MICHELLE OBAMA - A PASSIONATE, PERSONAL CASE FOR EDUCATION

In her wonderful speech, Michelle Obama talks about the struggles of growing up in a working-class community and how she's never even thought that one day she'd become the First Lady of the United States of America. She says: "Nothing in my life's path would have ever predicted that".

Mrs Obama pays tribute to her parents for raising her with all that she really needed: love, strong values and a belief that with a good education and a lot of hard work, there was nothing she couldn't do.

She talks about how the men in her life, including her father and husband, have taught her what a respectful relationship between men and women should look like, and how this mutual respect is a vital part of any healthy family or a thriving community.

Mrs Obama encourages young girls to study hard and be responsible students if they want to be successful and independent in life. She says: "I liked being smart. I liked getting A's. I liked being on time. I thought being smart was cooler than anything else in the world". 

At the end of her speech, Mrs Obama reminds everyone to take their education seriously, and never take it for granted. This new, brilliant generation, she says, is the one that could close the gap between the world as it is and the world as it should be.