In Humanity

While following NDTV coverage of the Mumbai attacks, I came across this phrase used by Prannoy Roy and his anchors: "the faces of tragedy". As a consequence, I wrote the following lines, a reflection not just of Mumbai, but of the world we presently live in.

Orphaned by hate
Widowed by spite
Battered by brutality
Scarred for life
We are
The faces of tragedy
Sculpted by the tools of terror.

Stammering with sorrow
Uttering rage
Expressing uncertainty
Manifesting helplessness
We are
The voices of a city
Tempered by the trauma of terror.

Listening in anguish
Watching with disbelief
Waiting in fear
Susceptible to rumour
We are
The conscience of a country
Stricken by the torture of terror.

And, in our voices, on our faces,
In the depths of a conscience
We are
A breed of people
That can only wonder
At the inhumanity of humanity.

Freedom

I can go anywhere I want
And do whatever I feel
Answerable to none
With no bonds to keep.

I can be what I want
Gain all I wish
Liable for nothing
With no accounts to render.

Yes, such is my freedom
That I go where I want...
Do what I feel...
Be what I want...
Gain all I wish...

Within the bounds of
A solitary confinement.

SONNET

SONNET

A colleague of mine asked me, this morning, for a ditty on death. I responded with this sonnet as I feel death – in all its dignity and indignity – can never be dealt with in a ditty.

Proud am I, the owner of a brand new bed
Customized to suit my most unique want
Its plush satin, below me, so elegantly spread
Evokes memories that momentarily haunt
The people who have with tender love and care
Given me the luxury of such glitter and gleam
That my finest gown, I now do fashionably wear
And smile with the warmth of a most pleasant dream.
So, it is that I, in such profound sleep
Lie in the folds of the world’s greatest power
As, with destiny, my appointment I keep
And laze in the idyll that is Death’s calm bower

Thus I am comfortably cuddled in this loving cot
As my soul wanders and my body does rot.

Adding Value - Lessons from the English Premier League

Adding Value – Lessons from the English Premier League

It is not uncommon for me, especially on a Monday morning, to walk past students who are furiously engaged in a conversation on Arsenal’s chances in the Premiership, Ferguson’s substitutions or Liverpool’s dependence on Gerrard. As a consequence, I tend to use the English Premier League as a way of engaging my students during lesson time.

Of course, I do enjoy my sport – on the field and on the couch – which makes it much easier for me to relate to the entertainment that English Club football offers its now global audience, and consequently use football games, transfers and managerial discussions as a springboard for classroom discussion.

Quite a few might disagree with me and say that sport is a distraction in the first place and is too flippant a topic to warrant serious classroom discussion. This article might make them reconsider their viewpoints, but I hope that it serves as a guide to those teachers who might consider it a rather useful platform on which to base sports-oriented lesson plans.

Harry Redknapp’s rejuvenation of Tottenham Hotspur this season makes an excellent case study for the Business Studies teacher and the student. It can be used to discuss – in great detail – the effectives of management change on the dynamics of any team. It can be used to discuss motivation, morale and the need to understand the psychology of one’s charges. In fact, Redknapp’s role with what was a dispirited Hotspur team can be compared with the roles of Iaccocca at Chrysler and Gertsner at IBM, gentleman who turned around the fortunes of two struggling business giants. The advantage to using the Hotspurs as a starting point is that it engages students with something they are interested in, something that is happening in their lifetime!

Hull City and Stoke City have stormed the Premiership with some fascinating displays, showing that they have what it takes to stand up to the big guns. When the underdog performs the unexpected, everyone is amazed more so students who are fanatic about football. As a result, the teacher can use such detail as a stimulus towards discussion on how volatile any active environment is, which is why it is often difficult to consider the results of trend analysis. Past data might point you to one direction, but no matter how reliable or accurate it is, a volatile environment – which is the nature of any economic environment – is dangerously susceptible to change. Not only can one discuss time series analysis in context, one can effectively analyse its inherent weaknesses!

This year alone, on many occasions, I have asked the Liverpool faithful within the school about the influence that Steven Gerrard has on the side. The Carling Cup match against Tottenham (that man Redknapp again) makes pretty good point on the depth and breadth, (rather, the lack of the two) that the team has. This, eventually, can be used as a springboard for discussion on the need for a wide, diverse and strong “product portfolio” in the business world. Dependence on one strongly performing flagship product is too much of a risk in today’s business environment. Case in point: Apple’s dependence on its Macintosh line in the early nineties and its fall into the abyss until it was eventually revived by the modern world’s most fashionable product: the i-Pod!

This morning I had my Lower Sixth group of ten, half of whom are die-hard fans of “the beautiful game” discuss how they would tinker with their teams in different circumstances, ranging from a league final to a dead match. Not only did it engage them in active discussion and analysis, it also helped me use their answers as a platform for “tweaks” that are made to the marketing mix depending on the occasion or the circumstance. After all, that is what McDonald’s does with the Tsukimi Burger before and during the Mid-Autumn Festival in Japan: a classic case of a fast-food giant thinking global, but acting local!

Of course the flip side to using such an approach – and I do not use it always – is that there may be a segment that abhors football, especially the girls I teach. With them, I try to use an interest or pastime that they are familiar with to get the message across. In fact, I have been using football as an example only in the three years I have been in Zambia. Prior to that - during my time in Abu Dhabi - where most of my students where Pakistani or Bangladeshi, cricket was an ideal complement to my lessons.

Sport, as I have mentioned in an earlier blog, is fast becoming – if it already isn’t – a major commercial giant all over the world, with billions of dollars being spent within the industry on a global scale. As such, it is a marvelous opportunity for us to use it as an effective tool to get our students engaged with thinking about ideas and concepts that seem nebulous to them on first reading. After all, since they are at an age when they themselves are greatly involved with playing sport or watching their favourite team perform on a regular basis, it is only to our benefit – and theirs as well – to add value to the lessons we offer, lessons that we hope they will take with them long after they have finished their board examinations.

Of Memories and Dreams

Of Memories and Dreams
Of Memories and Dreams is a tribute to how influential the past and the future are to the lives we live in the present.

I ponder; and I see
Memories tinted with time
And
Dreams, a kaleidoscope of hope.

Yes, I look into my past
And
See my future beckoning me.

I ponder; and I remember
Dreams, nurtured with time
And
The memories they now offer.

Yes, I look into my past
And
See my future beckoning me.

I dream; and I wonder
Of all that can be
And
Of all that has already been.

Oh, I gaze into my future
And
Hear my past harking back at me.

I dream; and I think
Of what I can achieve
And
Of goals already attained.

Oh, I gaze into my future
And
Hear my past harking back at me.

I dream, I wonder, I ponder, I think
And
I see
Memories tinted with time
Dreams, a kaleidoscope of hope.

Education

It has been a long time indeed. A hectic work schedule, coupled with the anticipation of one's first child left very little room for any discursive or poetic output. The following reading, however, was borne out of necessity and read by two students at the Simba School Leaving Ceremony for the year 2008.

Education does not end when you are awarded a degree or you pass out of school or university. In fact, it just begins.

Education is not just the absorption of knowledge, it is putting the knowledge you gain into practice, for:

Education is gained in the holding of a conversation. It occurs when you observe the people around you. It occurs when you think for yourself, rather than when you read someone else's thoughts.

Education is garnered from experience; the experience of doing something by yourself for the first time, the experience of gratitude that you earn when you help someone else, the experience of a smile on the face of your child, the experience of pride in a parents' eyes.

Education is showing yourself the ropes as you continue learning lessons for life and rules for living. Education is creating and valuing your own personal history.

All the best, graduates of the Simba International School Classes of 2008 as you continue learning moment by moment, day by day, year by year - as you go on to gain the experience - and education of a lifetime.

Welcome to 2008

The passage of time records
The things we have achieved, the milestones we have crossed.

The time to come heralds
The things we can yet achieve, the milestones we have yet to cross.

The past is a collage
Of moments in a lifetime, of people and places that have been

The future is a canvas
On which we get to create moments, people and places that can be.

The year gone by
Is a storehouse of memories, a cellar full of nostalgia.

The year to come
Is a receptacle for effort, a playground of anticipation

So, while - on a day like this - you might look back at what has been
Take time, also, to look ahead at what has yet to be

...Of the person you CAN become
...Of the things you CAN do
...Of the places you CAN visit
Of a life that you CAN create.

HAPPY NEW YEAR

The Business of Sport

It is not uncommon, these days, to hear teenagers from all corners of the globe to discuss – especially after a weekend – the foibles and fortunes of their favourite football club. Such discussion can sometimes become heated argument as personal biases and preconceived prejudices take over rational debate. This is now a naturally occurring phenomena all over the world, and though nothing can compare with the beautiful game, snippets of conversations on international cricket matches, NBA basketball games, F1 Racing and even golf, can be heard as one walks down corridors in schools all over the world.
What has caused this global phenomenon? As a teacher of Business Studies and an avid follower of sport myself, I thought I might consider an analysis of sport in order to make sports-crazy teenagers use a lateral approach in understanding Business Studies – from the perspective of what is, in my opinion, one of the fastest growing commercial activities in the world.
Fastest-growing? Well, though the sports industry has not have the prodigious growth rate of the Internet, it is – along with tourism – a rapidly growing industry that is not only gaining popularity on the global scene, but one that is constantly evolving to adapt to changing personal attitudes, new-fangled technologies and modern lifestyles. Yes, sports is big business and the sport industry has contributed a greater margin to the global GDP than ever before. In other words, it is a global industry that fosters a range of economic activity, providing employment – and entertainment – across all social strata globally.
Consider some of these facts regarding the impact that the business of sport has had – and continues to have – on society:
 In tandem, the major leagues in the States – NFL, NBA and MLB – garner around $ 12 billion in annual revenue. That figure is miniscule in comparison with the total market worth of the sports industry in the United States: $ 425 billion, which means that the sports industry is just smaller than the food retailing industry in the USA.
 Ticket sales alone at the 2003 Cricket World Cup in South Africa totaled US $ 11.2 million. That figure is estimated to shoot up to US $ 40 million in next month’s World Cup in the West Indies.
 Sports media is a multi-billion dollar domain within the broader field of media and communications. Think ESPN and Fox Sports. Think Supersport here in Africa.
 Every match in the 2006 World Cup in Germany featured footballs from Pakistan, which exported around 56 million footballs for US $ 185 million. Not surprising when approximately 80% of the world’s footballs comes from Sialkot, a small town in Pakistan which is known for its cottage industry.
 Nike Inc – possibly, the most recognizable sports brand – earned revenues to the tune of US $ 15 billion for the fiscal year 2006.
The list is endless and, on careful thought and research, you are likely to come up further examples of the impact that sport has had – and continues to have – on society. Look around, for that matter, and you will notice that sport on become part of your wardrobe. You might not wear that Ronaldo football shirt that your mate wears; you might not style your hair the way Beckham does, you might not wear the national colours of your country when you hang out with your friends, but I am quite sure that you own a pair of sports shoes just because it looks good! Which brings me to my first reason for the phenomenal growth of the sports industry – fashion. Sport has become trendier by the day, and this has led to sports merchandising contributing a big part to the revenues earned by the global sports industry. Teenagers find it fashionable to sport the football shirt of their favourite star or don their country’s (club’s) colours on that casual day out. However, sport has been fashionable – and of great economic impact – because of two basic business concepts: interdependence and quality.
Let me deal with interdependence first. According to basic Business Studies, this is the mutual dependence on each other enjoyed by all members of society. In my opinion, both – sport and the media – are highly interdependent on each other, and that is why they have both grown prodigiously in recent times. Ted Turner and Rupert Murdoch are media moguls and there empires owe a great deal to the sport industry itself. Sport, in turn, has become a global industry thanks to the far-reaching tentacles of Mssrs Turner and Murdoch. Yes, if sport is a global industry, it is because people from different corners of the world are able to enjoy what was once a local happening: the Premier League, for instance. No wonder then that both industries are multi-billion dollar revenue earners! In fact, thanks to the media and sport, people in small cottage industries earn a living, maintenance staff at stadia in developing countries can take home a reasonable wage, a budding entrepreneur can open up his own sports shop, a journalist can eke out a living and an accountant at an Astroturf manufacturer can grin at this pay packet. Interdependence again! Sport provided employment and employment makes sport possible.
In fact, sport has created a wider range of jobs that youngsters today can look forward to: sports psychology, sport medicine, sport technology, sport statistics, sport advertising, sport management, sports event management, sport marketing, to name a few. No wonder then, that Dubai, once oil-rich, has diversified into tourism and, of late, into sport tourism. The government there knows that investment in sport is definitely going to bring in revenues in more ways than one.
Quality! What quality does sport possess? What is the unique selling point that has made its popularity soar. In my opinion, it is the sheer value of live entertainment. There are no retakes here; it is sheer drama that can literally take you to the edge of your seat more times than one. It is drama in real life. And, this I feel is sports’ unique selling point. It gives entertainment value; which is why a live sports event can take precedence over a Tom Cruise blockbuster or that mystery series Mother has been religiously following all month long. The fact that it provides sheer entertainment in live stadiums or sedate living rooms is the main reason sport has grown in popularity all over the world. And, in trying to maintain its entertainment value and enhance this USP, specific players in the sports industry have tried to help sport evolve with time and adapt with time. No wonder then, that sport has become more colourful, entertaining and exciting. It has managed to retain its entertainment value to adapting to an ever-changing global environment.
Yes, sport is big business. One that is growing at a steady pace, entertaining and employing people all over the world. One that is contributing to the economic activities of almost every single country the world. One that is benefiting as many industries as it benefits from them.

TEACHING: AN EXERCISE IN PUBLIC RELATIONS AND HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

A few years ago, I was having a conversation with some students of mine; the enterprising youngsters – two years away from gaining entry into universities around the world – were debating the relative worth of a spectrum of occupations. Being the elder at the “roundtable”, I moderated the discussion and felt content to sit back and listen to the views of a group of enthusiastic and opinionated young men and women. Through the content of their talk, I had the vicarious thrill of listening to tomorrow’s acoustic engineer, observing the architect of another generation, assessing the potential businesswoman, being patient with the pedantic surgeon-to-be and picking a bone of contention with the lawyer of the future.

However, while bringing the conversation to an end I told them I was of the opinion that while all of their prospective careers looked lucrative and rewarding, mine – teaching – was the most difficult of all jobs. Not having time to go into details, I smiled and spoke out: You admire monuments by famous architects, you praise the inventions of great scientists, you marvel at the technological milestones that engineers have propelled us past, you are grateful for a doctor’s skill, you are envious of a tycoon’s acumen…the list goes on! My question is this: who built these people who built – and keep building – this world of ours? Wasn’t a teacher somewhere along the line?

People do have their own slant on things and I am sure, time permitting, my students would have argued for a doctor’s enduring patience or a pilot’s immense responsibility. Nevertheless, I firmly believe that teaching is among the most demanding jobs and is one that is a lifelong exercise in public relations and human resource management.

Wherein lies my argument, you may ask? In the first place, teaching is a labour-intensive job that requires critical thinking. And then, more than any other job, it is immensely people-oriented: you deal not just with sensitive souls, nervous neophytes or tentative teenagers; you also deal with demanding parents and inquisitive guardians. In short, you deal with people from all walks of life; and with globalization the prevailing trend, you traverse the globe in your own classroom! Yes, you deal with the ambitious Indian doctor whose precocious child feels overwhelmed; you converse with the conservative Arab mother whose daughter is ambivalent about tradition; you make suggestions to the hapless Australian engineer whose troublesome son exhibits strains of technical wizardry; you deal with people of all temperaments from all places. And most of all, you deal with young lives! You deal with ideals of the past, ambitions of the present and dreams of the future. In short, a teacher’s job description involves building the people who build the world!

Am I glorifying teaching? Rather, I feel I am actually painting a reasonable picture of a difficult profession. And, as a teacher, I feel there have been times when I have – wittingly or unwittingly – fallen short of my job description. Yet, it is a job I enjoy. I enjoy the banter of classroom discussion as much as I enjoy the achievement of great results. I take pleasure in talking things through with the troublesome teen as much as I take pleasure in helping precocious talent fulfill potential. I benefit from watching the world walk into my classroom as much as I benefit from giving my “citizens” a view of the world! Yet, at all times, I tell myself: teaching is an exercise in public relations and human resource management; make sure you do it well. Study the pupil and find him his niche, study the parent and allay her grief!

Yes, teaching is not just the imparting and dissemination of knowledge. It requires critical thinking, perceptive analysis, levels of patience and, most importantly, people skills. It requires just the right amount of careful prodding to get the star pupil thinking outside the box; it requires the right dose of “carrot and stick” to get the indolent idler moving; it requires the right amount of understanding to quell the ambitious parent’s fears and the right amount of consideration to empathize with a family’s demands for excellence.

Am I still glorifying teaching? I think not; for when I sat back and pondered on an appropriate topic for an International Business Review, I felt that it would be nice to render a tribute to the profession I have chosen. For, in this day and age of globalization, teaching is one of the most international jobs around and an unending exercise in public relations and human resource management: a daily work out in which motivation and leadership meet culture, character and community.

An Elegy Written in A Shopping Mall

The following poem was written at the request of my wife and it is intended to be ‘gently mocking’ in its style. The reader MUST stroll though it for that purpose alone.



A long time ago, when with my mother, I went
On a shopping trip in which many hours were spent
Unto myself a secret promise I made
Never would I, with a woman, through malls and boutiques wade.

This promise, fifteen years since, has now been broken
For the spirit of Eros was within me awoken
So, now, with marital bliss, I treasure the joys of family life
And I also shudder at the time I spend shopping with my wife.

She bothers NOT about the hands of the clock
Which, with their boisterous ticking, do me mock
As I bite my fingers and chew my nails
While wifey darling shops with a patience that never fails.


My practice of ‘walk in, pick up and then walk out’
Is now one of ‘walk in, darling, and let us walk about’
And so, she does – with a slow and steady gait
While I gaze at mannequins and ponder my fate

Safe and secure, in cosy comfort, hardly disturbed
My wallet is NOT in the least bit perturbed
For he knows that his services will not be needed
Until through PRICE, CHOICE, TRIALS, his mistress has weeded

The objects that she might finally desire
And yet not necessarily – right then – acquire
For further weeding must surely be done
If shopping, for Elizabeth dear, is any fun.

Always, there lies a BUT on these shopping trips
A rationale with which I have yet to come to grips
For after careful analysis of textures, patterns and colour schemes
Wifey darling holds – lovingly – the object of her dreams

BUT – this contrariness to rhyme and reason
Is the perpetual refrain to our shopping season
For, though the texture may be perfect the colour just right
In a tiny spot, the design is not to her delight

So, even if an item is picked up – and to the counter taken
One must forgive me – if I’m sadly mistaken
In thinking that I can now move on – something has been bought
For, with a BUT, it might just be placed – back in its original spot.

Thus, Elizabethan shopping in all its royal splendour – and courtly grace
Can hardly be confined – limited – to a few hours space.
It takes more than mere days, weeks and months instead
For wifey girl to savour her shopping spread.

And, though dear reader, this verse may now come to an end
For me, the rest of my life I must hereafter spend
With plodding upon my weary way
As the curfew tolls the knell of another shopping day.


- Alister Renaux (Ency Whyte).

The Road

The Road was written as a farewell piece of advice to students who were leaving high school and I felt it was appropriate to print it out on T-shirts that would serve as souvenirs as they made their individual journeys on the road of life. Hopefully, they have found it - still find it - inspirational.


THE ROAD

The road ahead is long; it’s also wide
‘T has all the promises of a fulfilling ride
That need not mean that you speed along
Like those who the meandering highways throng

Create your own pace; it’s your ride after all
When to start or stop; it’s your own call
Yet, don’t lose control, but focus ahead
Tread over the bumps and stop when it’s red

Learn the rules as you drive and maintain the pace
Respect the signals, but steer your own race
Watch out for dangers in people and places
And revel in the beauty of wide open spaces

At times, it’d be good to stop and take stock
Unnecessary baggage, unload and unlock
Turn back and look; take in what is past
And ensure that you have the power to last

At times the path may be dangerously rough
But remember that you are sturdy enough; and tough
And that you have, in your hands, the power to steer
Through tempests and hazards that the multitudes fear

In those times and places, when the weather is fine
And, on what lies ahead, the sun does brilliantly shine
Accelerate the tempo and drum your fingers
As you enjoy the beauty for as long as it lingers

Whatever it is; and wherever you go
Remember what you are and what you know
Of all you’ve seen and what you have yet to see
Of what you are and what you can ultimately be

So that, when, for one last time, the brakes you apply
You can, at last, exclaim with a final sigh
“The journey’s been great; ‘tis been a wonderful drive
That has made me blessed for being so alive!”

The Making of a Teacher

I have been a teacher for nearly 8 years now and it has been as invigorating as a roller-coaster ride. I have had the thrills of experiencing the heights of adrenalin-filled exhilaration as well as the anguish of falling to the depths of despair, one instance being the time I, a normally irreligious person, knelt in front of a group of students and invoked the Almighty’s blessings on their lot! Yes, it has been a wonderful journey so far and I hope that the years to come prove as fulfilling as the ones that have been: the years that went into the making of a teacher.

As a person who firmly believes that everything you experience is a lesson to learn, I am sure that there will be many more years that encompass the making of a teacher, but I am also firm in my assertion that the formative years that I spent with a group of wild, unruly, enthusiastic, animated and energetic teenagers gave me an inkling of the trials and tribulations, the joys and jubilations of being a teacher. Thank you, Class of 2003.

I may, by more objective individuals, be accused of allowing the mist of nostalgia cloud my memory, but I do believe that this group of students took an entirely inexperienced teacher and showed him the ropes as he stumbled along with the naivety of a 22-year-old. If – as the esteemed William Wordsworth suggested – the “child is the father of the man”, then may I be allowed to introduce the students as “the educator of the teacher.” And, learn I did, from the people I was meant to teach.

I remember my first day at school. I was given what I now refer to as one-half of the Class of 2003. They were then in Grade Seven and I was told that they were an unruly lot and that I had to watch out for two young gentlemen, especially. One later told me that he thought he could “twist this new teacher around his little finger”. The other had an altercation or two with me. The rest of the lot gave me a tough time, but on the whole that class – 7F – gave me the grounding for discipline. They taught me to be understanding, yet strict.

It was still my first day at school when I walked into a class of – if I am not mistaken – 32 girls. Their air-conditioner wasn’t working that day and when I walked in they thought I was an AC Mechanic: they hesitated until I walked into the front of the room before they stood up to greet me. In retrospect, I do believe, that some of them did not know how to address me.

It took some time getting used to that group of students, but one occasion is etched in my memory. A year or so later, I had the task of staging a programme that a select few from this group would participate in. I am sure that, these same students – now 20-years-olds – would look back and cringe at what they had to wear on stage, but back then, after a disastrous performance, they spent a weekend expecting the wrath of a short-tempered teacher. That they showed me the need to demonstrate empathy and offer encouragement is a lesson in itself.

For the next four years, I was inextricably linked with this group of students; girls and boys, eventually becoming their Grade Teacher in Year 10, when they wrote their IGCSE examinations. In that time, I debated with them, ran with them, listened to them, acted with them and ate with them. In return, they gave me an eclectic range of nicknames that made me cringe, smile and laugh. They made me their liaison officer with the administration; in turn, I made them my stimulus for growth. They burdened me with their worries; in turn, I burdened them with my expectations for them. They taught me to be a teacher; I hope I taught them not just the topical issues of the subjects concerned, but to a small extent “lessons for life, rules for living”.

Today, when I looked at their Class photograph taken just after they had completed their IGCSE Examinations, I could only ask myself why I felt so attached to and influenced by the Class of 2003. All I could think of was, “they made me a teacher.” Yes, I have been a teacher for only 8 years, much less that what my grandmother herself was, much less than most retired teachers usually have on their resumes (I do not intend to retire as yet), but I do believe that my first years as a teacher – with the Class of 2003 – and the other students I taught at that time will define me as the teacher I will be for the rest of my life.

And that is why, I owe a debt of gratitude to the Class of 2003 and the school that offered me that chance – Sherwood Academy – for helping a naïve 22-year-old realize his potential, realize the scope of his talents, realize the fact that he could become a teacher and, thus, continue in a vocation that he enjoys.