Anni Webster - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Anni Webster
Routledge eBooks, Dec 17, 2020
The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultur... more The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultural frontier, with rapidly shifting contours that demand creative and critical examination. Rather than take the predominant bio-medical perspective that views ageing in terms of decline and deficit, in this paper I emphasise the poetics and potential of ageing, within a framework of cultural gerontology. From an existential, phenomenological perspective, I weave together current socio-political and psycho-biological research into gendered ageing, with feminist literature on the topic and my own auto-ethnographic narrative as an ageing woman. Drawing on Simone de Beauvoir and Paul Ricoeur, I examine how narrative identity can shift in older age, particularly if a new sense of creative agency is developed that supports the re-storying of lives. I argue that the diverse group of "baby boomer" women currently in their 60s, who I focus on in this essay, will reinvent the face of ageing, as they once transformed the makeup of the workplace.
Life Writing, 2018
The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultur... more The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultural frontier, with rapidly shifting contours that demand creative and critical examination. Rather than take the predominant bio-medical perspective that views ageing in terms of decline and deficit, in this paper I emphasise the poetics and potential of ageing, within a framework of cultural gerontology. From an existential, phenomenological perspective, I weave together current socio-political and psycho-biological research into gendered ageing, with feminist literature on the topic and my own auto-ethnographic narrative as an ageing woman. Drawing on Simone de Beauvoir and Paul Ricoeur, I examine how narrative identity can shift in older age, particularly if a new sense of creative agency is developed that supports the re-storying of lives. I argue that the diverse group of "baby boomer" women currently in their 60s, who I focus on in this essay, will reinvent the face of ageing, as they once transformed the makeup of the workplace.
Realising Exemplary Practice-Based Education, 2013
While the focus of practice-based education (PBE) is on students becoming practising professional... more While the focus of practice-based education (PBE) is on students becoming practising professionals, we contend that professionals inevitably and desirably bring their life experience to their practice, and so PBE curricula should also encompass learning for life. We want professionals to engage with the people and communities they work alongside, to be productive global citizens and to be enriched as people from their work as professionals.
Reflective Practice, 2013
Time for reflective thought is constricted in busy academic lives, with available thinking time f... more Time for reflective thought is constricted in busy academic lives, with available thinking time focused on urgent, analytical inquiry. Paradoxically, time spent in contemplative mindfulness, stepping back from insistent probing into a still, calm space, may allow increased clarity and focus on problems worthy of inquiry, once re-engaged. This essay highlights the dual dimension of reflection captured in the concept of 'mindful inquiry,' as a dialectic interchange between active critical inquiry and receptive open mindfulness. In the focus on robust critique in contemporary higher education, the value of contemplation is lost. Insights from Western and Eastern philosophy, as well as evidence from empirical research, suggest an integrated approach may allow alternative, creative and intuitive ways of approaching problems to supplement rational, problem solving strategies. The practice of 'mindful inquiry' also offers a practical tool, to enhance academic wellbeing as well as help prepare students for participation in life beyond university.
Routledge eBooks, Dec 17, 2020
The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultur... more The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultural frontier, with rapidly shifting contours that demand creative and critical examination. Rather than take the predominant bio-medical perspective that views ageing in terms of decline and deficit, in this paper I emphasise the poetics and potential of ageing, within a framework of cultural gerontology. From an existential, phenomenological perspective, I weave together current socio-political and psycho-biological research into gendered ageing, with feminist literature on the topic and my own auto-ethnographic narrative as an ageing woman. Drawing on Simone de Beauvoir and Paul Ricoeur, I examine how narrative identity can shift in older age, particularly if a new sense of creative agency is developed that supports the re-storying of lives. I argue that the diverse group of "baby boomer" women currently in their 60s, who I focus on in this essay, will reinvent the face of ageing, as they once transformed the makeup of the workplace.
Life Writing, 2018
The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultur... more The demographic shift to an ageing population in contemporary Western society offers a new cultural frontier, with rapidly shifting contours that demand creative and critical examination. Rather than take the predominant bio-medical perspective that views ageing in terms of decline and deficit, in this paper I emphasise the poetics and potential of ageing, within a framework of cultural gerontology. From an existential, phenomenological perspective, I weave together current socio-political and psycho-biological research into gendered ageing, with feminist literature on the topic and my own auto-ethnographic narrative as an ageing woman. Drawing on Simone de Beauvoir and Paul Ricoeur, I examine how narrative identity can shift in older age, particularly if a new sense of creative agency is developed that supports the re-storying of lives. I argue that the diverse group of "baby boomer" women currently in their 60s, who I focus on in this essay, will reinvent the face of ageing, as they once transformed the makeup of the workplace.
Realising Exemplary Practice-Based Education, 2013
While the focus of practice-based education (PBE) is on students becoming practising professional... more While the focus of practice-based education (PBE) is on students becoming practising professionals, we contend that professionals inevitably and desirably bring their life experience to their practice, and so PBE curricula should also encompass learning for life. We want professionals to engage with the people and communities they work alongside, to be productive global citizens and to be enriched as people from their work as professionals.
Reflective Practice, 2013
Time for reflective thought is constricted in busy academic lives, with available thinking time f... more Time for reflective thought is constricted in busy academic lives, with available thinking time focused on urgent, analytical inquiry. Paradoxically, time spent in contemplative mindfulness, stepping back from insistent probing into a still, calm space, may allow increased clarity and focus on problems worthy of inquiry, once re-engaged. This essay highlights the dual dimension of reflection captured in the concept of 'mindful inquiry,' as a dialectic interchange between active critical inquiry and receptive open mindfulness. In the focus on robust critique in contemporary higher education, the value of contemplation is lost. Insights from Western and Eastern philosophy, as well as evidence from empirical research, suggest an integrated approach may allow alternative, creative and intuitive ways of approaching problems to supplement rational, problem solving strategies. The practice of 'mindful inquiry' also offers a practical tool, to enhance academic wellbeing as well as help prepare students for participation in life beyond university.