A fresh start
This week saw thousands of students go back to school. On Monday, university opens its doors to thousands of newcomers.
As a student you may easily start believing that your worth is, above all, the sum of your grades. It is understandable. One result too many below the survival line and you may be forced to question or quit your chosen route. As thousands of students head back to university on Monday, a number of them freshers, it is important to keep in mind, throughout this week of firsts and well beyond, that personal growth is not simply a matter of rank and outrank.
There are times when ranking ahead of everyone else is not particularly enviable. Being a first or the first may be great; in an alternative version, however, being first can mean that you are at the very bottom, a point from which you have to force yourself up to restore your dignity. Sometimes being called first is plain ambiguous. What do you make, for example, of José Mourinho who called himself "a special one" when he was appointed Chelsea's mentor? A physical education graduate, he was twice chosen as the world's best football coach. Last week commentators covering his departure from the club described him as a first-class coach with a first-class ego. Is that good or not so good? Are you baffled? It comes to show that first does not necessarily imply an achievement of sorts as its meaning yo-yos from brilliance to mediocrity to none of the above according to the context.
There is the student who places first or the student whose exit flags the first drop-out. There is also, thankfully, the first day of the rest of our lives when the luckier ones among us have the freedom to make a fresh go at bettering ourselves. On that note a lot of effort goes into the organisation of Freshers' Week which is held, primarily, in the interest of first-year students. As Bernard Galea, secretary general of KSU, the University Students' Council, explained when I caught up with him this week, it is important for students to realise that university involvement is more than studying and writing papers. I found it heartening to learn that a conscious effort is made to show freshers that university life is more than a matter of working towards a degree. It is a learning experience which unfolds both in and out of the lecture room.
If things have worked out according to plan during the past year for a number of advanced-level students, some of them will be converging on our university campus in two days before branching out to their chosen faculties for the years to come. Freshers' Week exposes students to different facets of university life and provides students with handy information. The hard work on the part of the organisers serves to take the edge off what is, for first-year students, a significant period of adjustment. I say this in spite of the fact that it does not involve, for the greater part of them, a change of address.
Students from Gozo and further afar, as well as all those people whose first week on campus will coincide with leaving home, have every reason to consider theirs a pivotal experience. An organisation like the Gozo University Students Group, for example, appreciates the difficulty of settling in and makes it a priority to help sort out problems like accommodation and transport. The group also ensures that students are adequately represented at all levels of university life.
Students, whose country of residence is Malta, on the other hand, find it convenient to transfer from one centre of learning to another without a suitcase in sight. This, in real speak, means that there is no pressing need to find a part-time job to fund trips to the launderette as well as the other thousand and one costs of what has been identified as independence. Living arrangements aside, every fresher has the right to be excited about the prospects of campus life so long as excitement does not turn into distraction or excess. If the fact that first-degree holders the world over are saturating the market dampens the enthusiasm of those who have yet to start their university course, it is worth keeping in mind the bigger picture.
For some education is seen as a means to an end. For others education is a tax-sponsored holiday. Hopefully the wish of many first-year students will be to get an education and achieve a modicum of self-understanding by the time they graduate. Few things are more important in the quest for knowledge than the ability to strike the right balance between humility and self-confidence. It allows an individual to have faith in his or her ability to participate by giving valid contributions and welcoming as valid both the contributions of fellow students and the guidance of mentors. It makes further growth possible in a small island where an insular mentality can sometimes get the better of the general population. This is one reason why every fresher would do well to make a few new acquaintances in spite of the fact that there will obviously be familiar faces at every corner. Already having a couple of close friends with whom to spend your free periods is no excuse to keep your distance from other students.
One of the aims of Freshers' Week, in fact, is to widen horizons by exposing the student body to different types of organisations. A list of each one may be found at ksu.org.mt, the KSU website. Each organisation serves, in its own way, to enrich the fabric of student culture and society in general by encouraging participation and involvement in extra-curricular activities. It is for this same reason that next week's list of events includes live band music and fencing demonstrations, to name but a few. There is something for everyone, the aim of which is to make every student feel welcome and accepted. I feel this is, in part, what Mr Galea wanted to get across when he described the need to generate a positive atmosphere on campus.
I asked Mr Galea to tell me, from his experience, what kind of problems students face during their first weeks at university. Getting used to the system in general is a top stressor. As lectures and tutorials start crowding a student's timetable, one of the foremost concerns is how to manage time positively. It has to be done in such a way that enough space is given to keep up with the momentum of undergraduate demands without having to lose out on the breather provided by a healthy social life. In this respect, having a rough idea of what you are dealing with academically and knowing what materials and services are at your disposal helps you to adjust faster, saving you a lot of energy worrying more than is necessary.
This is why part of the focus, during Freshers' Week, is on orientation talks and visits. The university library, for one, organises 45-minute orientation tours four times daily throughout the month of October. Students are not just shown around; they are also shown how to access the information they need, given the added resources which are now available as a result of the internet. Bookings may be placed in the reference department. Yes, you guessed right. The reading does start from day one, after all. Students are provided with a one-off survivor manual in the form of a magazine called @freshers. And if the stress gets to a point where you are feeling too overwhelmed to cope, try some talk therapy with a trusted friend or an experienced counsellor whose professional listening skills provide an ideal setting in which to voice your concerns. It is through enjoyment, tough work and even a few setbacks that you inch closer towards making yourself more complete.
One of the readings in church last Sunday brought home the fact that the very injustices which were a reality centuries before the birth of Christ are still with us today. The prophet Amos had a scathing message for the rich who robbed the poor and the religious who paid lip-service to their faith. The message is a wake-up call to recognise the hand we have had in the plight of poorer countries whose natural resources have been exploited by foreigners. It is a sign for those among us whose calling in life, resting as it must on a number of academic laurels, is not backed by an awareness of the feelings or suffering of the people we meet on a day-to-day basis. Maybe, as individuals, most of us have minimal resources to fight social injustice. However, each one of us can do his or her part to respect the dignity of colleagues and employees, friends and family. Learned people owe it to themselves and society at large to complement their transcript with the little characteristics that make a person missed, graduate or not, when he or she is gone.
As sports fans discussed the how and the why of Mourinho's departure from Chelsea FC the day Malta celebrated its independence, the media made fun of his notoriety by suggesting possible career moves. One Mourinho lookalike posed as an employee at a fast-food outlet to drive the message through. Freedom of the press is the mark of a democracy yet it makes me question the extent to which a person should be jeered at for his or her shortcomings. Should journalists pander to the wishes of a public that relishes the fall of a colourful personality? Is this not a display of the very arrogance for which Mourinho himself is being thrashed?
In the meantime British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had some news of his own to announce. He decided that he was not going to participate in a summit of EU and African leaders if Zimbabwe's President, dictator Robert Mugabe, was going to be there. It was a laudable first. The value of a degree is watered down if you are not willing to set a good example, if you are not willing, at the very least, to try and take a stand for what is right and worthy. Freshers, take note.
There are times when ranking ahead of everyone else is not particularly enviable. Being a first or the first may be great; in an alternative version, however, being first can mean that you are at the very bottom, a point from which you have to force yourself up to restore your dignity. Sometimes being called first is plain ambiguous. What do you make, for example, of José Mourinho who called himself "a special one" when he was appointed Chelsea's mentor? A physical education graduate, he was twice chosen as the world's best football coach. Last week commentators covering his departure from the club described him as a first-class coach with a first-class ego. Is that good or not so good? Are you baffled? It comes to show that first does not necessarily imply an achievement of sorts as its meaning yo-yos from brilliance to mediocrity to none of the above according to the context.
There is the student who places first or the student whose exit flags the first drop-out. There is also, thankfully, the first day of the rest of our lives when the luckier ones among us have the freedom to make a fresh go at bettering ourselves. On that note a lot of effort goes into the organisation of Freshers' Week which is held, primarily, in the interest of first-year students. As Bernard Galea, secretary general of KSU, the University Students' Council, explained when I caught up with him this week, it is important for students to realise that university involvement is more than studying and writing papers. I found it heartening to learn that a conscious effort is made to show freshers that university life is more than a matter of working towards a degree. It is a learning experience which unfolds both in and out of the lecture room.
If things have worked out according to plan during the past year for a number of advanced-level students, some of them will be converging on our university campus in two days before branching out to their chosen faculties for the years to come. Freshers' Week exposes students to different facets of university life and provides students with handy information. The hard work on the part of the organisers serves to take the edge off what is, for first-year students, a significant period of adjustment. I say this in spite of the fact that it does not involve, for the greater part of them, a change of address.
Students from Gozo and further afar, as well as all those people whose first week on campus will coincide with leaving home, have every reason to consider theirs a pivotal experience. An organisation like the Gozo University Students Group, for example, appreciates the difficulty of settling in and makes it a priority to help sort out problems like accommodation and transport. The group also ensures that students are adequately represented at all levels of university life.
Students, whose country of residence is Malta, on the other hand, find it convenient to transfer from one centre of learning to another without a suitcase in sight. This, in real speak, means that there is no pressing need to find a part-time job to fund trips to the launderette as well as the other thousand and one costs of what has been identified as independence. Living arrangements aside, every fresher has the right to be excited about the prospects of campus life so long as excitement does not turn into distraction or excess. If the fact that first-degree holders the world over are saturating the market dampens the enthusiasm of those who have yet to start their university course, it is worth keeping in mind the bigger picture.
For some education is seen as a means to an end. For others education is a tax-sponsored holiday. Hopefully the wish of many first-year students will be to get an education and achieve a modicum of self-understanding by the time they graduate. Few things are more important in the quest for knowledge than the ability to strike the right balance between humility and self-confidence. It allows an individual to have faith in his or her ability to participate by giving valid contributions and welcoming as valid both the contributions of fellow students and the guidance of mentors. It makes further growth possible in a small island where an insular mentality can sometimes get the better of the general population. This is one reason why every fresher would do well to make a few new acquaintances in spite of the fact that there will obviously be familiar faces at every corner. Already having a couple of close friends with whom to spend your free periods is no excuse to keep your distance from other students.
One of the aims of Freshers' Week, in fact, is to widen horizons by exposing the student body to different types of organisations. A list of each one may be found at ksu.org.mt, the KSU website. Each organisation serves, in its own way, to enrich the fabric of student culture and society in general by encouraging participation and involvement in extra-curricular activities. It is for this same reason that next week's list of events includes live band music and fencing demonstrations, to name but a few. There is something for everyone, the aim of which is to make every student feel welcome and accepted. I feel this is, in part, what Mr Galea wanted to get across when he described the need to generate a positive atmosphere on campus.
I asked Mr Galea to tell me, from his experience, what kind of problems students face during their first weeks at university. Getting used to the system in general is a top stressor. As lectures and tutorials start crowding a student's timetable, one of the foremost concerns is how to manage time positively. It has to be done in such a way that enough space is given to keep up with the momentum of undergraduate demands without having to lose out on the breather provided by a healthy social life. In this respect, having a rough idea of what you are dealing with academically and knowing what materials and services are at your disposal helps you to adjust faster, saving you a lot of energy worrying more than is necessary.
This is why part of the focus, during Freshers' Week, is on orientation talks and visits. The university library, for one, organises 45-minute orientation tours four times daily throughout the month of October. Students are not just shown around; they are also shown how to access the information they need, given the added resources which are now available as a result of the internet. Bookings may be placed in the reference department. Yes, you guessed right. The reading does start from day one, after all. Students are provided with a one-off survivor manual in the form of a magazine called @freshers. And if the stress gets to a point where you are feeling too overwhelmed to cope, try some talk therapy with a trusted friend or an experienced counsellor whose professional listening skills provide an ideal setting in which to voice your concerns. It is through enjoyment, tough work and even a few setbacks that you inch closer towards making yourself more complete.
One of the readings in church last Sunday brought home the fact that the very injustices which were a reality centuries before the birth of Christ are still with us today. The prophet Amos had a scathing message for the rich who robbed the poor and the religious who paid lip-service to their faith. The message is a wake-up call to recognise the hand we have had in the plight of poorer countries whose natural resources have been exploited by foreigners. It is a sign for those among us whose calling in life, resting as it must on a number of academic laurels, is not backed by an awareness of the feelings or suffering of the people we meet on a day-to-day basis. Maybe, as individuals, most of us have minimal resources to fight social injustice. However, each one of us can do his or her part to respect the dignity of colleagues and employees, friends and family. Learned people owe it to themselves and society at large to complement their transcript with the little characteristics that make a person missed, graduate or not, when he or she is gone.
As sports fans discussed the how and the why of Mourinho's departure from Chelsea FC the day Malta celebrated its independence, the media made fun of his notoriety by suggesting possible career moves. One Mourinho lookalike posed as an employee at a fast-food outlet to drive the message through. Freedom of the press is the mark of a democracy yet it makes me question the extent to which a person should be jeered at for his or her shortcomings. Should journalists pander to the wishes of a public that relishes the fall of a colourful personality? Is this not a display of the very arrogance for which Mourinho himself is being thrashed?
In the meantime British Prime Minister Gordon Brown had some news of his own to announce. He decided that he was not going to participate in a summit of EU and African leaders if Zimbabwe's President, dictator Robert Mugabe, was going to be there. It was a laudable first. The value of a degree is watered down if you are not willing to set a good example, if you are not willing, at the very least, to try and take a stand for what is right and worthy. Freshers, take note.