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Teaching for job market and ‘liberating the whole person’ during Covid-19 pandemic

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by Liyanage Amarakeerthi

 

(This is based on a short presentation made at a promotion interview at the University of Peradeniya on November 19th, 2020. Author thanks Professors KNO Dharmadasa, Wimal Wijayarathne and OG Dayarathna Banda, Dean/Arts who encouraged him to publish this speech.)

At universities, we are busy teaching online. It is heartbreaking to find many students lack required facilities. Teaching on Zoom, for example, takes smart phones and personal computers for granted. We have to assume that Internet access is as ubiquitous as air, but reality is otherwise. Attendance at live Zoom classes can be as low as 40 percent in the Faculty of Arts, where students from underprivileged backgrounds account for the majority. Therefore, we need to record our lectures and make them available through other means. I myself have WhatsApp groups for all my classes to transmit important course content with a minimal cost. The university and the faculty take admirable care with extremely limited resources to make sure that no student is left behind. But the situation is far from satisfactory.

In addition to Corona, our political authorities routinely tell us that what we teach at the faculties of arts has become irrelevant and obsolete. They regularly ask us to produce employable graduates. Recently, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was seen in a video clip telling a graduate that she should have studied ‘something technical.’ While it is wrong to produce an endless number of external graduates merely with degree certificates to wave at media cameras at the Lipton Circus, learning something ‘technical’ signifies a poor understanding of university education.

I want to reflect on the true meaning of education at the faculties of Arts. At our faculties we teach courses in the humanities and the social sciences. As a scholar in literature and language, I am at the most pressured end of the spectrum: Learning literature is the most removed from ‘something technical.’ Therefore, we, the humanities scholars at universities, routinely have to justify what we are doing in teaching and research. There reflections are made in that context.

 

Vision of the founding fathers

The founding fathers of the University of Ceylon, never imagined that future scholars in the Humanities would have to face the particular challenge mentioned above. In the inaugural address of the Ceylon University movement Ponnambalam Arunachalam, the President of the movement, had elaborate plans for a university of our own. Out of 13 professorships they had imagined to create in the University of Ceylon, eight were for the humanities. They wanted professorships for vernacular languages such as Sinhala and Tamil, and when the university was established, in 1942, the curriculum had considerable focus on local language and traditions. Indeed, there were professorships for natural sciences, and many science-based subjects were to enter within the first decade of the university.

In addition, those founding fathers had much larger and grander ideals for education; here are the words of Arunachalam:

“University will be a powerful instrument for forming character, for giving us men and women armed with reason and self-control, braced by knowledge, clothed with steadfastness and courage and inspired by public spirit and public virtue.” “A Plea for a Ceylon University” (A. T. Alwis. Peradeniya: The Founding of a University).

Those beautifully profound words demonstrate that Arunachalam’s vision for education was much more than teaching ‘something technical.’

 

Liberal Arts

In order to rediscover the true meaning of the Humanities education, one may look into what is meant by the liberal arts in contemporary international universities. ‘Liberal arts’ is a bit more inclusive than what we call ‘arts subjects’ since they include natural sciences, basic mathematics and the like. A rich liberal arts degree programme exposes students to a wide range of subjects––languages, literature, philosophy, religion, natural sciences, mathematics, Fine Arts, citizenship education, social sciences (at least key concepts of them) and so on. Since there is nothing strictly prohibited from the domain of liberal arts, one could add numerous other things to the curriculum.

The word ‘liberal’ in liberal arts a loaded one. It includes knowledge required to liberate human beings from socio-cultural bonds they are trapped in producing hierarchy, inequality and injustice. Rousseau famously claimed that chains binding human beings were human-made’ and the hammers to break them were also made in earth not in heaven. A high quality education in liberal arts should help us see those chains and to forge the hammers that can break them. In other words, liberal arts teach us the significance of working towards a just society. For that goal, there are many sources of wisdom. Unlike political parties and rigid ideologues, universities believe that there are multiple ways to reach that goal. That goal may be always at the horizon resisting our reaching it. Still, a society that has given up on that goal is perhaps so much poor even with endless affluence. Teaching liberal arts at universities is one important way societies hold on to a richer dream even in the midst of relative economic hardships. A country can be poor but yet not philistine.

‘Liberation’ in liberal arts includes internal liberation as well, and it could include several modes of refining oneself within. When modernity was an unquestioned project, liberation from the Nature was one goal of humanity. But now we know better. While we have to keep Nature at bay, we also have to realise that we are also part of it. The time of coronavius is opportune to reflect on this. Moreover, our nature itself is something that needs refinement and taming while it is very much a part of big Nature. So, in recent times a diverse set of course related to environmentalism has made its way into our liberal arts curriculum. As Professor Spencer McWilliams has aptly put, “a liberal arts education can help us develop a more comprehensive understanding of the universe and ourselves”. (Liberal Arts Education: What does it mean? What is it worth?)

Our political authorities may ask for graduates with a certain set of limited technical skills to be productive in the narrow roles assigned to them in contemporary economy. For us in universities, a human being is not just a worker. His or her life in the world of work is only one small segment of his or her life. For us as in the Humanities, questions such as what human beings do, what they reflect on, what and how they enjoy during their non-working hours matters as much as the ‘job skills’ they are supposed to hone. To make matters even more complicated, the liberal arts is interested even in the dreams that occur to human beings during their sleeping hours. To put it simply, for liberal arts human self is much more than a human worker.

A holistic development of the ‘whole person’ is the goal of liberal arts. It includes eight interrelated aspects: intellectual, emotional, physical, spiritual, vocational, ethical, personal, and social. Intellectual development requires acquiring broad-based knowledge, learning how to learn, and learning how to think critically. Emotional development includes understanding, managing and expressing emotions. Developing high quality relationships with other people is the basis of social development while ethical development aims at providing students with a clear value system that enables them to make sound decisions. Physical development concerns the understanding of one’s own body and taking care of it. Spiritual development may be the most culture-sensitive as each culture may have its own take on what is ‘spiritual. ‘Vocational’ is indeed a form of development that must be a part of contemporary education. But is only one among eight. It includes exploring career possibilities and developing skills required for a career. As university teachers we do want our graduates to find jobs and achieve some sort of financial independence to pursue other goals of life articulated here. Personal development, the last of the eight, stays the last because it is the bottom line, so to speak. For personal development one needs to cultivate a strong sense of self-identity and agility to step out of that identity in being considerate towards others.

The Role of Peradeniya:

Whole Person, Whole Campus

A fully developed university must have all the facilities needed to address at least those eight areas. Holistic education believes that curriculum and co-curriculum must make use of whole campus for that purpose. Founding fathers of University of Peradeniya seem to have endowed with a concept of holistic education in the early twentieth century. Just to give only a few examples, for those who argue for making use of the whole campus for holistic education claims that for one’s intellectual development, a university has to utilise learning centers, library, academic advising services, tutoring services, information technology centers, invited talks on various topics, workshops, theatre halls, art shows and so on. This list, though not comprehensive, demonstrates that the intellectual development of a graduate is much more than following time tables and attending formal lectures. At Peradeniya, we may not have all these facilities, but when the university was founded a considerable attention was paid to these aspects. Taking a long walk through the beautiful University Park can be education in itself if one is rightly attuned to the lessons of natural beauty. I have learned those lessons at stunning campus parks at Wisconsin and Cornell.

Now, let me touch on ‘spiritual development.’ In addition to formal instructions on subjects such a philosophy and arts that concern one’s spiritual life, there should be co-curricular involvements with campus religious communities. Programmes such as inter-religious dialogue could be part of these activities. Perhaps, it was for such holistic education that places for all religions have been established within the University of Peradeniya.

Instead of cutting down funding on ‘liberal arts’ education, the government must invest more in the kind of education explained above. Even without enough financial resources some of us have been working hard to promote such a holistic education. Yes, just some of us. There are people who have no idea as to what they should be doing at universities. Among them, there are academics who believe that training students to site exams that lead to a certificate is university education. Yes, that is education often found at private tuition classes. But there is much more to university education. If our holistic education is only partially done, it is natural that authorities ask out graduates to learn ‘something technical.’

The prevailing pandemic has crippled nearly all co-curricular activities at campus. An education that does not include library, playground, gymnasium, the Sarachchandra Open Air theater, the E.O.E. Perera theatre, heated discussions with guest speakers, and, even some trips to the lovers’ lane or other ‘lanes’ cannot help achieve eight developmental goals of holistic education. COVID-19 has corroded that education. But holistic education is faced with a bigger threat. It is the demand that education be geared for the job market. True academics must do everything possible to prevent that philistine virus making inroads into our higher education institutions. Only those who are capable of realising the true meaning of holistic education envisioned in the Humanities and liberal arts can stand up to such philistine invasions. Those are the ones who really deserve to be hired and promoted.



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Features

BRICS’ pushback against dollar domination sparks global economic standoff

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BRICS leaders at the recent Summit in Brazil. /United Nations

If one were to look for a ‘rationale’ for the Trump administration’s current decision to significantly raise its tariffs on goods and services entering its shores from virtually the rest of the world, then, it is a recent statement by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent that one needs to scrutinize. He is quoted as saying that tariffs could return ‘to April levels, if countries fail to strike a deal with the US.’

In other words, countries are urged to negotiate better tariff rates with the US without further delay if they are not to be at the receiving end of the threatened new tariff regime and its disquieting conditions. An unemotional approach to the questions at hand is best.

It would be foolish on the part of the rest of the world to dismiss the Trump administration’s pronouncements on the tariff question as empty rhetoric. In this crisis there is what may be called a not so veiled invitation to the world to enter into discussions with the US urgently to iron out what the US sees as unfair trade terms. In the process perhaps mutually acceptable terms could be arrived at between the US and those countries with which it is presumably having costly trade deficits. The tariff crisis, therefore, should be approached as a situation that necessitates earnest, rational negotiations between the US and its trading partners for the resolving of outstanding issues.

Meanwhile, the crisis has brought more into the open simmering antagonisms between the US and predominantly Southern groupings, such as the BRICS. While the tariff matter figured with some urgency in the recent BRICS Summit in Brazil, it was all too clear that the biggest powers in the grouping were in an effort ‘to take the fight back to the US’ on trade, investment and connected issues that go to the heart of the struggle for global predominance between the East and the US. In this connection the term ‘West’ would need to be avoided currently because the US is no longer in complete agreement with its Western partners on issues of the first magnitude, such as the Middle East, trade tariffs and Ukraine.

Russian President Putin is in the forefront of the BRICS pushback against US dominance in the world economy. For instance, he is on record that intra-BRICS economic interactions should take place in national currencies increasingly. This applies in particular to trade and investment. Speaking up also for an ‘independent settlement and depository system’ within BRICS, Putin said that the creation of such a system would make ‘currency transactions faster, more efficient and safer’ among BRICS countries.

If the above and other intra-BRICS arrangements come to be implemented, the world’s dependence on the dollar would steadily shrink with a corresponding decrease in the power and influence of the US in world affairs.

The US’ current hurry to bring the world to the negotiating table on economic issues, such as the tariff question, is evidence that the US has been fully cognizant of emergent threats to its predominance. While it is in an effort to impress that it is ‘talking’ from a position of strength, it could very well be that it is fearful for its seemingly number one position on the world stage. Its present moves on the economic front suggest that it is in an all-out effort to keep its global dominance intact.

At this juncture it may be apt to observe that since ‘economics drives politics’, a less dollar dependent world could very well mark the beginning of the decline of the US as the world’s sole super power. One would not be exaggerating by stating that the tariff issue is a ‘pre-emptive’, strategic move of sorts by the US to remain in contention.

However, the ‘writing on the wall’ had been very manifest for the US and the West for quite a while. It is no longer revelatory that the global economic centre of gravity has been shifting from the West to the East.

Asian scholarship, in particular, has been profoundly cognizant of the trends. Just a few statistics on the Asian economic resurgence would prove the point. Parag Khanna in his notable work, ‘The Future is Asian’, for example, discloses the following: ‘Asia represents 50 percent of global GDP…It accounts for half of global economic growth. Asia produces and exports as well as imports and consumes more goods than any region.’

However, the US continues to be number one in the international power system currently and non-Western powers in particular would be erring badly if they presume that the economic health of the world and connected matters could be determined by them alone. Talks with the US would not only have to continue but would need to be conducted with the insight that neither the East nor the West would stand to gain by ignoring or glossing over the US presence.

To be sure, any US efforts to have only its way in the affairs of the world would need to be checked but as matters stand, the East and the South would need to enter into judicious negotiations with the US to meet their legitimate ends.

From the above viewpoint, it could be said that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was one of the most perceptive of Southern leaders at the BRICS Summit. On assuming chairmanship of the BRICS grouping, Modi said, among other things: ‘…During our chairmanship of BRICS, we will take this forum forward in the spirit of people-centricity and humanity first.’

People-centricity should indeed be the focus of BRICS and other such formations of predominantly the South, that have taken upon themselves to usher the wellbeing of people, as opposed to that of power elites and ruling classes.

East and West need to balance each other’s power but it all should be geared towards the wellbeing of ordinary people everywhere. The Cold War years continue to be instructive for the sole reason that the so-called ordinary people in the Western and Soviet camps gained nothing almost from the power jousts of the big powers involved. It is hoped that BRICS would grow steadily but not at the cost of democratic development.

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Familian Night of Elegance …

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The UK branch of the Past Pupils Association of Holy Family Convent Bambalapitiya went into action last month with their third grand event … ‘Familian Night of Elegance.’ And, according to reports coming my way, it was nothing short of a spectacular success.

This dazzling evening brought together over 350 guests who came to celebrate sisterhood, tradition, and the deep-rooted bonds shared by Familians around the world.

Describing the event to us, Inoka De Sliva, who was very much a part of the scene, said:

Inoka De Silva: With one of the exciting prizes – air ticket to Canada and back to the UK

“The highlight of the night was the performance by the legendary Corrine Almeida, specially flown in from Sri Lanka. Her soulful voice lit up the room, creating unforgettable memories for all who attended. She was backed by the sensational UK-based band Frontline, whose energy and musical excellence kept the crowd on their feet throughout the evening.”

Corrine
Almeida:
Created
unforgettable
memories

Inoka, who now resides in the UK, went on to say that the hosting duties were flawlessly handled by the ever popular DJ and compere Vasi Sachi, who brought his trademark style and charisma to the stage, while his curated DJ sets, during the breaks, added fun and a modern vibe to the atmosphere.

Mrs. Rajika Jesuthasan: President of the UK
branch of the Past Pupils Association of
Holy Family Convent Bambalapitiya
(Pix by Mishtré Photography’s Trevon Simon

The event also featured stunning dance performances that captivated the audience and elevated the celebration with vibrant cultural flair and energy.

One of the most appreciated gestures of the evening was the beautiful satin saree given to every lady upon arrival … a thoughtful and elegant gift that made all feel special.

Guests were also treated to an impressive raffle draw with 20 fantastic prizes, including air tickets.

The Past Pupils Association of Holy Family Convent Bambalapitiya, UK branch, was founded by Mrs. Rajika Jesuthasan née Rajakarier four years ago, with a clear mission: to bring Familians in the UK together under one roof, and to give back to their beloved alma mater.

As the curtain closed on another successful Familian celebration, guests left with hearts full, and spirits high, and already counting down the days until the next gathering.

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The perfect tone …

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We all want to have flawless skin, yet most people believe that the only way to achieve that aesthetic is by using costly skin care products.

Getting that perfect skin is not that difficult, even for the busiest of us, with the help of simple face beauty tips at home.

Well, here are some essential ways that will give you the perfect tone without having to go anywhere.

Ice Cubes to Tighten Skin:

Applying ice cubes to your skin is a fast and easy effective method that helps to reduce eye bags and pores, and makes the skin look fresh and beautiful. Using an ice cube on your face, as a remedy in the morning, helps to “revive” and prepare the skin.

*  Oil Cleansing for Skin:

Use natural oils, like coconut oil or olive oil, to cleanse your skin. Oils can clean the face thoroughly, yet moisturise its surface, for they remove dirt and excess oil without destroying the skin’s natural barriers. All one has to do is pick a specific oil, rub it softly over their face, and then wipe it off, using a warm soak (cloth soaked in warm water). It is a very simple method for cleaning the face.

* Sugar Scrub:

Mix a tablespoon of sugar with honey, or olive oil, to make a gentle scrub. Apply it in soft, circular motions, on your face and wash it off after a minute. This helps hydrate your skin by eliminating dead skin cells, which is the primary purpose of the scrub.

*  Rose Water Toner:

One natural toner that will soothe and hydrate your skin is rose water. Tightening pores, this water improves the general texture of your skin. This water may be applied gently to the face post-cleansing to provide a soothing and hydrating effect to your face.

* Aloe Vera:

It is well known that aloe vera does wonders for the skin. It will provide alleviation for the skin, because of its calming and moisturising effects. The application of aloe vera gel, in its pure form, to one’s skin is beneficial as it aids in moisturising each layer, prevents slight skin deformity, and also imparts a fresh and healthy look to the face. Before going to bed is the best time to apply aloe vera.

Water:

Staying hydrated, by drinking plenty of water (06 to 08 cups or glasses a day), helps to flush toxins and its functions in detoxification of the body, and maintenance the youthfulness of the skin in one’s appearance.

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