As he walked into our classroom in the first semester of MBA to teach a course titled "Business Environment", he convincingly carried the no-nonsense and intimidating look on his face. I was personally looking forward for his class only because I thought the course was going to be interesting. The course had been designed to help us understand some fundamentals through the assessment of the current business environment. As someone who is too impatient to wait and realise the relevance of any course much later in life, I found it exciting that this course would deal with what was happening around on a daily basis. Little did I know that the professor who walked in was going to be one of the most brilliant teachers I've come across.
Prof V. Ravi Kumar (or "Ravi sir" as we call him) , an alumnus of St Stephen's, worked at various banks for about three decades before switching over to teaching. What's striking about him is his desperation to nudge his students to keep learning. He has often told me that the whole point of higher education is to develop right attitude towards learning and to be more inquisitive of the world. Despite being the placement head of the institute, he has repeatedly lamented over the general attitude of viewing placements as end goals. Also, not many have shown the courage to discuss examinations and marks with him. However, the methods that he has employed to instill in his students the urge to learn, have been a little unconventional, if not controversial.
The popular school of thought is that appreciation and rewards work better than intimidation if you want someone to perform well. Ravi sir cares less about popular opinions. "B School is about raising the bar and getting people out of their comfort zones" he once told me. At the risk of appearing to be belittling us and attracting criticism and anger for being rude, he constantly tells his class that it is a bunch of irresponsible folks who are clueless about a lot of things that they should be aware of. He often mocks his students and is sometimes visibly annoyed at them. While a few criticize him, interestingly, I've also seen folks sympathizing with him for not being able to meet his expectations. Yet, he effortlessly commands respect and the charisma is hard to miss.
Unlike a lot of my friends who've sat through his lectures for multiple courses, I've attended Ravi sir's classes only in the first year, since I didn't pick finance as my specialization subject in the second year. Yet, I've known him personally for these two years through our various conversations. I've repeatedly gone to him to discuss what I've read and he has not only helped me improve my understanding, but has helped me form perspectives. Never have I walked out of his room without learning anything new. These meetings also made me realize how empathetic he is towards his students. Not many know how deeply he admires the efforts that some of his students put in. Technical discussions aside, our conversations have ranged from his corporate life experiences, to higher education systems across the globe, to books, to cycling, running, travelling and nice masala dosa places in Bangalore.
With increasing commodification of higher education, metrics such as pass percentage, placement record, institute's rank and students' approval ratings have taken the center stage for institutions. Students on the other hand, eye on good grades and decent jobs. Although I agree I'm generalizing, I think that these narrowly defined standards for institutions and students have resulted in, among many other things, the gradual erosion of student-teacher relationships, especially at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. A professor can play a much bigger role than just completing the course and evaluating the students and students have a lot to gain from professors apart from mere classroom learning. It is up to the students to find someone who can inspire them, guide them, foster creativity, leadership, critical thinking and so on. I'm happy to have found one, and I'm sure there are many others.
Prof V. Ravi Kumar (or "Ravi sir" as we call him) , an alumnus of St Stephen's, worked at various banks for about three decades before switching over to teaching. What's striking about him is his desperation to nudge his students to keep learning. He has often told me that the whole point of higher education is to develop right attitude towards learning and to be more inquisitive of the world. Despite being the placement head of the institute, he has repeatedly lamented over the general attitude of viewing placements as end goals. Also, not many have shown the courage to discuss examinations and marks with him. However, the methods that he has employed to instill in his students the urge to learn, have been a little unconventional, if not controversial.
The popular school of thought is that appreciation and rewards work better than intimidation if you want someone to perform well. Ravi sir cares less about popular opinions. "B School is about raising the bar and getting people out of their comfort zones" he once told me. At the risk of appearing to be belittling us and attracting criticism and anger for being rude, he constantly tells his class that it is a bunch of irresponsible folks who are clueless about a lot of things that they should be aware of. He often mocks his students and is sometimes visibly annoyed at them. While a few criticize him, interestingly, I've also seen folks sympathizing with him for not being able to meet his expectations. Yet, he effortlessly commands respect and the charisma is hard to miss.
Unlike a lot of my friends who've sat through his lectures for multiple courses, I've attended Ravi sir's classes only in the first year, since I didn't pick finance as my specialization subject in the second year. Yet, I've known him personally for these two years through our various conversations. I've repeatedly gone to him to discuss what I've read and he has not only helped me improve my understanding, but has helped me form perspectives. Never have I walked out of his room without learning anything new. These meetings also made me realize how empathetic he is towards his students. Not many know how deeply he admires the efforts that some of his students put in. Technical discussions aside, our conversations have ranged from his corporate life experiences, to higher education systems across the globe, to books, to cycling, running, travelling and nice masala dosa places in Bangalore.
With increasing commodification of higher education, metrics such as pass percentage, placement record, institute's rank and students' approval ratings have taken the center stage for institutions. Students on the other hand, eye on good grades and decent jobs. Although I agree I'm generalizing, I think that these narrowly defined standards for institutions and students have resulted in, among many other things, the gradual erosion of student-teacher relationships, especially at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. A professor can play a much bigger role than just completing the course and evaluating the students and students have a lot to gain from professors apart from mere classroom learning. It is up to the students to find someone who can inspire them, guide them, foster creativity, leadership, critical thinking and so on. I'm happy to have found one, and I'm sure there are many others.
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