Never Retire

The title of this blog entry, "Never Retire", is in tribute to the late NY Times columnist, William Safire. In his last Op-Ed column for the NY Times in 2005, Safire extolled the reasons why citizens of a certain adult age should never retire. At that time, Safire, then 75 was writing his last column for the paper and going on to another chapter of his still busy life.

He wrote,"never retire, but plan to change your career to keep your synapses snapping - and you can see the path I'm now taking. Readers, too, may want to think about a longevity strategy."

I'd like to extend that exhortation to my professional colleagues in NYSUT, UFT, AFT, NEA and public educators everywhere who have retired from active service in the classrooms of America. As lifelong master learners, teachers who have served in the nation's schools have a lot to offer learners in this next phase of their lives.

As all of my veteran teacher colleagues know, new technologies and strategies are at the forefront of education now. There are NCLB concerns and professional development activities schools must meet for students and faculty.There are new health concerns facing schools and administrators are trying to ramp up new techniques to head off large school wide absences. How will schools meet these challenges?

One way to meet this challenge is to develop a cadre of teachers to deliver instruction in an online environment. These online instructors could provide additional resources for schools in meeting:

• NCLB and Testing requirements for k-12
  
• Meeting instructional needs in event of Swine Flu outbreaks
• Meeting Professional development obligations for faculty (NY state)
  
• Preparing students for Regents preparation or credit recovery
• Shortage of experienced math, science and language instructors
  

This five point challenge could be met by the legions of "retired" educators in New York State and elsewhere in the United States. These experienced veterans could make a significant contribution to learners without leaving home or their vacation abodes. Their synapses would still be snapping and their brains, active as ever would not atrophy!

"Retired" teachers have time. They have the ability to devote significant time in developing courses for learners. Many of my "retired" colleagues continue to teach courses in local colleges, teacher centers, other education providers and for their union colleagues.

Last year some of us took a hit in our 401B accounts or were newly inducted members of the sandwich generation. These sandwich members were caught between paying college tuition, supporting new graduates while they look for employment in this economy and managing their own elderly parents who may have meager means to pay for their own care. Some are caregivers to grandchildren. Some newly retired lost their spouses through death or divorce and the economics of their life has changed. Money in is fixed. Money out continues to rise.

So for my colleagues in" retirement", here's an option for additional compensation : learn how to design and facilitate online instruction, sharing your wealth of expertise from the confines of your boudoir, your den or poolside at the club.

Two myths I'm going to dispel over the next weeks are that veteran teachers are technophobes with nothing to offer the 21st century classroom. The second is that online learning is inferior to f2f instruction. I beg to differ.

In 2005 I retired from the Amityville School District in New York and my local union affiliate, the Amityville Teachers Association . In 2005 I "unretired" and co-founded an online learning company, Moodlerooms.

Please join me and add your voice to this blog. Let's have a conversation !