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I'm used to being surrounded by really smart 22-year-old students who have no problem saying that something I suggested is not a very good idea.

I've done a lot of surveys and interacted with a lot of students, and I was shocked to see that at 12 years old, girls are already talking about dumbing themselves down.

College ain't so much where you been as how you talk when you get back.

I would hate to be in high school now. Psychologists talk about the 'imaginary audience' that teens seem to feel they have around them and that makes them think they have to keep up their image all the time. Now with Facebook and MySpace and 24/7 online access, that imaginary audience has become real.

Teenagers come to things fresh and can really teach us an awful lot.

When you have strict censorship of the internet, young students cannot receive a full education. Their view of the world is imbalanced. There can be no true discussion of the issues.

I think the most important thing that young people should be taught at school is how they can decide what they're being told is true.

That is still the case in this country for too many students, the soft bigotry of low expectations. If you don't expect them to learn, if you don't expect them to succeed - then it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

You can really learn a lot from young people and the way they view the world.