<B>“Prof. Campbell inspired in me a real interest in his subject”

“I encountered the teacher who really marked my life when I was at University in South Africa. It was Professor Campbell. I will never forget how great he was and to what extent he inspired me with a real interest in his subject. In fact, he was teaching economic history. I went to the University of Natal to study marketing and advertising. However, I had to choose another subject over and above what I was currently studying. This is how I decided to choose economic history although I did not have a clue as to what it was all about.

Economic history was an extraordinary subject whereby we had to learn about the history of each country, and how some countries managed to develop economically. The thing was that Professor Campbell was originally a consultant in Argentina. Therefore, he knew everything about the other countries in South America and he told us the stories of those countries marvellously. I mean he was telling those stories as if he was reading from a book while he was not!

What was even more incredible with his method of teaching was that, during his lectures, I was not taking any notes, simply because I could visualize the things he was saying. That had never happened to me before. What he was telling was so palpable compared to all the scientific subjects I had done before. I could even say that Professor Campbell was making us dream. However, all the things he was telling us were real things.

Furthermore, another thing that impressed me was his general knowledge. Indeed, he knew every single detail about each country. For example, when he was telling us about the history of Argentina, he referred to Evita Peron’s story. Thereby, I understood that it was thanks to her friendly relationship with Onassis that Argentina’s economy had a boost regarding the shipping industry.

Regarding the character himself, I would say that Professor Campbell was a very reserved, humble and professional person. Physically, he was very big and bald with a very soft voice. But he was so kind and so sweet! Added to this, he was a well-respected figure in his college.

The last memory that I have of Professor Campbell was that, just after having finished my degree and before coming back to Mauritius, I went to meet him. At the beginning he did not understand at all why I had done so. I took a deep breath and told him how grateful I was that he had made me fall in love with a subject I did not know existed before. I ended by telling him that he was the best teacher I’d ever had. He was blushing and I had tears of emotion in my eyes.

This is something which is not normally done in the Mauritian culture. I think it should be done more often as it would make the teacher feel more encouraged and motivated.”