Life After The Classroom
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Retiring from Teaching? Prepare for New Challenges
by Linda Wiener
An unprecedented number of teachers will soon be eligible to retire. More than 30 percent of public school teachers are age 50 or older, and some estimate as many as 50 percent of today's working teachers will put down the chalk and move out of the classroom over the next five to seven years. Most departing teachers will be younger than 65, however, and many will want to continue working.
If you're part of this educational exodus or if you're considering a career change from some other profession, you should start researching now to find answers to your next-step career questions.
The good news is that the skills developed in the classroom or as a school administrator will translate into a business setting. The trick is to identify those skills and label them using a new and perhaps unfamiliar language -- "business speak." For example, most educators can communicate well, are experienced planners, can organise and prioritise, and are good problem solvers.
