The seasons they go round and round – age, experience and idea leadership

[Blind people examining an elephant*]

I recently became the senior member of the English staff in my college. I remember joining the staff a few years ago  as the youngest member, filled, possibly overfilled, with ideas and enthusiasm. The 30 or so years between those two points in time have passed without much noise. However, as my mother would say, with age comes philosophy. Comparing my work situation then and now, I see how they are both are outlier positions but yet bring positive values that should not be automatically dismissed but instead seriously considered.

Each society and profession has its peak years. For example, in some sports, the high point of a career is between the ages of 22-30 while some professions view the peak of competence at around 50 or even older. Clearly, colleagues below and above the peak years do not have the same status. Their perception of matters is often viewed as non-mainstream, whether as being “new-fangled” or “old school” although the correlation is far from 100%. As such, colleagues tend to place less value on their views, which can create some pain, if not anger because such employees are not taken completely seriously, whether justifiably or not. For example, many recent graduates are eager to apply new technology or approaches to a given problem but the existing staff is very skeptical of these novelties. Likewise, the old-timers in the group have no patience for many changes as they don’t see what is wrong with the old system or why they have to deal with a certain issue. Such employees, whatever respect they receive, are still outliers in terms of their point of view.

Yet, in practice, for an organization to grow and cope with a dynamic world, it needs both tendencies, i.e., to push forward and retain proven methods. Mainstream colleagues have a natural tendency to maintain the status quo with small changes to deal with relevant changes. By contrast, new blood sees the whole picture without any assumptions and can identify a fundamental issue that is being missed. On the other hand, older colleagues, generally but not always less enthusiastic about technology and change, often restrain overambitious plans, making them more effective. Thus, a broad mix of employees in terms of tenure is a recipe for success.

Unfortunately, depending on the organizational culture, the leading voices often completely reject both points of view. It is far more convenient and comfortable to do as what was done before without controversy or join the bandwagon of change without criticism. This choice reduces external disagreement and dissonance. Even if it is unreasonable to completely adopt a certain point of view, it is quite probable that it contains elements of truth that should be taken into account. These positive values not only enrich the program and work team but also motivate all members to actively participate even if their view is minority.

Based on my work experience as a teacher in a large team, I can say that an effective leader respectfully and seriously considers all opinions and not only listens to them but also applies any relevant elements in the final decision. Not only does such balance improve any plan or decision, it motivates all members, young and old, to actively participate in all decisions.

The seasons do progress. All of us started our careers as newbies where-ever we are in our careers now. As such, mutual respect and serious consideration of outlying views is an effective strategy for creating a dynamic team. Everybody identifies a different aspect of an elephant. It is the combination of perspectives that creates a clearer impression of the truth.

* Picture captions help the blind fully access the Internet.

Picture credit

Notes of a non-native son – to technology

 

["Retrain your mind"*]

I have been privileged to witness and experience the most amazing period of electronical transformation. In almost all spheres of life, the manner of accomplishing the simplest of tasks has changed fundamentally. I was born in 1961, at the start of that revolution. For writing, I learned on a manual typewriter and have used an electric and electronic typewriter, a Commadore 64 word processor, Basic based word processing systems (“…2s…” was the command for double space, I still remember), Word Perfect and other local variants until finally settling into, along with almost everybody, Word. The phone at home was a rotary dial hand unit and evolved through touch-tone phones, dumb phones and smart phones to phone watches. Banking used to involve tellers and cash and now is almost entirely digital ATM’s and applications, not to mention the gradual disappearance of paper cash. Real-time monitoring has become the norm, even in physical fitness. Applications now tell you how many steps you have taken, calories you have burned and heartbeats per minute. There seems to be an app for everything. The pace of electronic-based change in our life is extraordinary.

While my age gives me an interesting historical perspective, it renders me non-native to this technology. Specifically, I may use it, sometimes by choice, but I do not understand it intuitively nor really embrace its use. To explain, I use a computer for work and play, do my banking online, order takeout food and make restaurant reservations through sites and invoice my customers through an online service. I use MemoQ, a CAT (Computer Aided Translation) tool, and do most of my term searches online despite my extensive collection of dictionaries. I maintain communication with my teaching colleagues through WhatsApp and email and can teach on Zoom. I am clearly computer literate to a respectable degree. Still, I approach each new technological application on a need-to-know basis, absorbing only those features that I require, with no curiosity on what else can be done.

Not surprisingly, when I attend conferences (virtually lately) and workshops and hear fellow translators and educators discuss technological solutions, I am left with the feeling of inadequacy and even inferiority. These experts show how amazingly simple it is to use a specific application or software to speed up or automate professional tasks. They exhibit great knowledge and joy explaining how our lives will be improved if we use these tools. My first uncomfortable feeling is the sense of the gap between my prehistoric or at least Bronze Age methodology and that these experts so heartily recommend. However, I do not use age as an excuse and know that I am capable of learning new technologies as I have done so before. What is more disturbing is my strong internal resistance to making the jump to these more efficient tools. In blunt terms, I generally do not want to make the effort to catch up with the latest technology. I know that I am not “up to snuff” but am emotionally paralyzed to take the “necessary” steps to address that issue.

This inaction leaves me with a disconcerting feeling. On the one hand, I know that I am far more computer literate than many. In a recent questionnaire, some 25% of translators in the American Translators Association still do not use CAT tools. I also realize that life is not a competition, i.e., my happiness is not based on my ranking as compared to others. On the other hand, part of me says that I should (such an awful word) care and embrace technology with all my heart, soul and brain and that doing so will make a better professional and person. Alas, fundamentally human beings are rationalizing, not rational, creatures if given a choice. I am not native to digital technology and can at best selectively use it to meet my needs. I try to remember the words of Jacques Prévert: Je suis comme je suis; je suis fait comme ça – I am who I am; that is my nature. In most cases, I accept my imperfections quite well but, in this case, it does somewhat bother me but evidently not enough to motivate me to overcome that barrier. As in James Baldwin’s book of essays Notes of a native son, albeit to much smaller degree, I feel out a little out of place and powerless in my own society. I am almost certain that I am not alone in this feeling but that sharing only goes so far in compensation. I simply will continue to live and strive, someone uncomfortably, as a non-native.

* Pictures captions allow the blind to access the Internet.

Picture credit: Image by <a href="https://pixabay.com/users/johnhain-352999/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=743166">John Hain</a> from <a href="https://pixabay.com/?utm_source=link-attribution&amp;utm_medium=referral&amp;utm_campaign=image&amp;utm_content=743166">Pixabay</a>

West and [Middle] East – Academic meeting

Although it was quite a few years ago, I still remember my feelings as an 18-year-old freshman at UC Santa Cruz on the first day of college, physically registering for classes (pre-Internet days). I felt fear and great uncertainty as I circulated among my fellow new students, all mostly entirely white and 18 years old and having just completed high school.  Our accumulated non-academic life experience and self-confidence was rather close to absolute zero even if we tried to hide this lack. In terms of religion, most were Christian with a small sprinkling of Jews and Muslims.  The largest minorities were Afro-Americans (to use the current term) and Asians, whose cultural norms were not that different from the other students. In other words, our lecturers looked on a rather homogenous group of students in terms of age and cultural background.

I have been teaching English at the Braude College of Engineering in Karmiel in the Galilee in Israel, for over 25 years now. The college, currently with some 5,500 students enrolled in its various programs, is a second-tier engineering college, behind the Technion, which is the MIT or Cal Tech of Israel, and offers first and second degrees in various disciplines, including mechanical and electronic engineering as well as biotechnology, programming and industrial management. The contrast with my undergraduate experience as I observe and communicate with my students is quite striking in all aspects.

First of all, the ages of my students range from 18 to 28. The youngest are Arabs from the surrounding villages, who are not required to serve in the army or do national service and, in many cases, are encouraged to get a degree before starting to work. The oldest are those that served in the army, often both the mandatory period and sometimes an additional period as “regular army, often followed by a trip to a distant land to clean their heads and preparatory studies of a year or more to improve their grades to be accepted at the college. Moreover, most have had significant life experiences, including combat service, officer training, setting up businesses and enriching trips abroad. They are far from innocent and, in many ways, much more knowledgeable than me.

In terms of religion, since the college is in the Galilee, students may be Jewish, Muslim, Druze, Catholic, Greek orthodox, Russian Orthodox or none of the above, as in the case of many Russians and their children. This means that the holiday calendar, as reflected by dates on which quizzes may not be given, is rather complicated.  Of course, during Ramadan, which lasts a month, many of my students have a hard time concentrating, especially if the holiday falls during hot weather, since many of the Muslim students neither eat nor drink during the day.

Beyond that, the behavior norms of Arabs, both Muslim and Christian, are quite different from the Jews. While latter tend to be direct and clear in expressing their understanding, agreement or lack thereof, Arab mentality, especially among the female students, is much more understated. They tend to avoid expressing their true state of comprehension or unhappiness. The true situation is often only discovered during testing as reflected by the actual results.

Given the age of most of the students and their understandable desire to gain economic independence, they are very directed in their studies.  Engineering studies are quite demanding and difficult, often involving more than 20-30 hours a week just of class time, not to mention homework. Since their goal is clear, most of my students accept the heavy burden of study in good cheer.

This heterogeneity has a strong effect on the whole style of teaching. Israeli college lecturers can be subject experts and even mentors but not parental figures. To be effective, it is necessary to be sensitive and flexible in approaching students. Some need direct challenges and questions while others have to be handled more indirectly in a more non-threatening manner. In terms of authority, given the self-confidence and experience of the students, teachers must show respect but clearly exercise authority to maintain “possession” of the class. Otherwise, they simply lose the students, who do not hesitate to complain about any improper aspect to the course coordinator or department head. By the nature of group dynamics, this fine line between authority and respect differs for each group of students, often depending on the ethnic mix of students. Thus, Israeli college lecturers, to an even larger degree than for most teachers in the country, not only have to be experts in their subject matter but also strong personalities to successfully lead a class.

Kipling wrote that East and West will never meet. It is clear that college teaching in this nook of the Middle East and in the United States, I imagine even today, are extremely different despite the similarities in the subject matter taught. I can say that, after many years of teaching, the aspect I most enjoy of this profession is my interaction with my students, who not only give me hope for the future but also personally enrich me with their insights and understanding.

Summer Dreams and Nightmares

Students and teachers are often sure that the best season of the year is the summer. The former believe so because they can sleep late and not go to school while the latter get paid of doing nothing, at least in theory.  Yet, for some parents, summer vacation is a three month period of service as entertainment director, ATM and community police officer.  No wonder, most parents view September 1 as the real independence day.

Geography also plays a part in seasonal feelings.  Residents of countries in the far northern and southern hemispheres, such as the Scandinavian countries, as well as those with long rainy winters, notably Oregon and Washington where I lived, long for the bright sun of long summer days. Such people spend every possible minute outside soaking in the rays.  By contrast, in Israel, where I live now, and other hot places, the summer means that you can only be outside for a few hours in the morning and a few hours in the evening due to the grueling temperatures.  Like those suffering parents, we long for the coming of the autumn, when air conditioning and three showers a day are no longer necessary.

Sentiment regarding to the summer is also affected by one’s profession.  To work year round, a person would have to be both a ski instructor and life guard.  Farmers and hotels make hay in the summer, sometimes literally.  By contrast, all that coat and boot producers can do is hope for a cool fall and winter.  Firefighters must have similar feelings.

Age confuses the issue.  Almost nobody remembers being too hot as a child.  Whether this lack of recollection is because summers were less hot, people’s memory are short or kids don’t suffer from weather, I don’t know.  By contrast, the older we get, the more the temperature seems to affect us, both cold and heat.  This sensitivity is quite sad, but apparently unavoidable.

Finally, there are those for whom it makes no difference.  People with jobs in malls and offices exist in controlled temperatures whose work load is basically unaffected by the outside world.   This is the exact opposite of police in the street and construction people of any kind, who are intimate with their daily weather.

So, if beauty is in the eyes of the beholder, so is our perception of the summer.

Well-Aged Geography

You can be as old as you look, feel, speak, and think.  You can also be as old as you remember geography.

I happen (a matter of accident of course) to be in my early 50’s.  I remember when the USSR invaded Czechoslovakia and controlled East Germany, whose major enemy was West Germany, the capital of which was in Bonn.  Of course, the Soviet fleet was based in Leningrad.  Peking was the capital of Russia’s major rival, China. At the same time, there was an interesting war going down in Rhodesia, which basically produced everything internally because no one would trade with a racist regime.  As for Asia, one of the poorest countries that never got into the news was Burma.

Oh, how things change, today the Russian Federation would never think of invading the Czech Republic , not the mention Slovakia, a separate entity.  The Germanies have been reunited with Berlin as its capital.  People take cruises to see Saint Petersburg and fly to Beijing.  Myanmar gets into the news as one of the poorest and most repressive countries in the world.  As for Botswana, aside from occasional government changes, who in Europe and the United States reads about it, although I have heard that it is a beautiful country and worth visiting.

On the bright side, even if your hair is grey or non-existent and your skin is no longer baby-like, if you know that going to Croatia is not a trip to Yugoslavia and the Georgia Republic is not the home of Jimmy Carter, you are still young.  It could be worse:  you could think the capital of Germany is Weimar!  That would be a real grandfather clause.