When the redoubtable (and irrepressible) T. N. Seshan was India's Chief Election Commissioner, he once publicly remarked that some rigging in our elections was always to be expected, since we Indians have rigging/cheating in our blood: after all, he said, our holiest book is called the Rig Veda!
Last night an old boy was lamenting that many college teachers, whether or not they can or want to do anything good for you, are free with threats about how much they can hurt your career if you manage to rub them the wrong way. Well, after all, I reflected aloud, that is only to be expected, wasn't it: look at how Dronacharya is regarded as a 'model' teacher by so many (the Government even gives an award in his name), and look at how he treated Ekalavya when that self-taught unfortunate dared to upstage his favourite pupil Arjuna, whose guardian paid Drona his salary! To put it in trademark Indlish, we are like that only...
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7 comments:
Dear Sir,
It's a common myth that the schools and colleges of some hot shot cities like Pune, Bangalore etc. are better than other places. I have studied in some "high and mighty, posh" schools that have a big reputation, high fees and plenty of show off and...
Well that's all these schools have.
In these schools the biggest emphasis is given on cramming trillons of MCQ's and brainwashed by the so called teachers to mug and bag IIT! They even promise and give false hopes that all the struggle ends if you can bag a seat in IIT Kgp! How badly a student is deceived...We live in that fantasy land and dream that life will be a bed of roses once we are in college when in reality life actually beings after college.
I have interacted with many of your present and ex-students and I have found one things in common. They atleast don't live in a fool's paradise as you have constantly told them that the real grind begins after you have completed college. We only realise how hopeless most of the teachers are once we come to know someone like you, and so I never stop counting my lucky stars that I know you and all the values you stand for...
Regards Zico.
P.S. I wish that you would publish some of the poems that you wrote or translated in French here. Some of us are unfortunate enough not to have the luck to hear them from your lips!
Many thanks for the kind comment, Zenith. But you embarrass me by asking for bits and pieces of my writing here. As it is, far too many people send comments saying how much they hate me for indulging in self-publicity...
It didn't require me to study in posh schools to realize that you have to get lucky to come across a person whom you can call your "Teacher". A teacher can only show you the way to your goal, someone who will encourage you to read and help in comprehending different subjects(like philosophy,politics,physics and psychology).
I consider myself lucky that I came across you who encouraged me all the way(starting from reading Isac Asimov to taking up French).
I will be really glad if you post some of your works in French in your blog.
That name is spelt Isaac, Partha.
You people will never stop embarrassing me!
This post also made me think about who (moreso, how) we choose as our models and what that choice has to say about us as a race and a nation -- like Dronacharya, another example would be Lord Rama. He is hailed as an ideal man and an ideal king, and yet, look at how at he treats his wife!
Recently, I came across this interesting video on YouTube -- "Sita Sings the Blues" -- which presents the Ramayan from Sita's point of view, and it made me look at Rama differently. Here is the link to the actual Web site --
http://www.sitasingstheblues.com/watch.html
As a postscript, I must add that the video is not really a flawless masterpiece and may be a little time consuming, but I'd say its worth a watch.
~Mayuri
Well, i must tell you this one then...in my third year of college a professor who would decide the marks we got in his paper depending on how well his pupils had been able to suck up-to him in the course of the semester, scored me a 0 on 10,when i made a presentation when asked to write on a social issue.His justification though, when i approached him was that my choice of subject was irrelevant and since i did not attend his classes regularly, and neither did i take any tuitions from him, i would not know what to write about...and hence concluded that i was a student who was overtly casual about academics,and hence did not even deserve the much coveted seat in a prime institution like JU.Well in the long-drawn conversation that followed where i did give him my piece of mind, also re at my scores in the previous semesters as well as the HS scores, he chose to take in my paper and review the same again, and this time disapprovingly granted me a 2.5.That was the last that he saw of me, barring the one time a couple of months down the line when i appeared for his final paper.And as far as getting me to attend his classes was concerned i am sure he knew the moment i stormed out of his office, that it was already a lost cause...may he find peace :)
Thanks for writing, Aishwarya. All I can say is that this (very numerous) breed makes me ashamed of being a teacher myself, and I am saying sorry on their behalf to all students who have suffered undeservingly at their hands..
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