Amongst all the talk of ending age discrimination in the workplace, as you get older the job you have is the only job you can expect. I was lucky. I decided to take an early retirement from Hull and was able to pick up part-time teaching for the past four years at Manchester Metropolitan University. It looks like that is now coming to an end.
For thirty-five years my life has been ruled by an academic calendar. It is predictable. Years begin in September, not January; there is a process of developing conversations in the classroom; then the final purgatory of marking; followed by summer release. Now I am leaving that structure behind. It is a sadness and a liberation. I intend to devote more time to research and writing and am always open to offers, leaving still on the top of my game.
Would I have continued if circumstances had been different? Possibly. Though sometimes it is right to step down and start something anew. After all, age catches up with the best of us.
For thirty-five years my life has been ruled by an academic calendar. It is predictable. Years begin in September, not January; there is a process of developing conversations in the classroom; then the final purgatory of marking; followed by summer release. Now I am leaving that structure behind. It is a sadness and a liberation. I intend to devote more time to research and writing and am always open to offers, leaving still on the top of my game.
Would I have continued if circumstances had been different? Possibly. Though sometimes it is right to step down and start something anew. After all, age catches up with the best of us.
2 comments:
I am sorry to hear your teaching is coming to an end. I always really enjoyed your magnificent classes!
Thanks, whoever you are. I am sure you were a magnificent student too!
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