https://emalayalee.com/vartha/288994
The first secretary of Indian Embassy, Qatar is a
senior Indian official on a diplomatic mission, Mr. S. Dhanraj Xavier from Tiruchirappalli,
a civil service officer of Tamil Nadu cadre on deputation to the central
service.
Now the first officer, dealing with community affairs,
visas and passports at the embassy, he possesses critical and what could be termed, unconventional views on
career development and success.
It is not generally the top scorers who, in later
life, are found to be successful people. (It doesn’t mean that top scorers
are not successful in their lives - my view!) When it comes to public
sphere, it is not the top scorers, but those who were often thought to be mediocre, or back
benchers, that have done well, and have been seen to be really embodiments of
success. The conclusion is based on an analysis of successful people in various
domains, perhaps, academics (higher order or research based),
science-technology and medicine barring. And, when compared to the
so-called successful people in these latter domains, the people in business,
arts and politics appear more influential and well known.
He cites his own case - For tenth grade, he had
to be satisfied with just about first division marks. He sensed the struggle his
father took, to get him an admission to science stream in the pre-university
programme, without success; and was fired to not let such occasions arise again
in life. And, with the evident deficiency in English, without anyone's
prompting he adopts the modern-strength-based approach on oneself - effectively
inspired by an imaginative teacher, who awakens a space beyond horizon to
achieve in Tamil. He ends up as topper in Tamil, which is repeated in the B.
Com period as well. That is the power of a teacher. It led him to
face the civil service challenge with Tamil Literature as one of his chosen
subjects, alongside Geography.
That is the point he makes for a teacher who goes
beyond curriculum - able to touch the lives. Prof. Antony Luisraj who
taught accountancy would have taught accountancy per se just about a third of
his sessions (and aptly taught, perhaps sufficed for clearing the paper with a
respectable score), but the larger chunk of his sessions went in moulding life,
making the student engage with life and people. After B. Com, the courses
taught have generally lost their value. But the engagement with life his
sessions offered are still carried on.
He draws lessons from what one his friends, an
accomplished business man, does - he feels that he has done well without having
to bother too much about his studies. So, what he wants from his son is
not to be a great academic and someone who is bent of obtaining A's or A+
es. Rather, he would tell his son to learn in such a way as to make money
work for him, rather than he works for money.
My rejoinder was that he had the luxury to afford that
advice; whereas, a typical middle-class person, that option is too big a
luxury; not to worry about having good scores, can easily be a doom for those
middle class youngsters whose horizon of choices, especially in a country like
India, remains still very narrow! Perhaps, it will be education itself
that could set this right - where all occupations provide adequate resources
for a dignified living. Our culture(s) still has to grow to reach
there.
All the same, students getting to know, and interact with, such accomplished people could open their vistas and vision of success and accomplishment in life. This could be also part of education.
As a seasoned bureaucrat, he feels that for an Indian
bureaucrat, a stint with the central ministry can be a great value addition. He
finds, elements of degeneration or a weakening strain across professions which
he attributes to (economic) progress - with the younger generation being
totally deprived of deprivations and consequent capacities for coping.
(Perhaps, what used to happen in the 20th century homes should now take place
in the school. But would the proud privileged parents of 21st century with their
over-indulgent solicitude let that happen - unless it is some Krishnamurti school?)
I am looking forward to having him on the campus
- to challenge the miracle or transformation potential - within both the
student and the teacher!
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