a different society that hasnt lost drive and conviction

today has really been a day of intellectual stimulation. in my revision seminar i had an epiphany (which i havent had for some time) and it got me all positive and feeling very encouraged and less worried about the exams (which is a good thing because when you are worried - note difference in worry and stress - you arent effective in studying). i realised that i have learnt a lot this year, not just content-wise, but in terms of learning about life and skills and making the connection of a concept i learn in this with another concept that wasnt explicitly associated with the previous one by the lecturer.

i realised that coming to uni here has been a great experience and real education (not just an academic education) in the sense that i have become more analytical and sharper in picking up/out things. i think it is just being in an environment with so much intellectual debate that has been beneficial. have i mentioned that the teachers' union has been going on strike and refusing to mark essays and even exams? not all the teachers are going with it but a sizeable portion have. this is because a lecturer's pay (and to be a lecturer you have to have been doing some seminar-leading and research for a few yearsand with at least a masters degree) is equivalent to the starting pay of fresh grads (with BAs or BSc) in some big companies. what has happened is that the university had threatened the staff with a 20% pay cut if they continued the strike and because they refused to back down, they have had their pays docked. which of course has only fuelled the situation further. i bet that this sort of thing never happens back home and we'd all just be a bunch of apathetic students learning what's in the book for the sake of passing the exams. i've come to a point when i dont really care if i graduate with a degree. i feel like i've been so enriched by university that it doesnt really matter. i just want to study what interests me because i will enjoy it, or what spurs me on intellectually because when you get that epiphany, it is priceless.

reading my brother's latest entry on his blog made me feel even more stimulated and excited about being here in the UK. this lecturer in LSE gave an talk to prospective students and instead of following the "official" outline given by the university, he spoke his personal views and now is facing disciplinary action because he blogged about it. they have banned his blog and unless he shuts it down and apologises, they are going to do something about it/him. this is his blog and this is the speech he made. i personally think the university is being so short-sighted because i was so moved by his honesty and in fact it made me feel like i want to be in LSE. like he said, it appeals to an 18 year old when he is being spoken to like an adult and given an honest assessment rather than the 'marketing speech'. and if you think about it, if people feel blown away from their university experience (and a lot of this is about expectations and disappointments because reality doesnt match expectations), word-of-mouth is very good advertising for the university!

isnt it great that there are still people so passionate about what they are doing? i feel blessed.