Tuskegee was a little town
in Alabama, USA, when Booker T Washington was invited to establish there a
school for the coloured people of the state in the year 1881, 16 years after
the Emancipation of the Negroes. The
Tuskegee Institute became famous for the holistic education it provided to the coloured
students. Washington did not provide
mere bookish learning; he taught the students one trade or another so that they
could earn their living as soon as they left the school. Mere earning of livelihood was not Washington’s
objective, however. Education is “any kind of training... that gives strength and culture
to the mind,” says Washington in his autobiography, Up from Slavery (prescribed as an optional supplementary reader by
CBSE for class XII).
Washington’s book is a
heart-touching expression of a profound philosophy which seeks to discover the
good in every individual and cultivate it irrespective of race or
religion. There is a passage in the book
which eloquently shows how to run a school or any institution for the welfare
of all its members. I wish to quote the entire passage.
“From the first I have
sought to impress the students with the idea that Tuskegee is not my
institution, or that of the officers, but that it is their institution, and they have as much interest in it as
any of the trustees or instructors. I
have further sought to have them feel that I am at the institution as their friend and adviser, and not as their
overseer. It has been my aim to have them speak
with directness and frankness about anything that concerns the life of the
school. Two or three times a year I ask
the students to write me a letter criticising or making complaints or
suggestions about anything connected with the institution. When this is not done, I have them meet me in
the chapel for a heart-to-heart talk about the conduct of the school. There are no meetings with our students that
I enjoy more than these, and none are more helpful to me in planning for the
future. These meetings, it seems to me,
enable me to get at the very heart of all that concerns the school. Few
things help an individual more than to place responsibility upon him, and to
let him know that you trust him. When I have heard of labour troubles between employers and employees, I
have often thought that many strikes and similar disturbances might be avoided
if the employers would cultivate the habit of getting nearer to their
employees, of consulting and advising with them, and letting them feel that the
interests of the two are the same. Every
individual responds to confidence.... Let them once understand that you are
unselfishly interested in them, and you can lead them to any extent.” [Emphasis added throughout]
Booker T Washington was
born in a family of slaves. He struggled
to get education. He did not learn any
management lessons from any business school.
He had a vision: to bring back nobility to the lives of the American
Negroes who had been enslaved for centuries. He materialised that vision with
the help of simple tools, the tools are mentioned in the passage quoted above.
I hope that not only the
English teachers and students of class XII will read this book, but also the
people who run schools. [Most English
teachers and students concerned won’t read it in all probability because the
other option given by CBSE is Arthur Conan Doyle’s The Hound of the
Baskervilles. I too opted for the latter
in my school for obvious reasons.]
Up from Slavery can inspire the reader from the beginning to the end.
Let me conclude this piece with another
quote from the book:
“Now, whenever I hear any
one advocating measures that are meant to curtail the development of another, I
pity the individual who would do this. I
know that the one who makes this mistake does so because of his own lack of
opportunity for the highest kind of
growth. I pity him because I know
that he is trying to stop the progress of the world, and because I know that in
time the development and the ceaseless advance of humanity will make him
ashamed of his weak and narrow position.”
Thanks for such a refreshing read on a Sunday morning. I will now make it a point to read this book. This though written in context with school should be applicable for all instituitions where people are involved.
ReplyDeleteLike always you have left me with much to think for the whole day...
Thanks, Richa, for your constant appreciation.
DeleteBy the way, where on earth is today a Sunday? :)
This is the kind of post I expect and have the right to expect from you, Matheikal.
ReplyDeleteRE
How many people will understand this, Raghuram?
DeleteThanks because this comment of yours is the best compliment I can get. Yet I won't write this kind of posts much because I want my readers to understand me. Writing is useless unless people understand it.
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ReplyDeleteI did understand about the great teacher you are from Aram Bhusal given that we meet quite often and this blog gives me reason why he talks so much about you and so high of you. May all students get teachers like you that is my wish
ReplyDeleteAram and students like him create good teachers.
DeleteThanks.
Realy vry insprng
ReplyDeleteThank u sir
Realy vry insprng
ReplyDeleteThank u sir
I'm really happy to see you here again, Shiv. Happier still that you found this inspiring.
DeleteHave a meaningful vacation. And regards to Shivang.
I know somebody who'd love this book and could take a lesson or two from it. I'd like to read it myself. Thank you for the recommendation; it does look like a very inspiring read.
ReplyDeleteIt IS a very inspiring read, DN. The life of a man who vibrated with so much energy, optimism and deep insights into life.
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