The Art of Assessment

One of the biggest challenges that faces modern society is in selecting individuals for an extremely small group of available positions from a large number of interested applicants. A similar challenge is also faced when evaluating or assessing people for the purpose of determining that a certain learning objective has been achieved.

I was pleasantly surprised when I co-incidentally found in a matter of a week how 3 different organizations had managed to meaningfully solve the problem in an effective, impartial and exceedingly fair way.

The 3 organizations were the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT’s), BITS (Birla Institute of Technology) and ToI Group (Times of India). And all 3 were for completely different purposes. The IIT’s was for their entrance exam to the undergraduate program. BITS was for their assessment for their post graduate distance education examinations, and the ToI was for selection as trainee journalists.

The IIT’s have over 500,000 students applying for under 5000 open category seats. And they need to have a way to select the best and brightest. To make it fair it needs to be objective and not dependent on a human examiner, who is likely to have personal biases and convert responses based on subjective interpretations. When the difference between students is minuscule this minor aberration is likely to be unfair to some.  The solution is an MCQ examination. And the level of the questions is such that the difference in marks at the highest level could be as much as 20+ or 5%. This means that ability and knowledge start splaying a far larger role than luck. The IIT’s have gone several steps ahead in terms of transparency and fairness. The students are allowed to take away a carbon copy of their answer sheets. The answer key is published on the IIT site. And to top it all, in what I think is a first in the world, the answer papers along with the assigned marks will be published online. Giving every candidate an opportunity to verify that no errors have been made and to rectify them, should they have been made.
http://www.jee.iitb.ac.in/

The BITS postgraduate distance education courses have a slightly different challenge. How does one assess that the students, many of them working professionals on whether they have adequately learnt and understood the course. Since the expectation is not to know things by rote, but to have the ability to understand they conduct an open book exam. And the questions are on the application of the lessons learnt. As an example, in “Algorithms” the question could be about what the end result would be if a combination of defined algorithms were used. The books can provide clues, but if you haven’t understood each of the algorithms in the question, the books in the given time will be unable to help you solve the problem. This approach ensures that the evaluations and assessment methodology ensures that only students who have understood and learnt go to the next level.
http://www.bits-pilani.ac.in/index.aspx

The Times of India group recently wanted some junior editors. And used what seemed like a simple test. All applicants were required to submit an original article on one of a few given topics. These were evaluated by the editorial team and those selected were then asked to answer a test at their offices. The paper was interestingly created. It had several articles to be written on the spot, with themes as varied as interviews to obituaries. The next levels were Group Discussions and then Personal Interviews. The complete assessment was based on the ability to do and demonstrate that which would be required by the job profile.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/

What’s interesting about all the 3 processes was that they were simple, transparent and ensured fairness to all participants. The processes implemented ensured that “If you weren’t  good, you definitely didn’t make it.”. More importantly, “If you were good the probability of you making it, was as close to 100% as it get”.

Death reveals all

Death has a strange way of catching up. Until December 2011, I hadn’t attended a single funeral in around 10 years. In the last 4 months, I’ve already attended 5, including 2 on the same day. It probably means I’m getting old, since the people you only met at weddings, you now meet only at funerals.

I noticed a few interesting things at these events. And each of them offered varying insights into how different people react in similar circumstances. The reaction of each of the 4 families was hugely different. It was but natural that all of the families were sad and grieving. But the levels of acceptance and reactions were strikingly different.

In the first case, my grandmother had lived a full life. The atmosphere was one of acceptance of the inevitable. In the second case, there were mixed feelings. Whilst one sibling kept his grief personal and appeared outwardly calm, the other expressed her grief vocally in powerful words. In the third case, the teenage daughter was inconsolable and her grief could be felt by all attending and brought tears to many a grown eye. The fourth the grief was more subdued and there were no tears shed, just fond goodbyes. The fifth was a combination of grief and fond goodbyes.

There were several similarities at the events. At each of these a member of the family or a close friend said a few words. And that’s where the similarity ended. Different families used different formats. A couple had a friend talk about the person and their family, like a resume. A couple had friends recollect a few personal moments. And one that stuck was a niece’s recollection of her uncle’s life. But the one that stuck a chord was that at the end of the tribute, a son walked up and thanked the doctors, neighbors and friends, and ended with, “Last but not the least, Dad we love you and will always miss you”. It was from the heart. Simple but very meaningful and real.

The second was the number of people who attend the final rites. You would expect that all of your relatives, friends, neighbors, colleagues would be present. Surprisingly very few people find the time to make it. You can expect around 20 – 40 % of the number of people who attended your wedding. The even stranger thing is that half of those who attend hadn’t or wouldn’t have been invited to your wedding.

The one realization that did hit me when I attended these funerals was the realization of the limited time we have here. And I'll be careful to try and invite all the people likely to attend my funeral to my kids weddings, should I be fortunate enough to be around.It may also be a good idea to use that time wisely. And to spend it having fun with the people you love. Or even just like. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

Sachin’s 100 100’s

On March 16, Sachin Tendulkar scored yet another century against Bangladesh in Dhaka. What made this special is that it was his 100th 100. A feat that a billion plus Indians were waiting for. And the wait had been long. More than a year, i.e. since March 12, 2011 when he scored his 99th century against South Africa during the World Cup.

His feat was lauded all over the world and several newspapers and magazines covered it. An interesting article was in the Mirror, published in the UK. "King of centurions: 100 facts about Sachin Tendulkar". It highlighted 100 interesting facts about the Little Maestro. You can read that at:
http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/cricket/sachin-tendulkars-100th-100-100-763750

Everything that can be said or written about Sachin Tendulkar has already been said or written. There was a party thrown in his honor by Mukesh and Nita Ambani, owners of Reliance and the Captain until last season of their IPL team Mumbai Indians. The party had celebrities across the 3 most powerful sections of Indian Society, viz.: Politics, Bollywood and Cricket. Aamir's comments as is typical centered around himself, Salman was also typical and funny. And Nita gave Mukesh credit for the 100 100's. You can see the highlights of the function at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UCi9pAp9pn0

What makes Sachin Tendulkar different from other celebrities is his ability to remain non controversial. One would naturally assume that he did not have any controversies and has hence managed to remain non controversial. That's not completely true. He has had several controversies but somehow has managed to overshadow them. Amongst the several controversies, there have been two major ones.

The first was when he was found guilty of ball tampering in Australia. The TV footage seems to clearly indict him. Nevertheless the Indian public were unable to accept the reality and went on a protest burning effigies of the match referee, Mike Denness being burnt and the powerful BCCI sanctioning the referee and trying to ensure that he does not participate in Indian matches. The 2nd was when he was presented a Ferrari by the auto maker. He asked for a waiver of customs duty and the Government was happy to oblige, even though the rules didn't allow it. Finally, the auto major paid. He has also fared very poorly as India's captain in the 2 stints he did. And had thereafter steadfastly refused to take on the responsibility.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sachin_Tendulkar

In spite of all this, he has managed to do his bat do all the talking. His records, many of which are unlikely to be broken in the near future say it all. He has stayed away from politics, by staying close and equidistant from all political parties.
http://www.espncricinfo.com/india/content/player/35320.html

In my mind, the one thing that makes Sachin, Sachin is his dedication. After over 22 years of playing international cricket since his debut against Pakistan in Nov. 1989, he still believes he has something to learn. And works harder than any other player in the team. Be it his batting or even bowling. It seems like his career proves the point that "Hard work pays". And he has managed to achieve all this while being an ideal family man.

Sachin himself summarizes very well what he does, and what we should do if we want to succeed. In cricket and in Life.
"I just keep it simple. Watch the ball and play it on merit."

Murder on the High Seas. Or was it self-defense ?

On February 15, 2 fishermen on board the fishing vessel Saint Anthony was shot at, due to which 2 fishermen died. This shooting was done by Italian Marines, on board the vessel MT Enrica Lexie which was around 20 nautical miles from the Indian Coast.

 

You can read about the incident at:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2012_Italian_shooting_in_the_Arabian_Sea

The Italians have their version and the fishermen and the Indian authorities have theirs. Currently the 2 marines have been arrested and are facing trial for murder. The simple question is whether this qualifies as murder.

The known facts, actions of the vessel and the circumstantial evidence indicates that the Indian version is probably closer to the truth. It can also be reasonably assumed that the Italian Marines or the vessel neither intended to nor had not motive or reason to attack and kill Indian fishermen.

Having sailed in war zones, pirate infested areas, and dangerous waters, I have some idea of the atmosphere that prevails on board. With over 100 vessels having been taken over by pirates, with crew and vessel held hostage for years, it’s not a regular situation.

In all probability, the fishing vessel came too close, and I have seen this happen on umpteen occasions. The Italians panicked, thought that they were under attack, overreacted and shot. Unfortunately their error cost 2 innocent lives.

In my opinion, the incident should be treated for exactly what it is. An accident. I’m not suggesting that no action should be taken, either against the vessel or against the Marines who were guilty at least of an error of judgment. I’m suggesting that they be treated in the same manner as we would treat a driver who killed innocent pedestrians due to an error of judgment.

Whilst the two lives lost, cannot come back, it would only be fair that they be paid adequate and handsome compensation, which I’m sure the Italians would be more than happy to do. And the Italian Marines should be censured, sentenced if required and repatriated to their home country, with parole. The two Marines were soldiers who were engaged in a war. And they did what they have been trained to do. Unfortunately it was the wrong action at the wrong place. But its time we behaved in a reasonable and mature manner and show that in India, justice is not blind, but fair and reasonable.

We already have two victims of unfortunate circumstances. Let’s not add to the list.

Indian Humility – Fact or Myth ?

Namaste. One of the traits most admired amongst Indians is their humility. From the “Namaste” greeting with heads bowed to their “Haa Ji”, which means “Yes Sir”, it seems like we are an extremely humble and polite people.

I too was a believer of this idea. Until recently, I began to look at it a little closer. And realized that maybe there’s much more to it than meets the eye. And what I found was extremely interesting to put it mildly.

If you study the patterns, you will notice that the “Namaste” or greeting normally doesn't reach the eye. There is a Smile, and a folding of hands. More like a mechanical gesture. Like the salute in the Military. Whilst its meant to convey respect, more often than not, it doesn't. It’s a rule that the juniors need to salute the senior officers, and so they do. With no hint of respect. It’s a motion. Similarly, the Namaste has become a motion. And the classic example of its motion can be seen on Air India flights at the entrance to the aircraft. The folded hands, the mouthing of the word Namaste and a bored look, “Why are you here ?”.

And then there’s the famous “Haa Ji’. I’ve rarely heard a fellow Indian, say “No”, or “I don’t know”. Its always “Yes”, or “Haa Ji’. That would have been a great trait, provided it was meaningful. In most cases, they are words that have been mouthed without any meaning. If it was a task you wanted completed and got a “Haa Ji’, the chances are pretty high that a week later, you’ll get the exact same answer to the same question, “Haa Ji, it will be done”. We don’t seem to mean what we say.

Recently, I was on the phone with a client. It was a Saturday afternoon, and I was at home. At the end of the conversation, I told him that I would be e-mailing the relevant details in the next couple of hours. The client wanted to know if he would get it before Monday. I said “Yes, I just told you, I’ll be sending it to you in the next couple of hours”. He once again confirmed the same, and I got a little irritated. It seemed to show in my voice, because once I got off the phone, my daughter who was close counseled me. She said, “Why are you getting irritated ? It’s not their fault. In most cases when people say they’ll do something, they don’t.”.  Interesting observation, but a poor reflection on us.

And finally our obsession with believing we know everything. From directions to queries to solutions to problems. And on the occasions when we are told we are wrong, we don’t accept the feedback. We just assume that the person who has corrected us is an obnoxious Idiot who knows nothing. I find this trait the most dangerous. The problem is that when we do not accept that “We don’t know” or “We haven’t made a mistake”, then the possibility of us learning or correcting ourselves becomes “Zero”. A number we Love, since we invented it. And we seem to think that just because we have done something for a large number of years, we know it perfectly. That’s not quite true. When you have done something exactly the same way for a large number of years, your ability to do it “Consistently” will be high. And that means if you were doing it incorrectly, you will continue to do it incorrectly for a long, long, time.

In my mind, and in all “Indian Humility”, I think that if we are able to correct these three aspects of our behavior, we can go places and be a force to reckon with globally. As soon as our “Namaste” reaches our eyes, Our “Haa Ji”, is said when it means “Yes”, and finally, we accept the fact that there are several thing we don’t know, but are willing to learn. And until then the few who can adopt these aspects are likely to outperform their peers who don’t.

Namaste ! :-)

Secrets of Success

I started writing this article on the secrets of success. After extensive research (searching keywords in Google), I reached 2 conclusions. One was that the famous articles or stories are well known or can be easily found. And what does that have to do with my perspective. Hence I decided to put aside all the hard work I had done in gathering extensive material on secret, success, failure, quotes, … and come up with a list of my own.

 

Since this is my list it shall not have 10 secrets, like the commandments or 5 which lazy commandment writers do. Or 7, which is fashionable number for secrets. It shall have 13, since 13 is traditionally considered an unlucky number. And this is my attempt to succeed using an unlucky start.

Secret 1
Think.
Not many people do.

Secret 2
Success is like mercury.
Chase it and it gets away. Do what comes naturally and it flows in.

Secret 3
Do what you love.
And if that’s not possible, Love what you do.

Secret 4
Listen to the world.
But follow your heart.

Secret 5
Perception is greater than reality.
Doing is not enough. What’s done should be made known.

Secret 6
Life’s not always fair.
But it normally catches up and evens out.

Secret 7
Agree to Disagree
Especially when the other side has already made up their mind.

Secret 8
Don’t argue about factual issues.
Just check them out.

Secret 9
Smile.
It improves your face value.

Secret 10
Ideas are important.
The ability to execute them is even more important.

Secret 11
Knowing when to act is important.
Knowing when to walk away and knowing when to run is even more important.

Secret 12
Using God’s method of creation is a good idea.
Small incremental steps. A new born does very little and is yet complete. A toddler does slightly more and a teenager is not able to do everything an adult does, yet each stage is complete in its own unique way.

Secret 13
Success Secrets are unique.
Don’t follow these stupid secrets. Go create your own.

Are we the way we Drive ?

My wife Ivy has felt for very long that people drive the way they are. And has wanted me to write on the subject for quite some time now. Finally I’m writing this on her behalf. It goes without saying that all credit is hers and all errors and omissions and exceptions and … are mine and mine alone.

Driving reflects personality. Notice the next time you’re on the road and you’ll see several different driving styles
.

There are the people, who give right of way to pedestrians and cars crossing and wait for the old lady. These are probably nice, encouraging people in real life too. You may sometimes make the mistake of treating their niceness as weakness. Don’t. They know exactly what they are doing and choose to be nice. I‘d love to have them as my boss, my colleague my juniors, and even friends.

There is a type of driver that everybody hates, even when they themselves behave exactly the same way. They are the impatient ones, honking and swerving and changing lanes and generally behaving like they are the only ones who are in a hurry, and the rest of us should yield to them like they were an ambulance. These are the pushy ones in real life. Always looking for weaknesses to exploit, short cuts to take and generally try and get in front, without working for it. Normally you find that after a while, they are stuck behind a truck or at a signal and you are ahead of them. Just like in real life. They push ahead, but finally get left behind.

Then there’s the driver who’s constantly changing lanes. She’s unsure and always feels that the next lane is moving faster, until she’s there. Then suddenly that stops moving and it’s the other lane, sometimes the one she’s just left that begins moving faster. Until she’s in it. These are the indecisive people we see and meet. They just cannot make up their minds, and just when they do, they change it. They are the ones who always feel that the grass is greener on the other side and are likely to be perpetually unhappy.

And finally my favorite type. The patient driver. Tolerates all of the above. And yet calmly listens to his music system. Doesn’t seem to be in a hurry, or if he was, has figured out that it’s not going to help. So just drives as fast as he practically can and stays happy. And this is the typical Indian. Accepts circumstances calmly. After all, that our Karma.