Edward Said On Orientalism

On 'Orientalism': Edward Said

Executive Producer & Director: Sut Jhally

Producer & Editor: Sanjay Talreja

Assistant Editor: Jeremy Smith

Featuring an interview with Edward Said Professor, Columbia University and author of

Orientalism

Introduced by Sut Jhally University of Massachusetts-Amherst

Source: http://www.mediaed.org/

Video recording of the Interview of Edward Said on 'Orientalism

Transcript of the Interview of Edward Said on Orientalism 

(Click here to read transcript)

Additional video resources:

In this interveiw, Edward Said, time and again, refers to Palestine issue. For better understanding of Israel-Palestine issue, watch these videos:

Madaari - Hindi Film - Review

Spoiler.

If you have not watched and want to watch Hindi film #Madaari, avoid reading this post.
Madaari is a metaphor. There is no real madaari. The metaphor is used for a #Damaru player who makes #Jamoora dance at its beats. The metaphor can also be read as snake charmer as the protagonist somehow charms to bring out the real poisonous nexus between construction company, engineers and politicians who collect funds for political parties through corrupt means.

(Metaphor reminds of one dialogue in film : "Accountability and Responsibility? Hey Man, it is metaphor. Do not take it literally. Problem is because people take metaphors literally" 😂😂😂)
At the same time, the protagonist is service provider / repairer for WiFi networks. This job these days is no less than that of Madaari 😀😀.
Statutory warning: Stop reading if you want to watch the film.
Well, now it is your choice to spoil the game. I am no longer spoiler.

The film has two endings.

One is more realistic and hence throat chocking. Such throat chocking endings in literature leads towards restlessness, anxiety and angst, rather than giving outlet to repressed desires. Such literatures are not for masses. As only Lord Shiv can drink poison to be Nilkanth,  only rational and mentally strong in society can sustain mental stability after reading / watching such realistic literature.
The other ending is romantic happy-endings walla. No throat chocking but a relief that poetic justice is done. All is well that ends well. Such literature makes masses relieved from repression and thus gives feel-good effect. Haash! The social filth (corruption) is cleansed! But we know that it is mere illusion that problem is solved. As the mind do not differentiate between the real and imaginary, the imaginary gives us an impression of reality. No throat chocking moment.  No anxiety. No restlessness. No angst. No revolution.  No #Change. Is this the secret that most of our literature ended with make-believe poetic justice? The mass / sheoples shall be opiumated in the feeling of trance. If they are woken up, they may be problematic to power structures. Has literature played the role of ideological state apparatus to subjugate the subjects?

Shh . . . Desh so raha hai!

One more spoiler:

True to its genre of suspense thriller, the film do not have thrilling moments of #Kahani or dramatic appeal of #GabbarIsBack or common man feeling of #AWednesday.

Literature, Theory and Criticism

To appear in the pre-test, click here

1. What is Literature?

What is Literature? from Dilip Barad

2. Criticism Vs Creativity

Criticism Vs Creativity from Dilip Barad

3. Difference between Theory and Criticism

Difference between Literary Theory and Criticism from Dilip Barad

Mind Mapping - New Admission in PG Programme (English Literature)

Mind Mapping - New Admission in PG Programme 

(English Literature)

All students taking admission in M.A. English, Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University (Bhavnagar - Gujarat - India) shall appear in this online Mind Mapping Test.

Instructions for Semester 1 (Batch 2024-26) students:

1.     Join this Google Classroom (If Google Classroom app is not installed in your mobile phone, download it from Play store)

Scan this QR Code to Open Google Class

Or

Click this link

https://classroom.google.com/c/Njk2OTA5ODk4MzU3?cjc=6mnrreu

2.     The class code is 6mnrreu

After joining the class, explore the assignments. You will find two assignments.

4.     Assignment 1:

Online Test: You shall open the link of Online Test and appear in the test. There are 42 questions. You can take help of internet to reply the answers. On submission, you will get auto-generated reply in your mail with the score. Type this score in private comment in this assignment in G-Class. Type correct email id to receive auto-generated email. Click here to open the test page.

5.     Assignment 2: In the second task, you have to hand-write a few paragraphs on

a.     What is literature?

b.     The literary text I liked the most . . .

c.      Three reasons for my liking of this literary text . . .

6.     Make PDF of this hand-written answer and upload it in the Google Classroom as assignment submission.

7.     Your admission process will not get completed until you have not submitted both assignments in Google Classroom.

Google Form for Auto Graded Quiz - without Flubaroo

Google Form for Auto Graded Quiz - without Flubaroo

Google Form has several interesting features. It is one of the best online tool to gather information and take survey. Many teachers are also using it for testing purpose. The features like 'Multiple Choice', 'Check Boxes' and 'Drop Down' can be used for online quiz / test also.

Multiple Choice, Check Boxes and Drop Down

But Google Form did not have feature to auto-grade these quizzes / tests. So, most of the teachers were using a script known as Flubaroo over the spread sheet of the answers to generate auto-grade and then email those grades to students. Though it was not very difficult, yet, students had to wait for the grades and correct/incorrect answers till teacher grades it and sends email.
Now, Google Form has added this very important and much awaited feature. In the 'Settings', an added option of 'Quizzes' resolves the problem. Now, as soon as student submits answers, he can view 'Scores' and correct / incorrect answer.

The option of 'Quizzes in Settings

The following sample quiz / test is prepared using this feature of Google Form. Appear in the quiz to have first hand experience of this feature of Google Form. Do not forget to see your 'Scores' after submitting the quiz.

Modernist Poems : Activity - Identify modernist metaphors in these short poems

10 Very Short Modernist Poems Everyone Should Read

Activity for sem 3 students: Read these small poems and identify "Modernist" symbols, imagery and metaphors. Post your observations on your blog and share the blog link as a comment under this blog.

Modernist poetry is often associated with long poems such as T. S. Eliot’s The Waste Land and Ezra Pound’s The Cantos, but modernism was also when poetry went small, thanks in no small part to Imagism, spearheaded by Pound himself. Here are 10 works of modernist poetry which couldn’t be accused of outstaying their welcome – none is longer than twelve lines.

T. E. Hulme, ‘The Embankment‘ (7 lines). T. E. Hulme (1883-1917) was an influential poet and thinker in the first few years of the twentieth century. He left behind only a handful of short poems – our pick of which can be read here – but he revolutionised the way English poetry approached issues of rhyme, metre, and imagery. ‘TheEmbankment’ is probably his best-known poem, a miniature modernist masterpiece spoken by a man fallen on hard times. The poem seems to invert Oscar Wilde’s famous line: we can all look at the stars, but some of us are in the gutter.

Joseph Campbell, ‘Darkness‘ (4 lines). Campbell was an Irish poet writing a similar kind of poetry to Hulme at around the same time, though they were working independently of each other. In a previous post we’ve offered four short poems by Joseph Campbell, including ‘Darkness’ – a very short piece of early modernist poetry. Poetry doesn’t come much more understated than this.

Edward Storer, ‘Image’ (3 lines). Storer was writing at around the same time as several other early modernist poets on this list, notably T. E. Hulme (whom he knew) and Joseph Campbell, though he started off writing independently of them. He was clearly influenced by Japanese forms such as the haiku, as the following poem demonstrates (we’ve included it here as it’s not readily available online):

Forsaken lovers,
Burning to a chaste white moon,
Upon strange pyres of loneliness and drought.

Ezra Pound, ‘In a Station of the Metro‘ (2 lines). Along with T. S. Eliot, Ezra Pound is probably the most famous modernist poetworking in Britain during the first half of the twentieth century. Pound arrived at this two-line poem after writing a much longer draft which he then cut down, line by line. The poem describes the sight of the crowd of commuters at the Paris Metro station, using a vivid and original image.

H. D. (Hilda Doolittle), ‘The Pool‘ (5 lines). Hilda Doolittle and Pound both hailed from the US, and it was Pound who gave Doolittle the rebrand ‘H. D.’. They were even an item at one point. Along with Richard Aldington and Pound himself, H. D. was one of the main practitioners of Imagism, the short-lived poetic movement which Pound founded (and named) in 1912. ‘The Pool’ is one of H. D.’s finest short poems, about coming face-to-face with her reflection in the waters of a rock-pool.

Richard Aldington, ‘Insouciance‘ (5 lines).Aldington and H. D. were husband and wife in the 1910s and 1920s, and Aldington made up the trio of leading Imagists along with his wife and the movement’s founder, Pound. ‘Insouciance’ is about writing poems in the trenches – Aldington, like many men of his generation, saw action at the Western Front during WWI.

T. S. Eliot, ‘Morning at the Window‘ (9 lines). T. S. Eliot got his big break on the London literary scene thanks to Ezra Pound, who befriended his fellow expatriate American shortly after Eliot’s arrival in London in 1914. Thispoem was written in London in the same year, shortly after the outbreak of WWI – a context that may lurk behind the poem’s dark, oppressive images of everyday life. It’s an unrhymed poem, but look at the shared syntax of the line endings: ‘in basement kitchens’, ‘of the street’, and so on.

William Carlos Williams, ‘The Red Wheelbarrow‘ (8 lines). Perhaps one of the most divisive poems ever written, ‘The Red Wheelbarrow’ has variously been viewed as the epitome of Imagist practice and as barely ‘poetry’ at all. It first appeared in Williams’s 1923 volume Spring and All, a book which combined free verse with pieces written in prose. Some scholarly analyses of ‘The Red Wheelbarrow’ can be found here.

Wallace Stevens, ‘Anecdote of the Jar‘ (12 lines).First published in 1919, this is one of Stevens’s best-known short poems. It appeared in his first volume of poems and has been baffling critics and readers ever since…

E. E. Cummings, ‘l(a‘ (9 lines). This poem appeared in 1958 in Cummings’ collection 95 Poems, so it’s really a late modernist work. Although it’s nine lines long, it only contains four words – cleverly arranged so that ‘a leaf falls’ appears parenthetically within the word ‘loneliness’. Richard S. Kennedy, Cummings’ biographer, called it ‘the most delicately beautiful literary construct that Cummings ever created’. We agree.

Some of the best short modernist poems (including several featured here) can be found in the excellent anthology Imagist Poetry (Penguin Modern Classics), which we’d heartily recommend. You can continue to explore the world of the short poem with these short Victorian poems.
Source: This is shared from https://interestingliterature.com/2016/03/03/10-very-short-modernist-poems-everyone-should-read/.

Ambedkar: Reformation and Cartoons

Dr. Baba Saheb Bhimrao Ambedkar, Reformation in Hindu Code Bill and Cartoons

Political cartoons deliver a punch. They take jabs at powerful politicians, reveal official hypocrisies and incompetence and can even help to change the course of history. But political cartoons are not just the stuff of the past. Cartoonists are commenting on the world’s current events all the time, and in the process, making people laugh and think. At their best, they challenge our perceptions and attitudes.

Analyzing political cartoons is a core skill in many social studies courses. After all, political cartoons often serve as important primary sources, showing different perspectives on an issue. 

(Gonchar, Michael. Drawing for Change: Analyzing and Making Political Cartoons)

An interesting analyses of these cartoon can be read here

Short Films: #IndiaTomorrow

#IndiaTomorrow: Short Films

On the occasion of India Today's 40 years, celebrated bollywood directors Imtiaz Ali, Pradeep Sarkar, Rohan Sippy, Hansal Mehta and Meghna Gulzar have created their expression of India Tomorrow through short three minute films for the mobile generation on the future of our nation.

The different directors bring their unique storytelling styles in these short mobile format films that will touch a million hearts across mobile, digital and the television medium.

Speaking on the films, Kalli Purie, Group Editorial Director (Broadcast & New Media), India Today Group said, “The films reflect the spirit of India Today that is constantly creating a better and more promising India Tomorrow. I would like to thank the directors for sharing their vision through these films.”

- See more at: http://www.exchange4media.com/industrybriefing/india-today-premieres-india-tomorrow_63814.html#sthash.wDZL0OkC.dpuf

Five short films with a vision of changing #India for better #tomorrow - dealing with themes like:

1) Others - Transgender (Pradeep Sarkar)

2) Prostitute - the sense of stock market (Imtiaz Ali)

3) Rohith Vemula's Suicide note (Hansal Mehta)

4) Prime Time - a satire on news making by news channels (Rohan Sippy)

5) India. . . India - the miscellany of road side hawker (Meghna Gulzaar)

I found Hansal Mehta's film quite tragic and poignant; Rohan Sippy's humorous; Saarkar and Ali's having strong assertion of other genders; Meghna's is fun to watch

1. Others - Transgender (Pradeep Sarkar)

2. Prostitute - the sense of stock market (Imtiaz Ali)

3. India. . . India - the miscellany of road side hawker (Meghna Gulzaar)

4. Prime Time - a satire on news making by news channels (Rohan Sippy)

5. Rohith Vemula's Suicide note (Hansal Mehta)

Books on Education System

Books on Changing Face of Education

1. Not For Profit: Why Democracy Needs the Humanities

~ Martha C. Nussbaum

In this short and powerful book, celebrated philosopher Martha Nussbaum makes a passionate case for the importance of the liberal arts at all levels of education. Historically, the humanities have been central to education because they have rightly been seen as essential for creating competent democratic citizens. But recently, Nussbaum argues, thinking about the aims of education has gone disturbingly awry both in the United States and abroad. Anxiously focused on national economic growth, we increasingly treat education as though its primary goal were to teach students to be economically productive rather than to think critically and become knowledgeable and empathetic citizens. This shortsighted focus on profitable skills has eroded our ability to criticize authority, reduced our sympathy with the marginalized and different, and damaged our competence to deal with complex global problems. And the loss of these basic capacities jeopardizes the health of democracies and the hope of a decent world. In response to this dire situation, Nussbaum argues that we must resist efforts to reduce education to a tool of the gross national product. Rather, we must work to reconnect education to the humanities in order to give students the capacity to be true democratic citizens of their countries and the world. Drawing on the stories of troubling--and hopeful--educational developments from around the world, Nussbaum offers a manifesto that should be a rallying cry for anyone who cares about the deepest purposes of education. Read Chapter 1 Read review of this book 2.  The Fall of the Faculty:The Rise of the All-Administrative University and Why It Matters ~ Benjamin Ginsberg Powerful and stinging critique of one of the most powerful trends in academia: the shift in power to non-academic administrators Exceptionally well written polemic that will stir controversy at universities across the country The author is well known throughout academia, and has coauthored one of the bestselling textbooks on American government in recent history Dissatisfaction with the academy runs deep in America. Despite-or perhaps because of-the fact that a far greater percentage of Americans have attended college than at any time in the past, distrust of the higher education system seems higher than ever. The most common complaints concern rapidly escalating tuition prices, affirmative action policies, and-not least-the allegedly left-wing professoriate that runs American universities. Indeed, much of the criticism of academia focuses on professors: they are too liberal, they care little about teaching, and they are too hyperspecialized. Benjamin Ginsberg argues that this common critique puts the cart before the horse and ignores a much bigger issue. In fact, faculty are not the primary problem with contemporary academia. Rather, the problem lies in the explosive growth in administration in US universities and the concomitant decline in faculty power in influence. Put simply, <"deanlets>"-administrators without doctorates or serious academic training-rule the roost, and professors do not have nearly as much institutional power as theyused to. Their decline dovetails with another trend: the growing regimentation and corporatization of the university. The fallout, Ginsberg contends, is negative: a de-emphasis on intellectual rigor and the traditional liberal arts. A stinging critique of how universities are run today, this book charts how this happened and explains how we can revamp the system so that actual educators have more say in curriculum policy. 3. The University in Ruins~ Bill Readings

It is no longer clear what role the University plays in society. The structure of the contemporary University is changing rapidly, and we have yet to understand what precisely these changes will mean. Is a new age dawning for the University, the renaissance of higher education under way? Or is the University in the twilight of its social function, the demise of higher education fast approaching?

We can answer such questions only if we look carefully at the different roles the University has played historically and then imagine how it might be possible to live, and to think, amid the ruins of the University. Tracing the roots of the modern American University in German philosophy and in the work of British thinkers such as Newman and Arnold, Bill Readings argues that historically the integrity of the modern University has been linked to the nation-state, which it has served by promoting and protecting the idea of a national culture. But now the nation-state is in decline, and national culture no longer needs to be either promoted or protected. Increasingly, universities are turning into transnational corporations, and the idea of culture is being replaced by the discourse of “excellence.” On the surface, this does not seem particularly pernicious.

The author cautions, however, that we should not embrace this techno-bureaucratic appeal too quickly. The new University of Excellence is a corporation driven by market forces, and, as such, is more interested in profit margins than in thought. Readings urges us to imagine how to think, without concession to corporate excellence or recourse to romantic nostalgia within an institution in ruins. The result is a passionate appeal for a new community of thinkers.

Read Reviews of the book

4. SLOW PROFESSOR: CHALLENGING THE CULTURE OF SPEED IN THE ACADEMY

~

Maggie Berg and Barbara Seeber

University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division © 2016

Read an article about this book

It is no longer clear what role the University plays in society. The structure of the contemporary University is changing rapidly, and we have yet to understand what precisely these changes will mean. Is a new age dawning for the University, the renaissance of higher education under way? Or is the University in the twilight of its social function, the demise of higher education fast approaching?

We can answer such questions only if we look carefully at the different roles the University has played historically and then imagine how it might be possible to live, and to think, amid the ruins of the University. Tracing the roots of the modern American University in German philosophy and in the work of British thinkers such as Newman and Arnold, Bill Readings argues that historically the integrity of the modern University has been linked to the nation-state, which it has served by promoting and protecting the idea of a national culture. But now the nation-state is in decline, and national culture no longer needs to be either promoted or protected. Increasingly, universities are turning into transnational corporations, and the idea of culture is being replaced by the discourse of “excellence.” On the surface, this does not seem particularly pernicious.

The author cautions, however, that we should not embrace this techno-bureaucratic appeal too quickly. The new University of Excellence is a corporation driven by market forces, and, as such, is more interested in profit margins than in thought. Readings urges us to imagine how to think, without concession to corporate excellence or recourse to romantic nostalgia within an institution in ruins. The result is a passionate appeal for a new community of thinkers.

If there is one sector of society that should be cultivating deep thought in itself and others, it is academia. Yet the corporatisation of the contemporary university has sped up the clock, demanding increased speed and efficiency from faculty regardless of the consequences for education and scholarship.

In The Slow Professor, Maggie Berg and Barbara K. Seeber discuss how adopting the principles of the Slow movement in academic life can counter this erosion of humanistic education. Focusing on the individual faculty member and his or her own professional practice, Berg and Seeber present both an analysis of the culture of speed in the academy and ways of alleviating stress while improving teaching, research, and collegiality. The Slow Professor will be a must-read for anyone in academia concerned about the frantic pace of contemporary university life.

Literature: What, Why and How

What, Why and How of Studying Literature

1. 

An introduction to the discipline of Literature

As a part of student-reflection on learning, they are asked to add a page on their Digital Portfolio about:

• What is Literature?
• Why study Literature?
• How does it make any difference?

To help students in this process of reflective learning, some useful blogs, videos, web-articles are shared here. As it is necessary to give line of thought or some starting points, so that students can realize what is expected, here are some resources:

• What Literature is for?

Dilip Barad - an Online Session with Sem 4 Students on 'How to Write How Literature Shaped me?'

 

How to write 'Learning Outcome of Studying Literature'?: Dilip Barad

 

 Literature in the Digital Era (Scott Hartley's The Techie and the Fuzzy: Why the Liberal Arts will rule to Digital Era)

• What Books Do for the Human Soul: The Four Psychological Functions of Great Literature“Writers open our hearts and minds, and give us maps to our own selves.” (MARIA POPOVA)

• How English Literature Shaped me - Aravind Adiga

• Is BA English in India just timepass? (Ketan Krishna)

• Surviving BA English

• IIT dropout finds B.A. English syllabus equally uninteresting (Pagal Patrakar)

• Life at ‪‎Delhi University‬ | 5 things every English Honours student goes through in college!

• Why students study English literature in the era of technology?

• Are the intellectual benefits of 'reading' overrated?
• Education without Liberal Arts is a threat to Humanity - Santa J. Ono 

We can also ponder on the characters in literary texts in syllabus

Here are some noteworthy links:

• The 10 Most Hated Fictional Characters

• YOUR 20 MOST-LOVED LITERARY CHARACTERS

Additional resources:

     Websites:

1.      http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/staffhome/siryan/Academy/Foundation/What_Is_Literature.htm

2.      http://www.und.edu/dept/linguistics/wp/1997Meyer.PDF

3.      http://classiclit.about.com/od/literaryterms/g/aa_whatisliter.htm

You Tube Videos:

1.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neRyi3i3K20&feature=related (Importance of Literature)

2.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRvav7oyjTY (what is literature)

3.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-wv6DUKInE&NR=1 (Prof. Ron Wheeler)

4.      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8UOMGQfuLk&feature=related (a day in the life of English literature student)

Books:

1.      Eagleton, Terry.  Literary Theory: An Introduction.  Oxford: Blackwell Publishers Inc., 1996.

2.      Hernadi, Paul. Ed.  What is Literature?  Bloomington & London, Indiana University Press, 1978.

3.      Wellek, René and Austin Warren. Theory of Literature.  Mitcham, Victoria: Penguin, 1963.

4.      Rees, R J. English Literature: An Introduction to the foreign readers. Macmillan. 1973.

5.      Scott James R.A. The Making Of Literature (1946).

6.      Hudson, William Henry. An Introduction to the study of Literature (1913)

Memorabilia 2016

Memorabilia 2016

The publication of Memorabilia2016 is one of the many traditions of the Department of English, Maharaja Krishnakumarsinhji Bhavnagar University. For last five years, students are publishing this booklet.

Memorabilia2016 released by Dr. Jayant Vyas
and Prof. Vinod Joshi

 The booklet is collection of creative and critical writings of the students. Poems, short stories, paintings, pencil sketches, cartoons, posters, abstracts of research papers published by students, reviews of books / movies, critical observations of current affairs etc are some regular columns in this booklet. The Compilation and Editing, which is very difficult task, is also carried out by a group of students. They have to collect contents from students, compile it, edit it (where ever necessary), convert into common format and make it ready for publication on the Annual Function Day. The Memorabilia is released by the guest on this day.  The Memorabilia is one of the many ways to evaluate students' creativity and critical acumen. It gives platform to students to publish their critical thoughts and creativity. That's fine. But what is more important is the ability of the chief editor and the team working for the Memorabilia. It is ultimate test of this group of students. From working in team (getting works done by each other, persistently requesting classmates to give their contributions, managing time from regular lectures and other learning assignments) to solving problems of compilation, editing and working on front page design to people-problems which are the most toughest nut to crack, these students have wonderful learning of 21st century skills. Yes, we, at Dept. of English, believe that the students in today's classrooms are going to work and live in 21st Century. Hence, the learning of these skills should be incorporated in daily activities and routine teachings at the Department. For this purpose, we have identified the 21st Century Skills Map which is the result of hundreds of hours of research, development and feedback from educators and business leaders across the nation (USA). The Partnership between 21stcenturyskills.org and National Council of Teachers of English has come up with interesting map of these skills. They are: 

1. Critical Thinking & Problem Solving 
2. Communication
3. Collaboration
4. Information Literacy
5. Media Literacy
6. ICT Literacy
7. Flexibility and Adaptability
8. Initiative & Self-direction
9. Social & Cross-cultural Skills
10. Productivity & Accountability
11. Leadership & Responsibility. (Curios to know more about these skills, click here)

It is this group of students who work on this Memorabilia, who are not only tested on these skills, but it also provides them to hone these skills. This year, Poojaba Jadeja and group of students have done quite satisfactory work. You can have a look at Memorabilia 2015 here under. As it is embedded from slideshare.net, if it takes time in loading, you can click here to open Memorabilia 2015 in new window. 

Click here to download.

Memorabilia 2016 from Dilip Barad

                        v  From The Desk of The Department

None of the monks can teach concentration better than the cat-family-animal-in-wait-for-prey. The task to edit this Memorabilia 2016 is not even an iota less than this.

The Concentration of the Cat is worth learning.

 It requires similar sort of concentration, and that too for quite a prolonged time. The persistence and perseverance with which Bhumi Joshi and Pritiba Gohil have worked is amazing. Not only the number of pages has crossed 100 but also the richness of content speaks for the dedication of both of them. A special thanks to Ravi Bhaliya and Milan Parmar for organizing content and printing this Memorabilia.

Having birds-eye view of this Memorabilia is like walking back on the memory lane. Not all revisits of memory are traumatic. There are sweet fragrance of flowery incidents and event which are yet not grown into anecdotes. Not even it is true to say that for teachers, the batches of students is like a rock rolled over the mountain by Sisyphus, just to see that it rolled down, again and again. The journey of walking with various batches of students is like pilgrim’s progress. The journey may not be strictly religious or spiritual, or may be it is quite opposite of it, but it is surely academic, intellectual and enlightening. The ‘progression’ of thoughts, the widening of mental horizons, understanding the universality of ideas are some of the key things which remain as a memory of teaching various batches.

Same is true about batch 2014-16. It was yet another enriching experience. One of the best experiences was to see Vanita Tadha gaining tremendous confidence to perform in Daily Schedule as well as in project work. Along with her, the way Asmita Gond, Sonal Baraiya, Neha Mehta and Jayshree Solanki improved their level of academic involvement which got manifested in their project on Reading Habit is the real gain of education.

Vanita Baldania and Daya Gohel’s participating in Mountaineering tracking at Junagadh was quite unique. Both of them shall be commended for this. I do not recall in last 7-8 years if any girl-student has participated in such ‘so-called-tough’ adventure sport events. The best of the human character is displayed when one stands with other human in their down moments. Vanita Baldania has displayed this unique aspect of human character. I hope the Department will see many such participation in coming years. This surely will be an example to be shared with upcoming batches to inspire them to participate in adventure sports. Such events play very important role in building human of great character and indomitable spirit.

It was great to have creative poems from Ravi Bhaliya which enlivened Daily Schedule on several occasions. It would be great to see all poems compiled and published in book form. He along with Nikunj Bhatti, Kishan Kubavat and Sagar Ladhva has taken very good care of Laptop bank and all matters related to ICT. Their hard work shall be remembered by all as they took extra care for internet connectivity for other students and also managed things on public holidays.

Every year, we are fortunate to have a few students who take care of Library books with utmost care. If we get the student who really loves the books, we need not worry about library. This year, Nimesh Dave and his team managed library with extra care and consideration.

Daily Schedule is yet another very important feature of life at Department. Urvi Dave and her team, this year, looked after it with great affection. Baring a few days, the daily schedule was full of wonderful presentations.

Ranjan Velari and Urvi worked on very interesting projects also. They participated in Global Conference and presented their research. It is such researches and participation of students in academic events that give academic acknowledgement to the Department as the hub of academic activities.

Amidst the hustle and bustle of other students, there are many who silently worked for others. They are always ready to help the needy. They help and do not expect any recognition. I would like to put Radha Ghevariay, Devikaba Gohil, Vaishali Jasolia, Krupali Lewade, Pritiba Gohil, Nidhi Jasani (her winning position in Youth Festival for Mimicry was unique as it only she who got rank in this Rajatrang 2015)  and Deepika Vaza in this type of students. This is not insignificant or trivial thing to have. Normally, people crave for recognition even if they have done nothing. To help and not to crave for recognition is ‘something’ really great.

We can’t forget beautiful identity cards for which Sagar Ladhwa and his team worked very hard. Sagar should also be remembered for enriching general knowledge in Daily Schedule on new schemes of Government of India. That is something very important.

Looking back in the memory gives some moments of regrets as well. It is remorseful when some students with talent do not perform owing to circumstances beyond their control or sometimes they themselves are the biggest hurdle for them, Jankiba Rana was toubled by her health and her mother’s and that resisted her from performing at her level best. Praful, Mayuri, Nisha and Hitesh should have been actively and willingly involved in academic and co-curricular activities. Even a single student left out unmotivated and not involved in academic activity is a failure of a teacher, in particular and of academic institute, in general. 

Well, the golden moments of any education system is live interaction of students with teachers. Though the class did not have many students who participated in discussions or raised disturbing questions, yet the contribution of Nimesh Dave, Dipti Vaghela, Milan Parmar and Bhumi Joshi cannot be ignored. They were ready to respond to the questions tossed in the class or were ready to ask the questions which were deeply inquisitive in nature and displayed curiosity of an ideal learner.

Bhumi Joshi needs special mention for her participation is co-curricular activities, performing at her best in these activities, winning a few laurels and earning good name of the Department and leading with great conviction. She proved that the ‘leaders never complain’, leader see to it that the tasks on hand, however, difficult it may sound, must be completed. Along with it, her presence in classroom, active participation in discussion also makes stand apart, and well ahead of others.

The real education is the one which stands by this stanza from Brihadaranyaka Upanishads (1.3.28):

असतोमा सद्गमय । From ignorance, lead me to truth

तमसोमा ज्योतिर् गमय । From darkness, lead me to light.

The mark of such an enlightened and truthful mind, the educated mind (in real sense), is the mind that stands nor for but against hegemony, against power, against privilege positions. The mind which is not ignorant and as such not in metaphorical darkness, is the mind which stands for powerless, poor and the underprivileged.

With the sense of an ending of the journey of Batch 2014-16, I stand satisfied for, if not in all, at least in a few of students, this has been realised.

Needless to say that I wish for the better future of the students and it goes without saying that I hope for the life full of restlessness and agitation, as it is in such struggles that we enjoy the life, the most!
~ Dilip Barad