Bane of Global careers....strategies to overcome these?

[lordstanher]

Hello,
I created this thread to discuss the disadvantages of the currently increasing Global career placements (namely call centre/BPO outsourcing jobs) in India.
No doubt many of u wud be surprised to find sumone intending to talk abt the bane of such careers! considering the boon that they r appearing as, providing immense oppurtunities w/ respect to jobs for otherwise unemployed youth (esp. from Arts backgrounds) and/or appearing as sources of 'better pay' to many others........
However, I find sum disadvantages of Global careers creeping into the present scenario as well w/ respect to education........
Note: This thread is not intended to criticise these careers or offend neone who is associated w/ such careers. I hope that ne discussions that follow hereon wud maintain the same outlook.
Disadvantages (apart from the nearly common odd-hours shifts) tat I personally find worth mentioning:

The recent outsourcing of Maths (& I think even Science?) tutoring for American schoolchildren via e-tutoring (owing to the recently popularised skills of Indians in Maths) which involves online communication between the tutor (in India) & student (in the US) to tutor the latter in Maths lessons, as I'd recently read an article abt in the papers.....ok, the advantage, its said, is that this job can be done in ur own home itself where u can work individually, altho at a specified timing.......plus pay ranges from $8-$10 per hour.
I reflected on the disadvantages after reading on further......this job has openings mainly for Maths/Maths-related professionals & altho many of them happen to be young graduates w/ fresh job openings, there r also good, experienced/ Maths teachers already teaching in reputed schools who r tempted to give up their current jobs & take up this mode of tutoring instead, preferring it to traditional (namely school) teaching as they can work from home & of course more money involved.
Another disadvantage I found is w/ respect to sumthing I was just told today at the school where I work part-time.
I was told that one young English teacher in our school had recently left the job & taken up a call-centre traineeship at HSBC (Vizag), despite the fact tht HSBC Vizag offers only night-shift jobs, the offered pay being Rs. 10k as opposed to the 4-5k junior teachers r paid in our school.

Now elaborating on the disadvantages I stated, I find the downside of switching over to such careers is tat in this way....eventually, there'd be more & more teachers/wud-be teachers from edu. institutions tempted to leave their teaching careers & take up jobs in the abovementioned 2 global fields chiefly w/ the aim of higher pay.........
W/ the result IMO, availability of well-experienced/ potentially competent teachers even in many reputed schools wud begin to decline, as I daresay there'd be more in due course of time who'd begin to feel less inclined towards joining/continuing school teaching w/ increasing affinity towards hi-pay global jobs........thus resulting in declining committment towards school teaching on their part, which wud eventually affect the performance of future students even in reputed private schools that r known for dedicated/committed staff & the situation becoming akin to Govt. schools & money minting sub-standard pvt. schools that have been consisting in non-committed/incompetent 'namesake' teachers who lack even basic qualifications/skills!
The main reasons that I'm raising this topic in th 1st place r tat:
-As sumone associated w/ the teaching field I myself can fathom what probs. future schoolchildren r likely to face as a result of the above-ment'd disadvantages.
-For many young parents/future parents like me in this hub, this poses as an issue worth being concerned abt, for our children/future children's education, which is becoming increasingly competetive (academically), thus requiring more dedicated/committed teaching!
So let's discuss ne possible pragmatic strategies, if ne, as to wat shud/can be done abt this........& if ne-one cud prove my apprehensions wrong & that this whole thing is not as enormous to worry abt, plse......I'd loved to be proved wrong! :D

[Sandeep]

Teaching has long lost its glory in Indian society. Mainly because of lower pay and lack of creativity in the Job. There is a general saying "those who cannot do, teach" clearly reflecting the lack of respect given to this career.

But why blame outsoursing alone. Any other job with better pay takes away probable competent teachers.

What we need is better pay for teachers, modification in education system to allow better menuverability. Teachers should be able to feel self worth as in they are able to contribute to the future. But in todays system a Teacher and a Guide book perform the same function.

[Badri]

Actually, this is an interesting topic that Lord has brought up! Indeed, I've had my views and opinions on this for a long time, only never found the time to start a thread on it.

My concerns are not so much with teaching than with learning. Let me explain.

In the US and other developed nations, finding a job is so easy. You could practically get any job. Even here in Australia, an increasing number of youth are preferring a call centre/customer service kind of a job instead of spending years in the University studying.

Thus, many people don't go to Uni in Australia. Or even if they do, they drop out in the middle because hey, having a job and earning dollars is more attractive than leading a student life. In fact, I know of people who actualy claim that they earn more than Uni grads, as they have more experience working.

Among the prime reasons why Indians have been able to strike it big in the US and other countries is because of lack of talent in those countries. Which in turn is because people have not pursued higher education.

Now, with the boom of jobs in the call-centre/customer service in India, a lot of youngsters are lured into it. These jobs do not require nor ask for even a graduate degree! You see ads for even 12th pass, as long as you have the skills to talk and communicate!!!

A young man or woman say fresh out of college or even school suddenly finds themselves earning 10K per month, compared to their father who after 30 years of service probably earns 20K in traditional industry! This despite his BTech or BE or whatever.

It is definitely not the right trend. If today India is able to capture world attention in technology services, it is becos of our focus on higher education. With the increasing call center jobs, that focus is going to be lost, and before we know, we might end up having a whole generation of young and rich people, but without a sustainable option which education provides.

[rajraj]

Badri,
That is an alarming trend. The Indian government does not seem to care. In fact, even those who come to US as software engineers and consultants are underemployed in most cases. That is the result of the unemployment rate in India. It reminds me of the situation about 50 years back when people with college degrees in science and mathematics became clerks. What is even worse is that the brightest go for engineering and medicine. Pure sciences are being neglected. The situation in the US is equally bad. But, they are aware of it and are doing something about it.

[pavalamani pragasam]

Eyeopening facts :roll: :(

[lordstanher]

Tks for ur replies guys! :D


Actually, this is an interesting topic that Lord has brought up! Indeed, I've had my views and opinions on this for a long time, only never found the time to start a thread on it.
Glad to find ppl. thinking abt the same issue (albeit in this case abt a different but equally imp. disadvantage!)
Quite unlike wat I'd expected when starting this thread tho! :D


It is definitely not the right trend. If today India is able to capture world attention in technology services, it is becos of our focus on higher education. With the increasing call center jobs, that focus is going to be lost, and before we know, we might end up having a whole generation of young and rich people, but without a sustainable option which education provides.
Also very true! Esp. considering the fact tat these low-qualifications but hi-pay jobs provide only short-term employment........not sure if ne-one else knows this but from wat I learnt (as I too was abt to apply for a p'time job in HSBC Vizag but luckily got this job of teaching spoken english!), call centres/BPO employees r usually dispensable, ie, there is every chance for the employers to find more than 1 person more capable than u r, to replace u after a while......its also very likely for u to give them tat chance consideirng the stressful effects such jobs (esp. night-shift jobs) can hav on u mentally/physically, which wud tend- even slightly- to dim ur degree of competency.....this is sumthing tat those who r willing to go for such jobs shud realise.......


Teaching has long lost its glory in Indian society. Mainly because of lower pay and lack of creativity in the Job. There is a general saying "those who cannot do, teach" clearly reflecting the lack of respect given to this career.
This is also true to a certain extent......of course I'm not directly heaping blame on outsourcing.....
As for creativity, IMO it primarily depends on the mindset/attitude of the one who teaches......personally I feel tat teaching (esp. in schools) has far more creativity comp'd to monotonous customer service type of jobs! :D
I can clearly note the lack of committment in most young school teachers of today, not jus bcos of lower pay but bcos of the increasing materialsm & calculative thinking of the young working class......I rem. when I was in 7th class in school, 10+ yrs ago, I had teachers who were very strict & physical punishments being more common in those day, but there were sum of them who also taught us many gr8 values, not just the school syllabus....I can never forget them......but today I don't think there r such teachers even in the 'some' category!


What we need is better pay for teachers, modification in education system to allow better menuverability. Teachers should be able to feel self worth as in they are able to contribute to the future.
Yes, its also true tat even many reputed schools which charge exorbitant fees from the parents give very low pay to teachers, who r in jobs tat command utmost respect! I believe this is also the reason tat lady teachers r preferred as most of them r not known to protest/refuse outright to work for lower pay, thus letting sum of the 'commercial-minded' private schools to exploit them so! :evil:

[lordstanher]

Aaahh.......PP ma'm, nice to see u joining in here! :D
I'm sure u'll hav a lot to suggest in this matter!
Awaiting ur views....:D

[dev]

Now, with the boom of jobs in the call-centre/customer service in India, a lot of youngsters are lured into it. These jobs do not require nor ask for even a graduate degree! You see ads for even 12th pass, as long as you have the skills to talk and communicate!!!

A young man or woman say fresh out of college or even school suddenly finds themselves earning 10K per month, compared to their father who after 30 years of service probably earns 20K in traditional industry! This despite his BTech or BE or whatever.
It is definitely not the right trend.

Yes, this is very true... Infact, I was shocked when one of our family friend's daughter who didn't score well in her std 12 started working for a BPO firm during her holidays & she was very much excited by the pay(around 15k + transportation etc) that she didn't want to continue with her studies... But luckily for her, she was forced by her parents to join college... & one should see the change in those immature teenagers when they suddenly get so much with not so much efforts... Though I found her to be more confident(infact overly confident), I felt that it was making her arrogant as well... That too in cities like b'lore where pub culture is widespread, it gives them a chance to get involved in undesirable activities... & I was amazed when I heard from her that she spent the whole of her first salary on the day she received it,for her clothing & accessories!!!... & so did most of her friends... :shock:

[Badri]

She was lucky her parents forced her, and more importantly, she listened to them! Otherwise, the most oft heard argument is

"But I am already earning more money than you ever made. Why should I go to college and bother with all those years of study?"

[dev]

There was this argument in her case too... But luckily for her, her parents located a degree in her area of interest(yes, she never bothered to look for it & her parents had to do it for her!!!) & also managed to lure her into joining the college...

[lordstanher]

one should see the change in those immature teenagers when they suddenly get so much with not so much efforts... Though I found her to be more confident(infact overly confident), I felt that it was making her arrogant as well... That too in cities like b'lore where pub culture is widespread, it gives them a chance to get involved in undesirable activities...
Yes, an old school friend of mine has been working in a call centre at Hyd. where, he says, all the girls smoke after their shifts r over & many 'chill out' w/ the guys esp. on the way home.......its a diff. issue if call centres provide employment for those who r otherwise unemployed & r in dire financial need......allowing teenagers (who don't even need to start earning yet bcos their parents wud be) into such fast money oppurtunities wud only be encouraging them to build up the devil's workshop in their fertile minds!


I was amazed when I heard from her that she spent the whole of her first salary on the day she received it,for her clothing & accessories!!!... & so did most of her friends... :shock:
Yes, I believe their motto is when u earn more u spend more.....! :roll:
Atleast they cud realsie the value of these earnings by wisely saving them for future use.......like evn paying for their higher education, ie. if at all they want it!

[Badri]

ike evn paying for their higher education, ie. if at all they want it!

Higher education? What higher education?
Duh! Have you been listening or what, Lord? :lol:

[lordstanher]

ike evn paying for their higher education, ie. if at all they want it!

Higher education? What higher education?
Duh! Have you been listening or what, Lord? :lol:
:lol: :D
Jokes apart, many teenagers in the US/western countries take break from their studies to work in such jobs bcos most of their parents refuse to financially support them after high-school (at the most!).......once they've earned enuff they use it to pay for their college/uni where they complete their education......
But in India tat isn't necessary 'cos most of the well-to-do/middle-class families hav working parents who r able &/or willing to support their children til they finish their final education........so teenagers from such families here who join such jobs obv. do it w/ the intention of making "major pocket money" for their extravagant spending!

[lordstanher]

Rajaraj, sorry was in a hurry earlier so missed out replying to ur post.......
Overwhelmed by the responses in this thread I created! :D

That is an alarming trend. The Indian government does not seem to care.
The govt. wud've initially welcomed outsourcing, esp. call centres, in the view tat these wud help provide good oppurtunities for most- if not all- of those desperate unemployed ppl. (mainly "ordinary" Arts grads.) who wud consider such careers as godsend ones, also considering the reaosnably less qualifications required......
However, in the present scenario, as these jobs r increasing in popularity, I daresay the original hope tat they were provided w/ is sort of backfiring, as the employers r turning out to be more picky than expected & many hopeful ppl. who took it for granted reg. employment, hav been rejected from such jobs on the grounds of 'inappropriate communic. skills' or lack of fluency in comprehending US/foriegn accents.....
I've a student of spoken english who's an MBA & was rejected for the former!
Wat the employers (in the parent-countries) care abt is not how many ppl. in a 3rd world country wud be provided employment by their outsourcing, but how many ppl. as possible cud be found w/ just the right skills & willing to do their best to serve their (employers') firms/orgs.! Thus, the local chiefs of outsourced firms (esp. call-centres) here r on the lookout for ppl. who r proficient in English & hav the right qualities viz. patience, more than adequate communication skills etc.......and teachers wud broadly fit into this category as they hav most of these qualities required in teaching as well! So wud other professn'ls viz. Engineering & even Medical grads, college students (even most girls today r far more outgoing & verbose than their predecessors!)......these categories of ppl. r in most cases, not really the type for whom these careers wre originally thot to serve as a ray of hope in employment!


In fact, even those who come to US as software engineers and consultants are underemployed in most cases. That is the result of the unemployment rate in India.
Yes I rem. one lecturer of mine (when I was studying in Singapore), who wud repeatedly point out tat the main reasons y Indians r hired is bcos they r 'cheap & good'........ie, willing to work harder even for lower pay (comp'd w/ even the locals) bcos most of them hav even lower-paid or no jobs in their country!


What is even worse is that the brightest go for engineering and medicine. Pure sciences are being neglected.
Sadly true.....most of those who choose degrees (Bsc. etc.) in pure science today r those who cudn't get seats/ranks in engg./medical.....!

[ssanjinika]

Speaking as a person who is in a somewhat related field,I feel this trend is not a really good trend as there is limited scope for advancing in their careers.Tell me what does a person who is in the BPO field do after 2-3 years on the job?Do they learn something else which will help them to move forward?I dont think so.In my opinion it is a lot of hard work without future advantages.

[lordstanher]

Exactly, SS :D
The very point tat I'd mentioned earlier......these r all jobs where u r dispensable after jus a couple of yrs, even tho ur earnings might've doubled by then from teh time u joined! :(
And yea nothing to be learnt from these careers either......many boast of the possibilites of developing "ppl. - ppl. interaction skills" etc. in call centre jobs.....but then, once ur actually down to ur neck in tat job, ur too stressed (physically & mentally) most of the time to notice wat (if at all) ur learning!

[lordstanher]

Btw, Sandeep, thot u might like to check out an interesting article I found abt teaching in India by an American (I think):

http://www.thingsasian.com/goto_article/article.2497.html

From wat he says, it seems teaching in schools is considered sumthing derogatory not just in India but even in 'developed' countries!
Hope u were able to get the article.......! :D

[Sandeep]

Speaking as a person who is in a somewhat related field,I feel this trend is not a really good trend as there is limited scope for advancing in their careers.Tell me what does a person who is in the BPO field do after 2-3 years on the job?Do they learn something else which will help them to move forward?I dont think so.In my opinion it is a lot of hard work without future advantages.

Well what career advancement does a school teacher have. Maximum they will become Head Mistress. Unlike in Western countries where at least a few of them get entry into school boards, education department and research areas, in developing countries school teachers career is made as dull as possible.

While in BPO/Call centers there are variuos levels of growth (not technical).

Start 1(1-2 years):When you start you are just like phone operator, but then you reach a stage where you are allowed to make decisions.

Stage 2(3-5): You start leading a group of people carrering to a customer (Lead possition where in you dont directly take calls)

Stage 3 - A(5-10): Here is where you become what is called a floor manager where in you manage the whole floor.

Stage 3 - B(5-10): Here you are getting in process inprovements and marketing stategies etc based on your BPO activity.

Stage 4: Senior management...

The future in Call centers/BPO is not as dry as you may believe. Ofcource that doesnt mean everyone will go through all there stages. Well that is the case in any career.

I am trying to get hold of my old buddy who is a floor manager now so that I can get more authenticated information :)

[Sandeep]

But I do agree that most youngsters (oddly city kids) have no seriousness about their career or future and take things for granded. But I have ample evidences of guys/gals who have proven themselves and grown as individuals.

[Sandeep]

Btw, Sandeep, thot u might like to check out an interesting article I found abt teaching in India by an American (I think):

http://www.thingsasian.com/goto_article/article.2497.html

From wat he says, it seems teaching in schools is considered sumthing derogatory not just in India but even in 'developed' countries!
Hope u were able to get the article.......! :D

Very depressing and the same time encouraging. For some odd reason by the end of the article my eyes watered. I have myself seen a handful of teachers who continously fight the system.

[lordstanher]

Well what career advancement does a school teacher have. Maximum they will become Head Mistress. Unlike in Western countries where at least a few of them get entry into school boards, education department and research areas, in developing countries school teachers career is made as dull as possible.
No doubt in developing countries there is seldom ne growth in teaching in terms of promotions etc.....:D
But still, I personally feel tat it is far more respectable being a school teacher (esp.for women) as opposed to working in offices/corp. cos. under a Boss, & where they have to work harder to go up the professional ladder.......besides, the latter offers quite monotonous work, atleast until u get promoted to the 'motivator/manager' levels.......teaching sounds much more of a challenge every day, but for the present scenario where most teachers consider their work done at the end of the day only by teaching wat is in the school text bk./exam syllabus & grade students......! :(


Very depressing and the same time encouraging. For some odd reason by the end of the article my eyes watered. I have myself seen a handful of teachers who continously fight the system.
Um........I wonder if they watered out of pride/admiration or out of pity....?? :? Jus curious! :D

[Sandeep]

Very depressing and the same time encouraging. For some odd reason by the end of the article my eyes watered. I have myself seen a handful of teachers who continously fight the system.
Um........I wonder if they watered out of pride/admiration or out of pity....?? :? Jus curious! :D

You will find the answer in the first sentence (marked in brown) :)

[Badri]

I couldnt open the link. Could someone paste it here, if it it not too long?

[Sandeep]

Teaching in India By Kenneth Champeon

The power of teachers lies in the enormous influence they have upon the world's children. But should teachers be respected or ridiculed? In developed countries, they are poorly paid, and they are usually ranked with policemen and firefighters in terms of the desirability of their jobs; in developing countries, teachers give equal time to crowd control and the embellishment of the bland curricula provided by remote government officials.

In India teaching provides wives and single women with a supplementary source of income for their extended families. Teachers seldom pursue further education; indeed, most teachers seldom read. Unlike their American counterparts, Indian teachers do not delude themselves into believing that education is a profession comparable to medicine or law.

And India's exam-driven system discourages teachers from veering too far off the state syllabus. They cover what needs to be covered; very often, they cover what they had learned in school. And at end of term they are forced, and the students are forced, to cram. In this context, innovation is counterproductive.

Salaries are discouraging: my Indian colleagues earned 3500 rupees a month, then about $90. This was barely enough to pay for a living space about the size of an American living room -- even in the Bombay suburbs. No teacher could afford to live alone.

Overpopulation may be the root problem. I taught classes containing upwards of 60 students; insanely, the government wanted to increase the number to 80 or 85. Teachers generally taught four to six of these classes per day; so, at exam time, they had to grade as many as 300 exams.

Resources are stretched. As of 1997, my school had no photocopier, only a cyclostyling machine. Most teachers were computer illiterate; many could not type. Candles were used to boil water for science demonstrations. One of my "chalkboards" was made of cloth; an ordinary chalkboard was smaller than a door frame. Chalk was soft; it snapped often; you could go through two pieces in 30 minutes. Erasers, or "dusters", always went missing. Internet access was problematic: connections dropped regularly; modems broke or disappeared; once, burning trash melted the phone lines.

A teacher asked me how the developed world could help the developing world. Not how, I thought, but where to begin?

At first many teachers struck me as lazy. They spent a lot of time in the staff room: knitting, gossiping, comparing clothing, reading Femina magazine, drinking tea. They seldom prepared lesson plans; their time was consumed by managing truckloads of paperwork. Professional discussion was courteous but vacuous.

But they were not lazy; they were exhausted. The heat alone was stupefying. Many teachers rushed home to cook, care for parents, tend to children; they were never alone. Many gave "tutions" (tutorial sessions) to make extra money. Many had extensive religious commitments. One teacher commuted for two hours a day; another for four. Their environment was highly distracting; they were constantly being summoned and interrupted. Absenteeism was rife, so teachers had to fill in for each other at a moment's notice.

Lee Krishnan was a teacher at a boys' school. She woke up at about 6:30 every morning. She would boil the day's water and prepare her son for school. They entered the city by train: a one-hour trip. She fed her son toast, or an egg. (She took the Harbor Line from Vashi, which passes through Bombay's worst slums. "Sometimes it gets depressing," Lee said.)

Lee was a class teacher -- or homeroom teacher -- so she had to be on time: 9:30 sharp. Her son went to her school, and would remain there until he was taken to a babysitter nearby. Lee taught four or five classes a day. She ate lunch from a dhaba, a portable stack of stainless steel bowls, for 15 rupees.

She left school by four or five and returned by train. Her apartment building looked like an American housing project, but its stability was questionable. The cement looked like hardened play dough. Her apartment was smaller than the bedrooms in my flat: her husband, who "hated" Bombay and wanted to live in a village, called the apartment a "matchbox". It had little decoration; she had bought the furniture in college; her faucet was always leaking, when the water worked. Her dog, Flash, was chained to a table leg. Her son, Dushyant, rode a toy scooter with manic enthusiasm in the cramped space.

Lee spent her evenings cooking for her husband, who worked long hours as a computer consultant. She spent a lot of time on the phone. Only once did she complain of fatigue. She took me on tours of the city, to Belapur and Elephanta, to Hindi films. She never tired of walking.

She was proud; she wanted to pay for everything. She bought me a book, which she inscribed with the words, "I hope you have good memories." She asked me if I needed to do any Christmas shopping. I did; I needed a salwar kameez. "Thursday okay with you?" she asked. And on Thursday I would watch her haggle with consummate skill. I have never known anyone who laughed as much as Lee did, except perhaps her son. Her husband described himself as an optimist. They made it easy to ignore their dismal apartment.

Lee was a revolutionary teacher. She called my roommate nightly to plan for the next day, if our phone was working. In one exercise, she made her students complete 10 sentences that began with the words "I can't". After reading their papers, they had to destroy them. One student had written "I can't disrespect my parents"; Lee made him destroy it. She took her students on field trips; she began a photojournalism project and courted corporate sponsors; she stopped a class for 5 weeks, until it had agreed upon a class constitution to correct misbehavior. She uttered a heresy: "I want my kids to enjoy language".

But Lee was isolated. Nobody knew what she was doing, and she was above explaining it. She found meetings and workshops irksome. She was a compulsive reader; she was studying for a Ph.D.; her interests ranged from Latin American Studies to Islam. Being a Christian, she was free from the stifling influence of Islam. "Mutt" was one of her favorite insults.

Though alone at the boys' school, Lee had a comrade at the girls' school: Melissa d'Alphonzo, also a Christian. Both motivated and thoughtful, they did not meet until they both traveled to America as part of an educational exchange program. After that they became conspirators; they phoned each other constantly.

I met Melissa in America. She had left a newborn son behind in India and was anxious about him. Her husband worked in Dubai. It had been a conscious decision; it made financial sense. But as her son grew, she and her husband had begun to reconsider.

Warm, confident, tenacious, cheerful: this was Melissa. Like Lee, she found joy in simple things. Eating off banana leaves was "so dirty!" In Bombay there was "so much of crowd!" But in the classroom Melissa was all business.

She taught like an American, insofar as this was possible in an Indian setting. She encouraged students to formulate ideas in their words; she encouraged analysis over indoctrination. And she did these things while keeping a tight rein on the often explosive Indian classroom. She wanted her kids to be freer and more responsible. But she often wondered whether they were learning anything; exams said otherwise. She defied the syllabus; she talked to her students about life, about the news.

So like Lee, Melissa walked a tightrope. A few years earlier she had left her school for another, more lucrative, less hectic job. She returned because teaching the richer students was unrewarding. "These kids have so much to give," she said. The teachers did not. "Every time someone comes from outside," she said, referring to me, "the school sucks them dry. They make them do this, make them do that." When Melissa and I decided to direct Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, other teachers made belittling comments. Shakespeare!

Melissa's plate was full. After teaching her morning classes, she traveled to other schools in Bombay to disseminate her school's initiatives. She returned to help with drama practice, and then went home to her son. Then, two hours of church service. In Bombay such running about is time-consuming, tiring, and expensive.

One day we took a cab together. Melissa always covered her mouth with a handkerchief when passing through downtown. "I was very upset yesterday," she said. I told her I thought she never got upset. "Of course I get upset," she said. "I just don't show it." An indirect criticism: we Americans always showed it; this was weakness. But Melissa was wearing down. At work she met nothing but resistance and failure. She and her mother had been fighting. Her son's health was fragile, and her husband was across the sea.

Usually she reacted to obstacles with a sigh and a melodious "What to do?" She was a woman of action, of details, of hope. She treated the girls like daughters. "What is it, child?" she would say. And she began to treat me like a son. She brought me Oreos and Goan food. She inquired into my love life; she said that romantic love was impossible without faith in God; she talked of destiny. I was a perfectionist, she said, because I was a Capricorn. She would phone me occasionally to gauge my mental health. "You seem," she said, "more depressed every day." And she was right. But my depression after leaving India was worse.

Melissa's other comrade was Naazli Khan. Naazli was as gentle as she was serious. She could tell tardy teachers that they were not children anymore and shouldn't have to be reminded of meeting-times; she could also, for a favor so small I can't remember it, promptly go into the library and make me a thank-you card.

Naazli called me Champ. So I called her Khan.

Naazli was the school's field-general. She always had the last word. She would scold novice teachers for making obvious mistakes, but she was almost never vicious. What viciousness she had always dissipated in world-weary laughter. She was always busy. She would walk into the staff room, sit down with a sigh, and wipe her brow with a handkerchief.

In the classroom she had a rare combination of intelligence and flair, a kind but cutting way of gainsaying her students. Like Melissa, she was on a mission to get the students to think precisely. Once she asked them a question and they responded -- all of them -- with the ambiguous Indian head wobble. "Don't shake your heads!" she shouted. "Yes or no!"

I eventually became Naazli's computer tutor. She was stubborn about learning how to do things herself. Her mouse was always falling off her mouse pad: the mouse was a new toy, unfamiliar. And while we sat in front of graphs, we talked about my marriage plans: a common topic. She read my palm.

Naazli had a nightmare about me. Some thugs came into the school and beat me up. Later she dreamt that I was abandoning her and the other teachers; I was headed to Boston; I waved as I walked away with a trolley. It was the nightmare of every Indian: that no amount of generosity can keep foreigners in India.

Naazli was one of many Muslim women who was approaching spinsterhood. Parents continued to seek matches for their daughters, but the field grew thinner. "It's quite sad," said Melissa. "Naazli is a good teacher and a good person." Melissa could have been speaking of herself, or of Lee. But their benevolence and skill were up against a monstrously corrupt and incompetent system. I never quite decided if they were heroes for persisting, or fools. But it was their country; they loved it; and if they did not save it, who would?

[lordstanher]

Very depressing and the same time encouraging. For some odd reason by the end of the article my eyes watered. I have myself seen a handful of teachers who continously fight the system.
Um........I wonder if they watered out of pride/admiration or out of pity....?? :? Jus curious! :D
You will find the answer in the first sentence (marked in brown) :)
Ohh.......so it was a combo of both! :D