The Christian in Dialogue (Mt 18:15-20)
Faced with an enemy or an unjust aggressor, an animal has basically three possible responses (3 F’s): Flight, Fight and Freeze. Faced with an unpleasant situation we humans too have the these options. What do you do when we come across situations we don’t like in the street, or even in our parish community? But we humans have a fourth option: dialogue. We can use our gift of reason to appeal to others’ reason. We can appeal to the goodness of the heart of others. This presupposes a basic trust in the goodness of human nature itself, namely, that others are capable of reasoning and feeling just as I do.
In the gospel passage, Jesus tells us how we could be dealing with unchristian attitude and behaviour in our communities. It is interesting to note that, in the text […]
Innovative Capstone Assessment Models Beyond the Thesis in Master’s Psychology Programmes
Sahaya G. Selvam
Abstract
Master’s degree is a liminal stage at higher education between the bachelor’s and the doctoral degrees. The expected competency outcomes of a master’s degree presuppose a development on the foundations of the bachelor’s level while providing a basis for an original contribution at the PhD level with subject-specific abilities in integration of knowledge, its application, and communication of the same, coupled with a set of skills in self-learning.
A capstone experience that generally marks the conclusion to the coursework assesses these outcomes before a candidate is awarded a master’s degree. Does a thesis or dissertation consisting of empirical research alone assess the programme outcomes, as is the norm in many universities? Could there be an integration of capstone experiences and research with a variety of possibilities, taking into consideration the […]
Excellence: Doing well or doing good?
Early January 2026, the United States launched a military strike in Venezuela and captured incumbent president Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Later Trump in his inimical style prided to a journalist, “we have weapons nobody else knows about… we have some amazing weapons. That was an amazing attack.” He even shared on his Truth Social page a fake Wikipedia entry describing himself as the acting president of Venezuela.
Yes, America pulled off the “Operation Absolute Resolve” with impeccable precision, that is what the press reported. Yes, it was done well, but was it right, was it good? Was it ethical or even legal?
‘Excellence’ is an overused term these days. Often a mere capitalist marketing byline. Academic institutions aim at excellence in education. Service industry strives for excellence in customer care. Government agencies claim to deliver excellence in public administration.
The […]