
WE'RE NOW--YOU KNOW,
EVEN IN THE SUMMER, WE'RE 60 FULL-TIME PEOPLE
AND 20-SOMETHING INTERNS. WE'VE HAD HUNDREDS,
ACTUALLY THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE HELP VOLUNTEER
IN TERMS OF HELP SUBTITLE AND GO OUT INTO THE FIELD.
OBVIOUSLY, THERE'S HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF TEACHERS
PART OF THIS, AND WHAT I TELL EVERYONE
WHO'S KIND OF INVOLVED
OR NOT INVOLVED EVEN, IS THAT, YOU KNOW,
YOU HEAR THE TERM ONCE-IN- A-LIFETIME OPPORTUNITY A LOT,
BUT IN MY MIND, IT'S MUCH MORE THAN THAT.
IT'S ACTUALLY MUCH CLOSER
TO A ONCE-IN-A-MILLENNIUM OPPORTUNITY WHERE, YOU KNOW,
WE'RE CLEARLY AT THIS INFLECTION POINT IN HISTORY,
PROBABLY ONE THAT'S BIGGER THAN THE PRINTING PRESS,
BIGGER THAN THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION,
AND PROBABLY WOULD RIVAL THE ADVENT OF WRITING
OR THE ADVENT OF AGRICULTURE.
AND WHENEVER YOU HAVE THESE NEW INFLECTION POINTS,
IT RAISES NEW PROBLEMS BUT ALSO NEW OPPORTUNITIES.
AND TO TAKE IT-- TO SOLVE THOSE PROBLEMS,
IT ALSO KIND OF BRINGS ABOUT NEW INSTITUTIONS.
AND IT WAS KIND OF A DELUSIONAL DREAM
WHEN I WAS A GUY OPERATING IN A CLOSET HERE IN MOUNTAIN VIEW,
BUT NOW IT SEEMS A LITTLE BIT LESS DELUSIONAL,
THAT OUR HOPE IS THAT KHAN ACADEMY
CAN BE AN INSTITUTION THAT, OVER THE NEXT DECADE,
50 YEARS, YOU KNOW, 100 YEARS, 500 YEARS,
CAN TAKE THIS THING CALLED EDUCATION
AND, YOU KNOW, THIS THING THAT'S FUNDAMENTALLY BEEN SCARCE,
THAT'S FUNDAMENTALLY BEEN THE DETERMINANT
BETWEEN THOSE WHO SUCCEED AND THOSE WHO DON'T
AND MAKE IT MORE UBIQUITOUS,
LIKE CLEAN DRINKING WATER AND SHELTER,
AND REALLY, JUST A FUNDAMENTAL HUMAN RIGHT.
THANK YOU.
[applause]
- SO WE HAVE TIME FOR A FEW QUESTIONS.
IF YOU HAVE A QUESTION, PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND.
WAIT FOR THE MICROPHONE, AND WHEN YOU GET IT, STAND UP.
THANK YOU.
- I HAVE A QUESTION BACK HERE, SAL.
HELLO. HI, SAL. - OH, YES.
- SO I HAVE A QUESTION ABOUT THE DISCONNECT
BETWEEN WHAT WE'RE TEACHING PEOPLE...
- MM-HMM. - AND WHAT WE--
WHAT PEOPLE ACTUALLY DO IN THE REAL WORLD.
- YEAH. - AND SO ONE OF THE RESTRICTIONS
IS, I'M SURE YOU WELL KNOW, IS THAT WE HAVE TO HAVE THINGS
THAT WE CAN MEASURE WHEN WE'RE IN SCHOOL.
SO WE HAVE THIS SORT OF MONITORY,
HOW DO YOU DECIDE IF YOU'VE SUCCEEDED OR FAILED?
BUT WHEN YOU GO INTO THE REAL WORLD,
IT'S QUITE A DIFFERENT STORY, AND YOU WELL KNOW THAT, RIGHT?
- YEAH. - AND DEPENDING
ON YOUR PROFESSION,
YOU HAVE TO HAVE SOME VERY DIFFERENT TOOLS.
AND MANY TIMES, IT'S SOCIAL TOOLS,
RATHER THAN THE KIND OF EDUCATIONAL TOOLS
THAT WE LEARN IN OUR SCHOOLS.
I'M SURE YOU'RE WELL AWARE OF THIS,
AND I JUST WANTED TO HEAR YOU SPEAK ABOUT IT.
- YEAH. NO, YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT.
YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY RIGHT, AND, YOU KNOW,
THE WAY I THINK ABOUT IT--
AND I'VE WRITTEN A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS IN MY BOOK--
IS, YOU KNOW, EDUCATION IS THIS HUGE SPECTRUM OF THINGS.
THAT, YOU KNOW, AT THIS END RIGHT OVER HERE,
I GUESS YOU COULD THINK OF YOUR MOST ROTE THINGS--
THIS IS YOUR MULTIPLICATION TABLES
AND YOUR GRAMMAR AND YOUR VOCABULARY--
AND THEN AS YOU GO FURTHER AND FURTHER IN THIS DIRECTION,
IT BECOMES MORE AND MORE OPEN-ENDED.
THIS IS CREATIVITY. THIS IS COMMUNICATION SKILLS.
THIS IS DEALING WITH COMPLEXITY.
AND, YOU KNOW, FOR BETTER OR FOR WORSE,
PROBABLY BECAUSE OF EXACTLY THE REASON YOU POINT OUT,
BECAUSE OF ITS MEASURABILITY,
THE TRADITIONAL SYSTEM HAS BEEN FOCUSED RIGHT HERE.
IT'S--YOU KNOW, NOT JUST ON ROTE THINGS.
IT'S DONE SOME MORE OPEN-ENDED THINGS,
BUT IT'S, FOR THE MOST PART, THIS SPECTRUM RIGHT OVER HERE,
KIND OF SQUEEZING OUT TIME FOR SOME OF THE STUFF
THAT MIGHT BE EVEN MORE IMPORTANT,
BUT IT'S VERY HARD TO MEASURE.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, WHEN WE ENVISION
WHAT THE SCHOOL OF THE FUTURE SHOULD LOOK LIKE,
IS YOU TACKLE A LOT OF WHAT I WOULD CALL
YOUR FOUNDATIONAL, YOUR CORE LEARNING--
AND EVEN THERE, I AGREE, IT'S COMPLETELY UP FOR DEBATE.
SHOULD YOU BE LEARNING CALCULUS INSTEAD OF STATISTICS?
SHOULD YOU BE LEARNING, YOU KNOW, CIVICS AND LAW?
IT'S NOT PART OF THE TRADITIONAL CURRICULUM.
BUT THAT CORE FOUNDATION YOU CAN GET MORE EFFICIENTLY
THROUGH SOMETHING LIKE--
THROUGH SOMETHING LIKE A KHAN ACADEMY--
LEARNING AT YOUR OWN PACE, LEARNING AT YOUR OWN TIME.
BUT WHAT THE GOAL IS, IS IT REALLY SHOULD FREE UP
MOST OF THE CLASS DAY, MOST OF YOUR LEARNING EXPERIENCE,
TO BE FOCUSED ON BEING ABLE TO, YOU KNOW, DEAL--
YOU KNOW, WORK ON A PROJECT, DO SOCRATIC DIALOGUE,
DEALING WITH COMPLEXITY, WHATEVER IT MIGHT BE.
AND FRANKLY, THOSE ARE THE THINGS
THAT I THINK PEOPLE SHOULD BE EVALUATED ON.
YOU KNOW, WHERE ARE YOU?
AND IF, IN MY MIND, THE CREDENTIAL OF THE FUTURE
IS GOING TO LOOK LIKE-- AND I MEAN, THE REALITY IS,
IT'S ALREADY THE CREDENTIAL OF TODAY,
IT'S JUST NEVER BEEN RECOGNIZED.
YES, YOUR TEST SCORES AND STUFF, THEY'RE, YOU KNOW--
THEY'RE A MEASURE OF YOUR CRITICAL THINKING SKILLS
AND YOUR READING COMPREHENSION SKILLS AND WHATEVER ELSE,
BUT THAT'S ONLY ONE PART OF WHO YOU ARE.
THE MORE IMPORTANT PARTS ARE YOUR PORTFOLIO OF WORK
THAT YOU'VE CREATED.
SO YOU KNOW, RIGHT NOW, IF YOU'RE AN ARCHITECT OR DESIGNER,
THEY WALK AROUND WITH A PORTFOLIO.
I THINK--IN FACT, I THINK THAT IT IS ALREADY TRUE
OF ALMOST ANY CAREER.
I'VE TOLD, YOU KNOW, SOME OF MY COUSINS
WHO ARE NOW, YOU KNOW, IN COLLEGE,
I SAID, "LOOK, YOU KNOW, GET GOOD GRADES,
HAVE A--GET A GOOD DEGREE, BUT THE WORK YOU CREATE,
DOCUMENT IT, BECAUSE THAT'S GOING TO IMPRESS PEOPLE MORE."
EVEN WHEN WE'RE HIRING AT KHAN ACADEMY,
WE'RE MORE IMPRESSED IF WE CAN SEE PEOPLE'S WORK.
AND THEN THE OTHER ASPECT IS PEER FEEDBACK.
WHAT DID YOUR PEERS THINK OF YOU,
WHAT DID YOUR LEADERS THINK OF YOU,
WHAT DID YOUR SUBORDINATES THINK OF YOU
WHEN THEY WORKED WITH YOU?
SO I COMPLETELY AGREE THAT
THE HOPE IS NOT TO JUST KIND OF GET INTO THIS REDUCTIONIST,
YOU KNOW, CORE SKILLS WORLD,
BUT TO LET--BUT IF WE CAN TACKLE THAT MORE EFFICIENTLY
TO BROADEN HOW WE EVALUATE PEOPLE.
- I HAVE A FOLLOW-ON QUESTION THAT DIRECTLY RELATES
TO WHAT YOU JUST SAID.
YOU'RE GOING INTERNATIONAL,
WHICH MEANS TOTALLY CROSS-CULTURAL.
- YEAH. - AND YOU'RE CREATING
AN INTERNATIONAL, A GLOBAL PERSPECTIVE
ON WHAT CONSTITUTES AN EDUCATED PERSON.
HAVE YOU BEEN LOOKING INTO THE CULTURES OF MONGOLIA
AND ALL OF ASIA, WHICH ARE LONG-ESTABLISHED CULTURES...
- YEAH. - AND CONSIDERING
THE IMPLICATIONS CULTURALLY?
AND I DON'T MEAN ON A RELIGIOUS SENSE.
- YEAH, YEAH. NO, ABSOLUTELY.
SO, YOU KNOW, I THINK THE GENERAL IDEA
IS, YOU KNOW, THE GOOD THING IS, MATH IS NOT THAT,
YOU KNOW, DIFFERENT FROM--
YOU KNOW, OBVIOUSLY, THEY MIGHT USE DIFFERENT NOTATION,
DIFFERENT WORDS FOR THINGS, BUT THERE'S A LOT OF AGREEMENT.
THAT'S NOT A LOT--IT DOES BECOME MORE OF AN ISSUE
AS WE GO INTO SUBJECTIVE SUBJECTS, ESPECIALLY HISTORY.
AND WE EVEN-- YOU KNOW, I DID A--
A FEW YEARS AGO, THERE WAS AN ARTICLE
THAT CAME OUT ABOUT-- YOU KNOW, THE CIA
LITERALLY PUBLISHED DOCUMENTS ABOUT THEIR INTERVENTION
IN CHILE TO KIND OF--
WITH THE ALLENDE REGIME, AND I THOUGHT THIS WAS FASCINATING.
I THOUGHT, WELL, THIS WOULD MAKE A GOOD VIDEO.
SO I LITERALLY WENT TO THE PRIMARY DOCUMENTS,
TALKED ABOUT IT, UPLOADED IT,
TRYING TO BE AS OBJECTIVE AS POSSIBLE,
TELLING PEOPLE, "LOOK, YOU KNOW, EVERYONE'S GOT A BIAS,
SO BE SKEPTICAL." AND IMMEDIATELY,
A LOT OF AMERICANS WOULD SAY, "HEY, THIS WAS A GOOD VIDEO."
SOME SAID, "OH, YOU COULD HAVE BEEN A LITTLE BIT--
YOU KNOW, IT WAS THE COLD WAR. YOU COULD HAVE BEEN--
GIVE A LITTLE BIT MORE CREDIT TO THE CONTEXT."
BUT THEN SOME CHILEAN STUDENTS CAME ON AND SAID,
"YOU ARE AN IMPERIALIST PIG. YOU HAVE WHITEWASHED HISTORY.
MY UNCLE DIED IN THAT INTERVENTION.
THIS IS WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED."
AND MY INITIAL REACTION WAS LIKE, "WOW, YOU KNOW,
THIS DIDN'T HAPPEN ON THE ALGEBRA VIDEOS."
[laughter]
AND IT ALSO DIDN'T HAPPEN IN THE HISTORY CLASSES
THAT I WAS A PART OF, GROWING UP.
BUT THEN THE QUESTION IS, WELL, WHY DIDN'T IT HAPPEN
IN THE HISTORY CLASSES? 'CAUSE IN A TRADITIONAL--
YOU KNOW, IN A TRADITIONAL HISTORY CLASS,
YOU KNOW, ROOM LIKE THIS, THE PROFESSOR SAYS WHAT THEY SAY,
AND PEOPLE TAKE NOTES, AND THEY KIND OF FEED IT BACK
TO THE PROFESSOR ON THE EXAM.
AND SO I THINK ONE OF THE BEAUTY--
ONE OF THE BEAUTIFUL THINGS ABOUT THE INTERNET
IS HOW TRANSPARENT IT IS.
AND YOU CAN'T GET AWAY WITH EXTREME BIAS,
BECAUSE SOMEONE'S GOING TO CALL YOU ON THAT.
WITH THAT SAID, I THINK IT'S GOING TO BE, ESPECIALLY HISTORY,
YOU KNOW, THERE'S A WHOLE SET OF KIND OF HOT-BUTTON ISSUES
THROUGHOUT THE WORLD THAT WE'RE--
YOU KNOW, WE DON'T WANT TO-- OVER THE LONG-TERM,
WE DEFINITELY DON'T WANT TO SHY AWAY FROM THEM
BECAUSE WE THINK PEOPLE--YOU KNOW, THIS WILL HELP THE WORLD
IF MORE PEOPLE ARE JUST AWARE OF--
BUT WE WANT TO DO IT IN AN OBJECTIVE
AND AS KIND OF A RESPECTFUL WAY AS POSSIBLE.
- I'M A FAIRLY NEW PARENT.
I HAVE A 2 1/2-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER,
AND SHE LOVES YOUTUBE ON THE IPAD,
AND WE HAVE TO DOLE IT OUT AS A REWARD
FOR CERTAIN THINGS TO HER TO GET HER TO EAT
AND TO DO OTHER THINGS. [laughter]
SO SCREEN TIME'S A BIG ISSUE FOR PARENTS.
AND THEN IT DAWNED ON ME, WHY AM I HOOKING HER INTO YOUTUBE?
I SHOULD BE, NOW, HOOKING HER INTO KHAN ACADEMY.
- YOU'RE A TIGER DAD. - [laughs]
SO I WANTED TO HEAR ANY STORIES OF THE YOUNGEST KIDS
WHO ARE USING KHAN ACADEMY AND WHAT AGE THEY START OFF.
AND THEN ALSO, IF YOU YOURSELF HAVE KIDS
AND IF YOU JUST TELL 'EM, HEY, GO AND--
- YES. - GO GET HELP FROM THE INTERNET
WITH YOUR HOMEWORK. - YES.
SO I DO HAVE KIDS. I HAVE A FIVE-YEAR-OLD,
A THREE-YEAR-OLD, AND A NEGATIVE THREE-MONTH-OLD.
[laughter]
A FEW PEOPLE WILL-- [applause]
IT'S NOT HARD TO DO. ANYWAY...
[laughter]
THE--SO, I MEAN,
SO MY VIEW ON SCREEN TIME,
I MEAN, A LOT OF PEOPLE ASK ME ABOUT THIS,
AND IT ACTUALLY-- IT WAS FUNNY.
I WAS ONCE IN A MEETING OF KIND OF THESE ED LEADERS,
AND BILL GATES WAS THERE.
AND YOU KNOW, A BUNCH OF PEOPLE STARTED GOING ON
THE WHOLE SCREEN TIME ISSUE AND THEY'RE LIKE,
"IS IT HEALTHY FOR KIDS TO JUST STARE AT SOMETHING?
YOU KNOW, EVEN IF THEY'RE LEARNING A LOT,
IS IT JUST HEALTHY FOR THEM TO STARE AT IT FOR, YOU KNOW,
AN HOUR AT A TIME, EVEN IF THEY'RE"--
AND THEN BILL GATES--
I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW IF HE MEANT TO BE FUNNY,
BUT HE SAYS, "YOU MEAN LIKE A BOOK?"
AND THEY'RE LIKE, "OH, THAT'S A GOOD POINT."
YOU KNOW, BUT I THINK THERE'S A REAL THING THERE.
LIKE, I MEAN, I--AND FOR ME, I DON'T THINK OF IT FROM,
LIKE, WHAT IS THE LIMIT?
YOU KNOW, WHAT'S THE MAXIMUM TIME OR MINIMUM TIME
OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT.
I THINK OF IT MUCH MORE OF, LIKE, IF IT'S--
AS LONG AS THE KID IS GETTING THE OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECTS
OF THEIR LIFE, THEN THINGS ARE GOOD.
IF THEY'RE SPENDING A COUPLE OF HOURS A DAY OUTSIDE
GETTING TO RUN AROUND, IF THEY ARE GETTING A COUPLE HOURS A DAY
INTERACTING WITH PEERS, YOU KNOW, OR MAYBE THEIR SAME AGE
OR ABOVE AND BELOW A LITTLE BIT,
IF THEY'RE GETTING SEVERAL HOURS A DAY
WHERE THEY'RE HAVING QUALITY TIME WITH A PARENT
JUST PLAYING AND IMAGINING AND DOING THINGS,
THEN, YOU KNOW-- THEN I THINK IT'S FINE.
IT'S--BUT IF THEY HAVE NO SCREEN TIME,
BUT THEY ALSO DON'T GET TO GO OUTSIDE
AND THEY DON'T GET QUALITY TIME, THEN I THINK IT'S--
YOU KNOW, THAT'S THE WORST OF ALL THE WORLDS.
SO I THINK THAT'S THE--YOU KNOW, AS LONG AS THEY GET
A BROAD MIX, AND ONCE AGAIN, YOU KNOW,
WHEN WE IMAGINE WHAT THE SCHOOLS OF THE FUTURE LOOK LIKE,
WHEN WE SEE THE BEST IMPLEMENTATIONS,
THE KIDS ARE OUTSIDE MORE THAN THEY WERE
IN KIND OF A NON-TECHNOLOGY ENABLED WORLD.
THEY'RE INTERACTING WITH EACH OTHER MORE
THAN THEY DID IN A TRADITIONAL CLASSROOM
WHERE THEY WERE KIND OF JUST, YOU KNOW, LISTENING
AND TAKING NOTES.
IN TERMS OF YOUNGEST,
I MEAN, YOU KNOW, I WOULD SAY, RIGHT NOW,
KHAN ACADEMY, DEFINITELY WE'VE SEEN IT RESONATE WELL
WITH KIND OF MID TO LATE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
WE HAVE JUST LAUNCHED SOME EARLY LEARNING CONTENT.
I WILL SAY THAT, YOU KNOW, IT'S STILL LEVERAGING THE INTERFACE
OF THE STUFF THAT'S BEING USED BY MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS
AND HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS, SO IT'S NOT PERFECT.
AND WE ARE-- YOU KNOW, WE JUST BROUGHT ON
SOME INCREDIBLE PEOPLE TO REALLY THINK ABOUT IT
IN KIND OF A MOBILE ENVIRONMENT, 'CAUSE OBVIOUSLY,
ESPECIALLY FOR, YOU KNOW, FOLKS YOUR DAUGHTER'S AGE,
YOU KNOW, BUT EVERY NOW AND THEN,
I'VE ENCOUNTERED, YOU KNOW, A PARENT WHO'S--
YOU KNOW, HAS A FIVE-YEAR-OLD OR SOMETHING WHO USES IT.
BUT I MEAN, THAT MAKES ME INSECURE,
'CAUSE MY SON WASN'T ON IT, AND YOU KNOW--
AND ANYWAY, I'M TRYING NOT TO PROJECT TOO MUCH.
WE WERE AT--ACTUALLY, AT WHOLE FOODS THE OTHER DAY,
AND SOMEONE RECOGNIZED ME-- ME AND MY SON--
HE LIKES TAKING RIDES IN ELEVATORS,
SO WE WERE, LIKE, ON OUR FIFTH RIDE.
AND SOMEONE SAID, "OH, KHAN ACADEMY."
HE'S LIKE, "IS THIS YOUR SON?"
I WAS LIKE, "YEAH, THIS IS MY SON."
- HE WAS LIKE, "OH, YOU MUST BE SO GOOD AT MATH."
[laughter] "WHAT'S FOUR PLUS THREE?"
AND HE'S LIKE, "SIX."
I'M GOING, "NO. OH, NO."
SO, YEAH. SO I DON'T KNOW.
I THINK I'M GONNA HAVE MY OWN SET OF ISSUES TO DEAL WITH.
- HI. - OH. OH, YES.
- YEAH, ALL THE WAY BACK. - YES.
- I WAS WONDERING IF THERE WERE ANY PLANS FOR KHAN ACADEMY
TO BE ADDING CURRICULUM TO LEARN NEW LANGUAGES.
- HMM. YEAH. NO, I MEAN, THE SIMPLE ANSWER IS NO.
I MEAN, IT'S INTERESTING. WE WERE JUST CHATTING
WITH SOME OF THE DUOLINGO FOLKS.
I DON'T KNOW IF YOU ALL ARE FAMILIAR.
I MEAN, THEY'RE A GREAT APP FOR LEARNING LANGUAGES.
BUT NO, WE DON'T. I MEAN, I--
YOU KNOW, I'VE GOT IDEAS FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING,
AND, I MEAN, I'LL TELL YOU SOME OF MY CRAZY IDEAS.
YOU KNOW, SETTING UP SKYPE BUDDIES
WITH, YOU KNOW, KIDS OF DIFFERENT AGES--
I MIGHT TRY TO SET IT UP FOR MY KIDS IN THE NEAR FUTURE--
WHERE, YOU KNOW, A KID IN INDIA OR A KID IN MEXICO,
WHERE THEY SPEND SOME TIME IN ENGLISH,
SOME TIME IN THE OTHER LANGUAGE
AND TRY TO SOLVE PROBLEMS TOGETHER.
I'VE EVEN THOUGHT THAT, YOU KNOW,
THE BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION--AND IT ACTUALLY--
IN FACT, IT DEFINITELY WOULD BE MORE ECONOMICAL--
WOULD, YOU KNOW, JUST SEND THEM TO A COUNTRY FOR A MONTH,
AND THEY WILL COME BACK HAVING KNOWN THE LANGUAGE.
SO YES--BUT NO,
WE AREN'T PROBABLY GONNA DO FOREIGN LANGUAGE ANYTIME SOON.
YES. - HI, SO I SPEND A LOT OF TIME,
LIKE YOU, WITH MIT ENGINEERS AND NASA ENGINEERS,
AND THERE'S A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE IN THAT POPULATION
WHO FIT THE FOLLOWING DESCRIPTION, WHICH IS,
THEY'RE REALLY GOOD IN MATH, AND THINGS LIKE WRITING ESSAYS
AND WRITING STORIES, THEY'RE, YOU KNOW, NOT SO GREAT.
SO I ACTUALLY SIGNED UP ON KHAN ACADEMY A FEW MONTHS AGO
AND I WAS LOOKING FOR A WRITING COURSE.
- MM. - DIDN'T FIND ONE,
SO I THOUGHT--WELL, I HAD A RANGE OF RESPONSES.
AT ONE END, I'M THINKING, MAYBE THAT'S TOO CHALLENGING
OR THERE'S SOMETHING UNIQUE ABOUT IT
AND THEY JUST HAVEN'T GOTTEN TO IT YET.
AT THE OTHER END OF THE SPECTRUM, I'M THINKING,
WELL, MAYBE FOR SOME CAREERS, YOU KNOW,
WRITING ISN'T THAT IMPORTANT.
- OH, NO. WELL, I MEAN, I--
I PUT UP--I PUT WRITING UP THERE, I MEAN, IF, YOU KNOW--
LIKE, THAT'S THE ENABLER OF, YOU KNOW, ALMOST EVERYTHING.
AND, I MEAN, I THINK THERE'S A TRAGEDY OUT THERE TOO.
I MEAN, I AGREE, A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO ARE STRONG IN MATH
AND SCIENCE KIND OF THINK WRITING ISN'T FOR THEM,
AND THEN YOU HAVE PEOPLE ON THE OTHER SIDE
WHO ARE STRONG WRITERS, WHO THINK MATH AND SCIENCE
ISN'T FOR THEM, AND IT'S A TRAGEDY,
BECAUSE IF ANYTHING, I'VE SEEN--
IT'S THE SAME EXACT MUSCLES YOU USE.
IT'S THE ABILITY TO THINK CLEARLY,
TO STRUCTURE YOUR THOUGHT, TO BE LOGICAL.
SO, I MEAN, I ACTUALLY THINK IF PEOPLE ALLOW THEMSELVES
TO THINK THIS WAY, THE PEOPLE--
THE VERY SAME PEOPLE WHO ARE EXCELLENT WRITERS
CAN BE AMAZING MATHEMATICIANS AND VICE VERSA.
AND, YOU KNOW, I SEE KIND OF A-- THERE'S A COROLLARY THERE
WHERE I SEE PEOPLE WHO IT'S LIKE,
"OH, I'M NOT INTO MATH AND SCIENCE.
I CONSIDER MYSELF A CREATIVE PERSON."
AND THAT KILLS ME TOO, BECAUSE AS WE ALL KNOW,
MATH AND SCIENCE IS, YOU KNOW, ESPECIALLY IN ENGINEERING,
IT'S ALL ABOUT CREATING THINGS THAT NEVER EXISTED BEFORE.
AND I THINK SOME OF THIS DICHOTOMY HAPPENS
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, EARLY ON IN OUR EDUCATION,
WE EVALUATE STUDENTS, YOU KNOW, WITH THESE TESTS, YOU KNOW.
AT THIRD GRADE, HOW WELL CAN YOU MULTIPLY THESE TWO NUMBERS?
HAVE YOU MEMORIZED YOUR MULTIPLICATION TABLES WELL?
AND WE EVALUATE, AND WE GIVE THEM--
YOU KNOW, WE GIVE THEM A GRADE.
AND THAT GRADE ISN'T LIKE, OH, YOU KNEW 80%.
LET'S KEEP WORKING ON IT, SO YOU GET 100%.
THAT GRADE IS, YOU KNEW 80%. YOU ARE A "C" STUDENT.
YOU ARE MEDIOCRE.
JUST REMEMBER THAT, YOU'RE MEDIOCRE.
AND WHAT THAT DOES IS--
OH, I MEAN, WELL, I JUST LOST MY TRAIN OF THOUGHT WITH ALL THE--
WHAT WERE WE TALKING ABOUT? - WRITING.
- OH, WRITING. YEAH, WE WERE TALKING--
[muttering] [laughter]
IT WAS REALLY GOOD TOO, WHAT I WAS ABOUT TO SAY.
ANYWAY, I'M GONNA REMEMBER IT IN, LIKE, 30 SECONDS.
BUT I JUST HAD A COMPLETE--YES. BUT ANYWAY, THE--
OH, NOW I REMEMBER. WE--
[laughter]
THAT--WHAT THAT IS, IS THAT'S LIKE--
THAT'S LIKE EVALUATING ARTISTS
BASED ON HOW WELL THEY MIX PAINT.
OR IT'S LIKE EVALUATING A DANCER
BASED ON HOW FLEXIBLE THEY ARE AT AGE EIGHT.
AND SO I THINK THERE COULD BE A LOT
THAT COULD BE DONE ON THE WRITING SIDE.
I THINK A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE A FEAR OF WRITING.
THEY HAD A TEACHER AT SOME POINT THAT WAS VERY,
"HEY, YOU MISSPELLED THAT WORD."
AND THEY LOST THE CREATIVE SIDE.
HEY, JUST WRITE, WRITE WHAT YOU'RE THINKING.
WRITE FREELY, WRITE WHAT YOU'RE--YOUR ARGUMENT.
AND LIKEWISE, A LOT OF PEOPLE GET TURNED OFF
OF MATH AND SCIENCE.
THEY GOT DINGED, HEY, YOU'RE NOT GOOD AT THIS OR THAT.
EVEN THOUGH THEY WOULD LOVE TO BUILD THINGS AND CREATE THINGS.
IN TERMS OF KIND OF THE WRITING, I MEAN,
IT IS SOMETHING THAT ONE DAY WE WILL WANT TO DO
ON KHAN ACADEMY.
I THINK IT'S ACTUALLY GOING TO BE
SOMETHING CLOSER TO OUR COMPUTER SCIENCE PLATFORM,
WHERE YOU HAVE THESE PROJECTS, YOU CAN CREATE THEM.
YOU CAN PUBLISH THEM, THEY'RE IN YOUR PROFILE,
AND THEY'RE ESSENTIALLY YOUR PORTFOLIO.
AND THEN THE REST OF THE COMMUNITY
CAN GIVE YOU FEEDBACK ON HOW YOU DID,
AND SO YOU CAN KEEP ITERATING AND MAKING THEM BETTER.
- OKAY, THANKS. - YEAH.
- I MENTOR MOUNTAIN VIEW HIGH SCHOOL ROBOTICS TEAM.
AND ONE OF THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES I HAVE
AS A MENTOR FOR THESE KIDS, THESE HIGH SCHOOL KIDS--
I'M AN ENGINEER HERE AT NASA--
IS GETTING THEM TO COMMIT TO DOING IT, TO,
YOU KNOW, GO READ STUFF OUTSIDE OF SOMEONE HANDING IT TO 'EM
AND ALL THAT,
AND YOU SHOWING THE YOUNG FELLOW HERE'S VIDEO,
I WAS THINKING, HE WAS ONE OF THOSE KIDS--
MAYBE WORSE SO THAN THE ONES I'M WITH--
AND THEN HE ENGAGED, AND HE COMMITTED TO LEARN,
AND HE FOLLOWED THROUGH, AND HE'S DONE EXCEPTIONALLY WELL.
THE ONES THAT I MENTOR THAT DO THAT,
COMMIT AND GO ON, DO REALLY WELL.
THE BIGGEST CHALLENGE I HAVE IS TO GETTING THEM TO COMMIT.
- YEAH. - WHAT DO YOU HAVE ON THAT?
- YEAH, I MEAN, YOU KNOW, THERE'S NO SIMPLE ANSWER THERE.
I MEAN, I--THERE'S--
YOU KNOW, I WILL CITE, THERE'S ALL THIS--
YOU KNOW, THIS IS SOMETHING WE TALK A LOT ABOUT
IN OUR OWN-- AT KHAN ACADEMY.
THERE'S ALL THIS RESEARCH AROUND MIND-SETS,
AROUND, YOU KNOW, THE GROWTH MIND-SET--
HOW MANY OF YOU ARE FAMILIAR
WITH THIS IDEA OF A GROWTH MIND-SET?
ANY--OKAY, A FEW FOLKS. THERE'S A RESEARCHER,
CAROL DWECK AT STANFORD, HER WHOLE RESEARCH
FOR THE LAST SEVERAL DECADES IS GROWTH MIND-SET.
AND IT'S THIS IDEA THAT YOU CAN EITHER HAVE A GROWTH MIND-SET
OR A FIXED MIND-SET.
AND UNFORTUNATELY, MOST OF THE WORLD HAS A FIXED MIND-SET.
THEY JUST THINK THAT THEY'RE EITHER GOOD OR BAD AT SOMETHING.
I'M A GOOD WRITER. I'M BAD AT MATH.
OR I'M--YOU KNOW, SO THEY THINK INNATE,
IT WAS KIND OF GOD-GIVEN.
WHILE A GROWTH MIND-SET PERSON SAYS, "WELL, IF I KEEP
WORKING ON SOMETHING ENOUGH AND IF I REALLY OWN IT,
I CAN EVENTUALLY GET TO WHATEVER I NEED TO GET TO."
AND HER RESEARCH HAS SHOWN THAT, LIKE,
IF YOU DO GROWTH MIND-SET INTERVENTIONS--
THERE'S ANOTHER RESEARCHER, ANGELA DUCKWORTH
AT UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA, ON GRIT AND PERSEVERANCE--
AND THEY DO THESE, YOU KNOW, YOU WOULD THINK,
ALMOST SUPERFICIAL INTERVENTIONS,
WHERE THEY WILL JUST TELL THE STUDENT THAT, YOU KNOW,
WHEN YOU MAKE A MISTAKE, THAT'S WHEN YOUR BRAIN GROWS.
OR THEY WOULD DO A LITTLE INTERVENTION ABOUT--
AND IT HAS ALL SORTS OF IMPLICATIONS
FOR THE REST OF THEIR--
SO IT'S-- I THINK IT'S PART OF OWNING--
PART OF THE REASON WHY PEOPLE DON'T OWN THINGS
IS BECAUSE THEY'RE AFRAID OF STRUGGLING AND FAILING,
AND THEN THEY KIND OF JUDGE THEMSELVES.
SO I THINK THAT'S PROBABLY ONE ASPECT.
I THINK THE OTHER ASPECT OF IT,
THAT'S HAPPENING FOR A LOT OF HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS,
IS THAT WE KIND OF OVERSCHEDULE THEIR TIME,
SO THEY HAVE-- THERE'S NO BREATHING ROOM.
AND THAT TIME IS LITERALLY, YOU KNOW, LIKE,
THEY HAVE SIX DIFFERENT TEACHERS SAYING,
DO THIS TONIGHT. DO THAT TONIGHT.
DO THAT TONIGHT.
THEY'RE JUST SO TIRED JUST DOING BUSYWORK ALL NIGHT
THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TIME, THEY DON'T HAVE SPACE
TO KIND OF START TO OWN THINGS.
BUT I THINK THIS--YOU KNOW, THIS GROWTH MIND-SET STUFF,
I WAS--WHEN I FIRST HEARD OF IT, I WAS LIKE, THAT'S INTERESTING.
WE'VE EVEN RUN SOME EXPERIMENTS ON KHAN ACADEMY.
WE'RE ALWAYS RUNNING EXPERIMENTS TO SEE WHAT WORKS,
AND WE'VE DONE SOME GROWTH MIND-SET EXPERIMENTS,
AND THEY DID WORK.
AND YOU KNOW, VERY RECENTLY, WHILE I WAS WORKING WITH MY SON
TO TEACH HIM HOW TO READ, AND HE WAS STRUGGLING WITH WORDS,
AND I COULD SEE THAT HE WAS GETTING A LITTLE DISCOURAGED,
I, LITERALLY-- I TOLD HIM, "YOU KNOW,
RIGHT WHEN YOU'RE STRUGGLING IS WHEN YOUR BRAIN GROWS."
AND ACTUALLY, I WENT A LITTLE FURTHER THAN THAT.
I WAS LIKE, "AND I THINK I SAW YOUR BRAIN GROW."
[laughter]
AND NOW, I MEAN, IT'S--
I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW IF I SHOULD SHARE THE SECRET
'CAUSE IT'S A COMPETITIVE WORLD, BUT THIS--
BUT JUST LAST NIGHT, HE, LIKE,
YOU KNOW, STRUGGLED THROUGH A COUPLE OF WORDS IN THE BOOK,
AND HE'S LIKE, "I STRUGGLED THROUGH SEVEN WORDS.
DID MY BRAIN GROW?" AND I WAS LIKE, "I THINK IT DID."
HE'S LIKE, "OH, GOOD." AND THEN--
AND SO I THINK IT'S-- YOU KNOW, ANYWAY, IT'S--
I THINK THERE'S SOMETHING THERE, BUT, YOU KNOW,
THERE'S OBVIOUSLY NOT A SILVER BULLET.
- SO FIRST, I WOULD LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT
AND THANK YOU FOR WHAT YOU'RE DOING.
YOU MADE A COMMENT
ABOUT YOUR COUSIN HAVING COMMON QUESTIONS...
- MM-HMM. - AND HOW JUST WORKING
OVER THOSE COMMON QUESTIONS WILL BRIDGE THE GAP.
AND I REALIZED THE POWER OF HAVING SOMEONE WHO'S EDUCATED,
IN THE LIFE OF A YOUNG STUDENT, TO BE ABLE TO HELP THEM
NAVIGATE THAT.
FOR MANY STUDENTS, FROM COMMUNITIES THAT I COME FROM,
DON'T HAVE THAT. - NO.
- AND SO ONE OF THE THINGS, WHEN I LISTEN TO YOUR TALK,
AND WHEN I LISTENED TO YOUR TED TALK,
IT HELPS ME TO REALIZE HOW TRANSFORMATIVE
AND REVOLUTIONARY WHAT YOU'RE CREATING HERE IS
IN ORDER TO DEMOCRATIZE EDUCATION AND INCREASE ACCESS
TO QUALITY EDUCATION, SO I'M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THAT.
I WAS JUST TALKING TO A COUPLE OF MY COLLEAGUES TODAY
ABOUT HOW I WANT TO WORK AND DO RESEARCH
ON EQUITY ISSUES IN EDUCATION, YOU KNOW,
ESPECIALLY IN UNDER-RESOURCED, UNDERSERVED AREAS.
SO I REALLY APPRECIATE THE TOOLS THAT YOU'RE PRESENTING HERE.
SO I WANT TO THANK YOU. THAT'S ONE THING.
AND THEN THE SECOND THING IS MY QUESTION.
YOU MENTIONED SOMETHING ABOUT THE CHARTER SCHOOL
IN OAKLAND AND HOW THAT'S A TOOL
AND HOW IT IMPROVED STUDENT PERFORMANCE
IN THAT CHARTER SCHOOL.
IS THERE ANYTHING IN YOUR BUSINESS PLAN
OR IN YOUR FUTURE PLANS FOR EXPANDING
OR REACHING OUT TO UNDERSERVED, UNDER-RESOURCED COMMUNITIES
OR SCHOOL DISTRICTS?
BECAUSE I BELIEVE THAT EDUCATION SHOULDN'T DEPEND
ON YOUR ZIP CODE. - YEAH.
- AND IT SEEMS LIKE YOU HAVE THAT SAME PHILOSOPHY.
SHOULDN'T DEPEND ON YOUR ZIP CODE,
SHOULDN'T DEPEND ON YOUR PARENTS' INCOME,
BUT RATHER, IT SHOULD BE FREE FOR ALL.
- YEAH. - AND SO I WAS WONDERING
IF THERE'S ANYTHING WITHIN YOUR PLAN
OR IN THE SCOPE OF YOUR PROJECT
TO REACH THOSE DEMOGRAPHICS? - YEAH. NO, ABSOLUTELY.
AND THOSE ARE GOOD POINTS.
I MEAN, WE EVEN SEE IT ON THE DATA ON OUR SITE
IS IF YOU ARE ON KHAN ACADEMY
AND YOU HAVE A COACH-- SO THIS COULD BE A PARENT,
OR IT COULD BE A TEACHER, OR IT COULD BE JUST A COUSIN--
YOU ARE 50% MORE ENGAGED
THAN A STUDENT WITHOUT A COACH.
SO IT'S VERY IMPORTANT-- AND IT COULD BE SOMEONE
WHO HAS A BACKGROUND AND, YOU KNOW, WHO'S EDUCATED
AND ALL THAT, BUT SOMETIMES IT'S LITERALLY JUST HAVING AN ADULT,
SOMEONE WHO CARES, SOMEONE WHO TAKES INTEREST--
THAT'S PROBABLY 90% OF IT,
SOMEONE WHO TAKES INTEREST IN WHAT YOU'RE DOING.
IN TERMS OF REACHING--YOU KNOW, AND THIS IS ACTUALLY SOMETHING,
OBVIOUSLY, VERY CLOSE TO OUR HEARTS.
THIS IS IN OUR MISSION STATEMENT,
TO REACH ANYONE ANYWHERE--
I THINK, YOU KNOW, THE UNFORTUNATE--
WELL, THE REALITY OF TODAY IS WE ARE DEPENDENT
ON SOMEONE HAVING ACCESS TO BROADBAND
OR A DECENT INTERNET CONNECTION AND A COMPUTER.
AND RIGHT NOW, 70% OF THE DEVELOPED WORLD HAS IT,
AND 30% DOESN'T.
AND IN THE REST OF THE WORLD, IT'S THE OTHER WAY AROUND--
30% HAVE IT, 70% DON'T.
AND THE UNFORTUNATE THING IS, EVEN IN THE U.S.,
THE 30% WHO DON'T
ARE THE EXACT PEOPLE WHO COULD BENEFIT THE MOST FROM IT.
SO WE'RE EXPLORING WAYS THAT WE CAN GET MORE OUTREACH,
WHERE--YOU KNOW, WHENEVER I MEET ANYONE IN GOVERNMENT,
WHATEVER, I WAS LIKE-- AND THEY SAY, "WHAT CAN WE DO?"
I WAS LIKE, "JUST HELP BUILD AWARENESS."
THIS IS THE EASIEST THING. YOU KNOW, TELL YOUR CONSTITUENTS,
THIS THING EXISTS. IT IS FREE. YOU CAN USE IT.
WE'RE ALSO ALWAYS EAGER TO FIGURE OUT,
WHO CAN WE PARTNER WITH?
IF YOU CAN'T HAVE ACCESS AT HOME,
ARE THERE AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAMS, BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS,
LIBRARIES WHERE KIDS CAN ACCESS IT?
SO IT'S SOMETHING WE'RE EXPLORING, AND YOU KNOW,
I DON'T THINK THERE'S AN EASY SOLUTION TO IT TOMORROW.
BUT I THINK OVER THE NEXT FIVE, TEN YEARS--
YOU KNOW, I THINK IN TEN YEARS, EVERY TV
IS ESSENTIALLY GOING TO BE A COMPUTATION DEVICE.
AND SO AT THAT POINT, AT LEAST IN THE U.S.,
WE'LL BE ABLE TO HAVE MUCH DEEPER PENETRATION.
SO ACCESS IS PART OF IT, NOT GONNA GET SOLVED OVERNIGHT.
AND THE OTHER PART OF IT IS, YES, HOW DO WE BUILD MENTORSHIP,
KIND OF A NETWORK OF MENTORS?
AND I THINK THAT'S GONNA BE PARTNERS WITH, LIKE,
BOYS AND GIRLS CLUBS AND THE FOLKS LIKE THAT.
- THANK YOU.
- SO PLEASE JOIN ME IN THANKING SALMAN KHAN.
[applause]
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