I’m sure that we’ve all seen the oddshot/heard it live by now, but what is CD’s response to will.i.am’s comment?
From my previous visits to CMP, whenever Will came up, the general vibe that I got was that he used to be a big supporter but lost his interest and kept coming to CMP as a favor to Dean, but this year, he seemed as hyped as the rest of us, and I think that we got to see what will was really feeling at that moment, not necessarily what FIRST asked him to focus on/talk about.
Most of the sponsors, speakers and guests say similar things about promoting STEM and their companies from a pre-written speech and that’s cool, but seeing will off-script and listening to how he was feeling in the heat of the moment really made me believe that FIRST has made a difference in culture, and yesterday, Will really showed it to us.
I think it definitely was a display of passion and will go down as an unforgettable moment in FIRST, but I’m also skeptical as to if it was truly off the cuff. The general reaction of Dean Kamen, the commentators, and others seemed artificial to some degree. While I doubt everyone or even most people would know about it if – and that’s a skeptical “if” – it was planned at all. He seemed to say it in a way and draw reactions from Dean and the administrator that suggest he may have playfully joked about swearing live or something earlier, and that their reactions were a product of that. Like a publicity stunt for FIRST more or less.
Don’t get me wrong, I think that Will is undoubtedly invested in FIRST and whether or not the incident was planned or not, he is doing great work for the future. I wish he would have explained and gone in depth more about spreading FIRST in the ghetto and his experiences like that, but I can appreciate the notion that he was just overcome with excitement for FIRST. Also, I’m not trying to start a conspiracy or anything – I don’t expect other people to jump on board or completely agree with me on this – it’s just how I genuinely feel and think about it.
Either way, this should make for some good discussion.
One of the main goals of FIRST is inspiration. WILL.I.AM is an influential figure in the popular culture sphere who can help bring awareness to the program more than any other figures.
Although not a totally appropriate thing to say, it really does share the sentiment most of us have about the program. This could potentially attract people who haven’t heard of FIRST into our community, which is always a good thing.
I personally think it was an excellent way for a non stem related person to explain his passion. If he had given a speech like everyone else, the audience would have been oh yay, another person talking about how great everything is ho hum (lets not lie, most of use do get bored by all the speeches). But by someone outside (a well known person) saying something like this, truly shows how far first has come, and how motivating and amazing it is.
Plus, this will be a good recruiting tool for new members (of course it won’t be used in official presentations), but You can bet that I’m going to go to friends tomorrow and say, "Hey, you know will.I.Am is right? Well look at what he said about first.
Yes yes, I know it was inappropriate language that the 4 year olds in the stands shouldn’t have heard. But I’m not worrying too much about it. In this world, if someone really tells me that they haven’t heard this language in any movie or out in the general street anywhere, I really won’t believe them.
First of all Will.I.AM is really not a “music clown” as you put it, he actually is a respected person unlike some other music personnel.
And also you have to understand, FIRST isn’t really trying to promote itself to 30 and above year olds. It’s trying to capture the attention of High Schoolers and below. A respected celebrity such as Will.I.AM will have much more impact than the president. (No offense Mr. President if you happen to have a secret account on Chief Delphi )
On a side note, I can only imagine how much more complicated everything would become if the president had to visit champs today, especially with all the security details required, and how all the open saws and hammers and shanks would be treated…
You might take a look at the makeup (and age groups) of some of the teams that are a part of the FIRST programs. International teams that are making tremendous inroads in their cultures, at no small cost. Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, and private schools with religious affiliations, to name a few. FIRST is much bigger than the current U.S. popular culture trends. Way bigger. Just look at the impact of our 2016 Championship WFA.
Legendary. As will.i.am said… "I’m just gonna say it the way I feel it"
He’s saying what some of us are thinking. He’s saying what many of our students are thinking.
I have a lot of complicated thoughts about “explicit language”, what the appropriate or inappropriate use is, and how a coherent team policy can be crafted around them since the use of language is so heavily context-based and culturally-driven.
I’ve had mixed results when they slip out of my mouth. Sometimes, particularly when it shows emotion, it humanizes me to the people relying on me (students at 841, engineers and construction workers at work) & I earn respect. Other times, because it sounds like I’m not a Real White-Collar Engineer, I lose respect. Sometimes, both in the same audience. Double edged sword. Handle with care.
On 841, I’m working on building an explicitly framed “Code Switch” facet into the program, based on ideas from “For White Folks Who Teach in the Hood… and the Rest of Y’all Too” by Christopher Emdin, to emphasize awareness of use of language. My students are #$%^ing inspiring to me, but they don’t always know how to use the right words to sound inspiring to people who only speak Engineering English.
Very true, and I totally understand that, I think it’s amazing. I can’t wait for a future where every school in the world will have access to some sort of FIRST resource. But we also have to think about the present moment. It is facts that the United States is much more involved in FIRST than all the other Nation’s combined. With a popular social figure like this you will be reaching many more people.
Now don’t get me wrong, I would love it if the President took the time to come to the FIRST championship (on other thought did he make a video this year, I know he made videos the last 2 years saying good luck). There is no rule preventing both a figure like Will.I.AM and the president to come to the championships.
I know I’ve posted about this in another thread already, but I kind of have a lot to say on this subject in general and on this instance in particular. I’ll try to be brief.
I use cuss words as teaching tools. I play NWA songs to start discussions about racism and other related issues. I started every day of Freshman Orientation by showing a different Epic Rap Battles of History episode, using their crudeness as a hook for learning about great artists, philosophers and scientists. And yes, when I think it has an appropriate educational purpose, I will cuss in my students’ presence. I do this consciously, seeing as I rarely cuss at all for any other reason.
The culture has shifted, people. Fifteen years ago my teaching mentor (God bless him) told me never to allow chewing gum, and talked about his “virgin ears” not wanting to hear curse words, but he also told me to always shake boys’ hands and squeeze them hard enough to cause pain, just so they they would know I’m the boss. Fortunately I haven’t taken any of that advice to heart or action, and if any teachers still take that outdated approach then I’m shocked.
Every single one of my students, and a half dozen parents who attended champs with us, wants what Will.i.am said on a t-shirt. At dinner Thursday night (before he ever said what he said), around the “adult” table, one of our topics of discussion was this very issue, and every one of those parents said the f word without a blink, including a lay minister, a married couple who are practicing Presbyterians, and a Lutheran pastor whose name many people would recognize from her books and radio and television appearances.
The culture has shifted, people. You can act shocked and complain, and likely lose the attention of the students you want to reach through FRC and other activities, or you can shift with it, and make FRC relatable and relevant to a bunch of good kids with foul mouths.
