YMN The Young Mathematicians' Network
Serving the Community of Young Mathematicians
Sections: Front Page   Career   Diaries   Editors   Work and Family Life   Grad Life   Job Search   Misc   Paths to Math   Research   Teaching   Undergrad Life   Events   Frequently Asked Questions   News
Changes in the Workplace? Work and Family Life

By halewis
Posted Tue Jun 01, 2004 at 02:59:02 PM PDT
In many ways, balancing work and family comes down to the choices that we're able to make in running our day. But what about concrete things that our workplace can do to be family-friendly (where "family" can be as broadly defined as you want), especially ways that don't put undue burden on other people?

Post a Comment

The first thing that comes to mind is to be flexible in scheduling classes, even if they've always been taught at a certain time or in a certain way. That can make a huge difference, not just for parents but for people who have any outside priorities or who simply know that they teach best at certain times of the day. This can also generate a discussion of dislikes: given the choice of more preps, teaching at an undesirable time, or teaching more credits, what do individuals prefer?

In a similar vein, schools can let faculty teach a summer class in place of one of their regular semester classes. I do know schools that will do this for new parents, but ideally it would be an option for everyone. (Are there any schools that allow this in general? I'd love to hear of them!)

Allow people to spend time out of the office (a few afternoons a week, or one day a week) instead of being available 9-5 (or 7-3) every day. This could mean interruption-free time for research, or it could mean working at home. To my mind, it could also mean going to the zoo with the kids, as long as the time was made up elsewhere and faculty were still normally available to students (during office hours and appointments, for example).

Finally, provide laptop computers in lieu of desktops upon request. They can be great for working at home and can also be good for research if your work takes you into the libraries.

Please share your own responses or suggestions.

< Examinations | Is your Erdos number greater than 5? >
Display: Sort:
Changes in the Workplace? | 0 comments (0 topical, 0 hidden)
Display: Sort:
Menu
create account
FAQ
Search
Recent Comments

Login
Make a new account
Username:
Password:

Related Links
Also by halewis

SourceForge Logo Powered by Scoop
All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective companies. Comments are owned by the Poster. The Rest

create account | faq | search