20 years ago I became a lecturer in computing, which at the time was a good professional career. However due to funding cuts the situation has become ridiculous. There have been widespread redundancies, support for additional needs has been removed, class sizes have doubled, we aren’t even allowed to print worksheets because we can’t afford the paper. They’re getting rid of permanent staff and converting them to hourly paid staff so they can save on not paying for holidays, sick days, time spent prepping and marking or attending meetings, etc. Last year my salary was more than halved but my workload was hardly reduced at all. Since Covid I haven’t worked at all because DC’s nursery closed and I couldn’t work from home.
It’s clear there’s no future in teaching. But I can’t get a job in computing. I don’t like programming and many of my skills are just at the level required to teach, not the level required to program as a job day in and day out. I’ve tried applying for a few jobs but the feedback has been that I’m too academic and “teachery” to suit a commercial job. Interviewers advised me to return to teaching but I don’t want to!
What do I do? I can’t afford a Masters. I’ve been thinking about starting a business but I literally have no clue.