The only thing constant in life is change. Anybody whose desire is to stay in the realm of relevance must relentlessly seek opportunities to do things another way. For example: you can say “Hello” today, change it to “Hellooo,” tomorrow etc. You see, it is not difficult to do. A minor change of intonation goes a long way. Just start with the little things.  It is needed everywhere: the arts, sciences, family, relationships, medicine, education…

First, a few words on self-renewal in education, the vocation that puts food on my table now and shirt on my back. Any teacher that strives to maintain the status quo in the classroom is an exercise in torture, either to self or the students. The teacher that must remain necessary must, as a matter of necessity, scout for ways to do things differently. Not from one year to another, nor one term to another: rather from one lesson to another, from one day to another. The relevant teacher is the unpredictable one. That is the teacher whom the student comes to with eyes peeled, ears raised, and mind wondering: “What does the teacher have in store today?”

Now, self-renewal has to be self-imposed. When newness comes from without, the satisfaction is finite, whereas the newness from self begets satisfaction that is infinite. The former condemns to conformity while the latter propels to fulfilment. One may wonder how self-renewal can be maintained.  No big deal. We don’t have to propound theories and concepts, nor move mountains. More often than not, self-renewal is most effective in the little things as I have said in the beginning. A smile, a pat on the back, a word of encouragement and such minutiae can help us renew ourselves, thus keeping us in the loop of relevance.

More details on how will follow. Keep on the look out.