An evening of Persian poetry or a case of colonialism lives on!
Venue: Barber Institute, on the campus of Birmingham University. A room full of people; about 50 in all. Out for an unusual cultural experience. So good to be surrouneed by such people. Two poets, both female. The third poet, male, could not get a visa. First poet on stage, with the translator, from the organisation that arranged the event; the Poetry Translation Centre. The poet could not see in the poor light so decided to stay in the corner. The translator stood in the middle of the stage. For some reason it was decided that the...
read moreAn injection of immigrant capital
“Even in times of recession the political debate around migration should be more positive”, so said Helen Clark in a recent article. She is the head of the UN Development Programme and former Prime Minister of New Zealand. We know that, whether it was a sense of adventure or desperation which caused them to uproot themselves, migrants often have a desire to better themselves. Often coming from places which lack opportunities, on arrival they take full advantage of whatever facilities surround them. This can be true of both adults and...
read moreAn evening of Persian poetry or a case of colonialism lives on!
Venue: Barber Institute, on the campus of Birmingham University. A room full of people; about 50 in all. Out for an unusal cultural experience. It’s nice to be surrounded by such adventurists. Two poets, both female. The third poet, male, could not get a visa. First poet on stage, with the translator, from the organisation that arranged the event; the Poetry Translation Centre. The poet could not see in the poor light so decided to stay in the corner. The translator stood in the middle of the stage. For some reason it was decided...
read moreSafeguarding, Muslims and bilingual communication
It was a privilege to be able to use my mother tongue- Pahari- , Urdu as well as English to facilitate a group of Muslim leaders in Dudley. I used to wonder what the point of me improving my non-English languages was. Now I understand. It was for times such as these that I have been reading my weekly Urdu paper and other material. Surely, there must be more groups from within communities such as the Pakistanis whose preferred language of communication is their mother tongue(s). Presumably, they stay away from situations which are...
read moreImproving from Within- A Positive Approach to School Improvement
What can we learn from the emerging science of Positive Psychology, of how human beings thrive and how should this understanding of human well being influence our schools? We are experiencing seismic changes in the educational landscape but how many educationalists are asking the question about what education is really for in a global, technological and competitive world? In this world, what is the job of a teacher and how is it changing? How do we co-create a curriculum with our students that is relevant and engaging? What does pedagogy...
read more30 years since those deaths which could have been avoided
As a society and culture we are big on anniversaries. In case you didn’t realise, next month is the 30th anniversary of the Falkland’s war. I was about to call it conflict but I think ‘war’ sums it better. After all, there was killing and dying. Sadly, some of it could have been avoided. Even during the war, more could have been done to reduce the numbers who died. I was told over the weekend that after one particular battle the whole war could have been brought to an end. But apparently the Brits didn’t just want surrender but they...
read moreDear old Grapes of Wrath
At last, I was able to share with my students my all time favourite book. I was convinced then that Steinbeck was not about the displaced of Oklahoma but of Mirpur. They had recently (I first read the book in 1973) been forced out of their family homes where they had lived for many generations. Now they would have to resettle in other parts of Pakistan where, often, like the migrants in the book, they were treated as unwelcome aliens by their fellow citizens inside their own country. Like Steinbeck’s ‘Oakies’ they were called names such...
read moreSeeing the world from others’ eyes!
I am going to let one of the students tell you the next instalment of my work with the Writers Group in a school: “You can never really understand a person, until you climb into their skin and walk around in it”, read Mr Iqbal from the book ‘To Kill a Mocking Bird’. An interesting statement that made me ponder; that you cannot really judge a person until you’ve experienced what they’ve experienced, until you’ve felt what they’ve felt, until you’ve seen what they’ve seen. As humans, it is our natural instinct to judge...
read moreWriters Group; the next instalment
I peek out of the window and see that it is a lovely sunny day. Perhaps, I will be able to walk the dog to my favourite spot. It’s the one which, although in Birmingham, always takes me back to my birthplace. It happens especially on days such as this. Maybe, it’s the way the light hits the bushes and all the wild grasses. Both locations have such a higgledy piggledy feel; so wild and wonderful. But for now, I am with my writing group. I check on their homework progress. Some of them tell me they were able to visit my website and read the...
read moreUs and Them
I met my youth worker friend at the gym this morning. It had been quite a while since our last conversation. There were a couple of minutes, in the steam room, when we talked about his plans to politically educate the young people he is working with so that they can make informed decisions at election time. We agreed that they shouldn’t vote for someone just because he (when are the Pakistani women going to come forward!) was from their community or biraderi, extended family. I suggested he should invite all the political parties, one at a...
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