And so to retirement

 I retired in April this year and this time last year I resigned from my teaching role.

No regrets I am now playing golf three times a week and filling my life with  many things I had no time for when I was working.

My golf has improved and I treated myself to a Sim 2 driver and some Calloway Irons, never bought new before and what a difference they have made. My handicap is also improving very quickly thanks to playing consistently. Breaking 90 is a common occurance so next target is 80 which I will be aiming for in the spring.

I have much more time for my family and friends and pub lunches are a common occurance. I cancelled my gym membership when covid came along and bought a spin bike so I can afford the odd beer without it appearing on my waistline.

As expected my colleagues manage fine without me, believe me there is more to life than work. I thoroughly enjoyed my job but not as much as I'm enjoying retirement and the freedom it gives. 

I have to go, the suns out and I'm off to the first Tee.

What a year

Covid came along and changed the whole way of working. Thankfully my OU experience put me in a good place to move my face to face teaching online. Quickly adapting to the available tools and continuing my teaching online.

MS teams came to the rescue and practical applications of electronics in the lab was replace with visual simulation tools such as Falstad. Circuit Simulator Applet (falstad.com)

The use of my blog  Https://slecitec.blogspot.com  enabled the rapid sharing of videos and lesson material and enabled successful completion of the subjects. It was inevitable that the final project would need to wait until we could return to the college which of course happened in May.

Of course all supported by the lesson material on the college moodle site. I guess all that hard work over the years finallypaid off.

I have seen colleagues retire, workload increase dramatically and stress levels reach something I had never witnessed before. Top this off with a dose of covid and the second bout that really knocked me off my feet and on reflection I am not quite sure how I have seen this year out.

But here we are, bring on 2021its likely to be the year of my retirement.

Time to bow out of the OU system I think.

Its been fun and I have thoroughly enjoyed teaching the OU way but with the ending of my current module and its replacement becoming a half module it's become the excuse I needed. 

No complaints on my part I met some fantastic students and formed good friendships within the OU community. All part of the plan as I move into retirement to reduce the workload and focus on the things that really matter.

I started as an OU student on M101 in 1990 and finished with a BSc MA ODE and 15 years as a tutor in 2018, thank you so much !!

PLE Update Version II

I thought I take another look and contrast how my PLE has changed in recent years.

Probably the most significant change has been the shift away from learning in the last twelve months and more towards consolidating and updating my knowledge within Electronics and Controls. This was neglected as I pursued my Masters and then QTLS. However surprisingly I still use a lot of these tools.

Facebook is moving outwards as I don't trust this application and only use it to share with some immediate family and old friends. In place has appeared WhatsApp which is a better way of communicating  I feel. Evernote is starting to charge so has disappeared and I make greater use of google docs these day because I can control the security better.

Current research is around the family tree and has become a bit of a hobby and several additional apps are now in focus including MyHeritage but again these sites charge for their data.

My sites are still up and running although I don't tend to add a great deal at the moment but it surprising how often I get hits.

The threat of redundancy

As September started to approach my focus turned on the new cohort of students that would soon come my way with the OU. As usual I would be expecting around 20 students however there was a twist this year that has completely changed my outlook on the OU.

Let me summarise the events that unfolded in the run up to the start of the module, bearing in mind that I was already well into preparation mode and the OU don't start paying me until October.

1. An impersonal email was sent to me warning that student numbers are down and there was a possibility that I would not be required this year.
2. A second email stating that this was now quite likely so be prepared to take one of a number of options. Find another module quick, take a year out or take redundancy.
3. Having been saved by a last minute rush, well more like the manipulation by some supportive tutor managers, I then received a letter informing me I would take a 10% pay cut if I didn't get one more student.

How did I feel

What can I say, undervalued, pretty annoyed and it was time to weigh up my options.

The OU don't pay a lot, most tutors do it because they enjoy it and are either supplementing an income or are semi-retired. I have been a tutor for 15 years and don't like the idea of being cast to one side because the numbers are down, it certainly like a 0 hrs contract. I fall into the category of enjoying it because the tax man gets much of my pay.

However the result of this is that I am now now going to analyse the time I spend on OU duties and reduce it. My plans to retire early and take on more modules and therefore work as a freelance educator are going to be reviewed at the end of the year. I will by then have a definitive example of what it has cost me in time to perform the role of an OU Tutor this year and I use that to help me make an informed decision.

Throw some technology at it

By creating an online form using google forms and linking to a spreadsheet I now have an easy way of logging all OU activity. It takes seconds on my phone to log an activity and quickly tag it into various categories. Well I feel much better for doing it and if nothing else it will help me realise just how much the OU get for free.