The method at McGill is much more practical than at Budapest Corvinus University. Sometimes we also have guest speakers in Budapest, but not as many and not as colourful and fun people like here, at McGill. I recognised that people use less humour in teaching, business, everyday actions in Hungary. Somehow they consider themselves more serious which is silly because their expertise depends on their knowledge not on their behaviour, motion or outfit. I guess, it is in contact with self-confidence. If we imagine two people with the same level of knowledge, one has self-confidence so s/he is free to make jokes and feel him/herself comfortable and relaxed, the other without self-confidence feels him/herself insecure and frustrated, needs to hide feelings.
The system McGill offers, teach students to learn how to feel secure and self-confident which is at some point more important than knowledge and theory. In contact with the previous, I find it very good that students have to handle in many types of writings like interview, book critics, and reflection; there is also team work and presentation. Everybody have strengths and weaknesses. Maybe one is stronger in research and weaker in presentation. With this method weaknesses are compensable with strengths and finally everybody is good enough. I have the feeling it is more difficult to fail here, because the whole environment is supportive and helpful. This method I understood here was very inspiring!
Concerning previous studies my main field is organizational development. For me development is important because it let us compare past, present and future. I like to do reflection. It helps personal development. Sometimes I understand happenings during reflection or discussion. This is part of the practical method which is more and more used also in Hungary.
Still somehow I feel that the practical method grow here naturally. In Hungary we use it as an imported knowledge. We do presentations, teamwork; try to be practical but the whole thing is not that natural yet. Maybe just need time! The problem is that old fashioned, not working solutions are still there too, and they are mixing with new, practical methods. Finally the outcome is a hybrid mixture, better than the previous one but still far from the final goal. Teachers do their best but they can not change their mentality quickly. It is very slow process.
Do not misunderstand me! I do not believe that we should do a complete change and import the western knowledge as it is! No! There are some good solutions within our culture. I think we are strong in philosophical thinking, theoretical coherences, and analysis. We have to keep those; the process should be done well balanced, and we should grow naturally in the new solutions instead of pushing.
Our life is an opportunity. We received it to understand procedures and develop ourselves and our environment in certain aspects. Globalization gives us a broad frame to follow personal, local, regional, national and international development. What does globalization mean for me? I like the holistic explanation about globalization that in economical, political, environmental and social spheres it means the same: an approach, viewing procedures from supranational point of view. Travelling is one of the positive effects of globalization: our world is shrinking. I enjoy thinking and discussing issues with people from different places and cultures. It gives me liberality (széles látókör). How other way could I develop my concepts if not challenging and keep changing them?
At McGill we often had guest speakers. Often oppositions. The opportunity was given to decide who to trust, what to believe, who to support. It definitely took longer, because the same topic was mentioned two or more times but of course from different aspects! It was time consuming, but worthy because students had to challenge themselves and that gave responsibility. Little group discussions gave an opportunity to interpret the heard. And interpreting the knowledge sticked it in deeper layers of the brain.
I am happy to come and have McGill experience with 6 years of work experience before at Kodak. Everything is so well planned in our life. I have seen things with different eyes! Please read also Henry Mintzberg.
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