Watch: Donovan Livingstonās Graduation Speech
Print for class: (Transcript)
What are your first reactions? How is this story an education narrative? What changes from the beginning to the end of the poem?
About
Professor: Liz von Klemperer
Email: ELIZABETH.VONKLEMPERER17@citytech.cuny.edu
Office hours:Ā Monday 10:30 ā 11:30 a.m., Wednesday 10:30 – 11:30 a.m., & by appointment
Office hours are in-person in N529.
Course Description: This is aĀ course in effective essay writing and basic research techniques including use of the library. Demanding readings are assigned for classroom discussion and as a basis for essay writing
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Library Information
Ursula C. Schwerin Library
New York City College of Technology, C.U.N.Y
300 Jay Street, Library Building - 4th Floor
Acknowledgments
This course is based on the following course(s):
- 1101 by Ruth Garcia, Prof. Suzanne Miller, Jody R. Rosen
- 1101 by Ruth Garcia
- 1101 by Ruth Garcia
- 1101 by Ruth Garcia
- 1101 by Ruth Garcia
1)The speech is powerful and inspiring. It shows how marginalized students struggle in school. It also highlights the potential each student has. He uses a lot of imagery.
2)This story talks about how education affects people, especially those from disadvantaged backgrounds. It shows the challenges they face in the system but also how education can help them grow and succeed. The speaker talks about how teachers can either hold students back or help them reach their full potential.
3)The speech starts with the speaker sharing personal stories about feeling limited and treated badly in education. By the end, it becomes more positive, making people see their own potential and overcome obstacles. The mood goes from serious and thoughtful to hopeful and inspiring.
My first reaction to this speech is how motivational he is towards his audience; he is very inclusive in aspects of making them feel it’s okay to clap, snap, and cheer. In addition to how comfortable he is expressing himself in front of many cameras. I believe this is an education narrative since he talks about his personal experience on why he thinks the way he does; he mentions one of his old teachers that encouraged him to reach for better, he encourages us to know that each and every one of us has strong potentials that will allow for us to succeed. In the beginning of this speech, we see how he goes back in history to remind us how educational was limited to people giving us a serious tone and by the end he is becomes motivational to all students reminding them once again that not even the sky is the limit “it is just the beginning”.
At first, I was bored and disinterested. This is mainly because he was yapping about himself and what he is, which doesnāt usually bother me, but was using all sorts of buzzwords which didnāt really sit well with me. However, the rhythm of his speech and the transition towards education grabbed my attention and dispelled my initial thoughts. After introducing himself in a flamboyant manner, he pivoted from himself to his students and how he sees infinite potential in them too. Afterwards, he moves onto how the education system is restrictive in its nature, and as Livingston puts it, āthe sleep before the american dream.ā Itās an educational narrative because it clearly shows his opinion on the education system.
I found that the speech gave me a great sense of hope and encouragement. I see clearly that someone in his life helped him get where he is by encouraging him, and he is passing it along to the listener, trying to push them to be interested and invested in themselves. I think overall it is a good speech that holds the attention of the viewer and brings a message, but considering it’s a commencement speech, I do wish it had more practical reason like advice for the graduates.
1) The speech uses vivid and emotional imagery to convey the struggles and aspirations of those who systemic injustices have marginalized. The references to historical and personal experiences better the narrative, resonating with listeners. There is a strong, passionate call to action for educators and systems to do better.
2) The speaker references historical injustices and personal anecdotes, the poem illustrates how educational inequities are deeply rooted and persistent. The poem ultimately advocates for education as a means of empowerment.
3) The beginning expresses the personal frustration and feeling of being tokenized in the educational system. The speaker turns the speech into a call to action, celebrating the potential of students and advocating for a reimagined educational system that acknowledges and nurtures this potential.
My reaction to this speech was one of empowerment and a motivational feeling that he tried to convey during his speech and in my opinion he managed to convey that feeling of motivation and inspiration. I think this speech is an example of an educational narrative because he is talking about a personal experience, in his speech he uses a tone of confrontation, he also uses the allusion to refer to another artist which I think is important to mention, and makes his speech an example of educational narrative. At the beginning of his speech he begins by saying how much he disagrees with the education system and how much he hates it, then his speech begins to become a more passionate tone towards the new students and ends his speech by empowering educators and students that there are no limits.
The speech is powerful & a little interesting by using the figurative language which includes metaphors, anaphora, antithesis, and a few more, Donovan conveys the ideas that educators should focus on bringing the potential out of every student and help them rise above the inequalities they face. When Donovan employs anaphora to emphasize his message, when he repeats “I see” to highlight potential he see in his students. Donovan uses antithesis to contrast opposing ideas when he describes between a classroom and a plantation. His speech is filled with vivid imagery, like when he describes students as comets & darting across space & time. it helps to inspire and motivate both students & educators. Donovan uses Metaphors to illustrate his points. Also, he compares his students’ struggles with inequality to chains to take them off and un-cuff us.
A) My first reaction to the speech was that it was very motivational and deep, the speaker also sounds like someone who have come a long way in educating institutions
B) The speech is an education narrative because the speech shows a series of personal experience that led to the moment he was right there, he talked about the factors, and he reflected to the past.
C) The speech began with him talking about the events and moments that led to where he was right there, then close to the end he started to share inspirational words, sentences to the listening, at the end it was motivational.
My first reaction was that it was someone who looked like me, speaking his truth and even telling us that this wasn’t something he was able to do in high school like he wanted, in-fact he was barred from it: it was very moving. Inspiring.
This story is an education narrative because it speaks on his own education, as well as how he would educate others. He speaks about what he was told in school, how he acted, and how he was told that his excess energy could be put to something useful. Because of that statement, he got into slam poetry. With his experience, and what he’s become, he sees (in his students’ eyes) constellations that, when connected, reveal their true intelligence, true genius.
In the beginning, he speaks about his own frustrations with the education system and how he was seen and treated, but in the end, in turns into a celebration of the potential that his, and many more, students have lingering within them. Students that he will treat vastly different than how he was.
My first reaction to this speech is how inspiring the speaker is. He makes the audience feel included, encouraging them to clap, snap, and cheer. Heās also very comfortable expressing himself in front of a lot of cameras. I think this speech is about education because he talks about his own experiences and how a former teacher pushed him to aim higher. He reminds us that we all have the potential to succeed. At the start, he talks about how education used to be more serious, but by the end, he motivates the students, saying that not even the sky is the limitāitās just the beginning.