The Importance of Teacher Bloggers😀
I believe that it is necessary for teachers to be writers and to share our strategies, lessons, and resources with one another, as we are able to provide glimpses into our daily lives, while sharing effective ideas that are realistic and classroom-tested. In the past, teachers would submit articles to various teaching journals, wait several months for approval, then finally see their work published. Now, blogging has become a fast, effective, and easy way for teachers to become writers and publish content.
When I first began teaching, I did not know of any colleagues who wrote teacher blogs and I would have been hard pressed to explain why teachers would even become bloggers. Not only have I now become teacher bloggers ourselves, but I also regularly refer to many other teacher blogs as sources of inspiration for my own teaching, strategies to apply in the classroom, and places to learn about the newest trends in teaching.
Expand your PD
There are several reasons why teaching, writing, and blogging complement one another. Following various teacher blogs, commenting on the entries, and interacting with other teachers is an excellent form of professional development. Instead of only having local teachers in your professional learning community, you can now have teachers from all over the world to exchange stories, strategies, advice, and lessons.
When teachers become writers, they share their professional knowledge and learning with other teachers. Sharing your insight with other teachers allows you to discuss the best ideas to use in the classroom to meet the diverse needs of your students. What better way to improve your teaching than to have hundreds of teachers in your professional learning network?
Outlet for Personal Reflection
The process of writing allows you to learn more about your own teaching, as it forces you to reflect—on your teaching, the concepts you are focusing on, how your students learn, how you can improve your teaching, and why your ideas are valuable. By taking the time to think back on your teaching, the students in your class, and the strategies you are using, you will be able to discern what is working and what needs improvement.
The act of getting words on paper (or typing out those words!) is very cathartic and allows you to analyze your thoughts and actions in a much more reflective manner than it would be to simply think back on your day. While writing and reflecting, you will soon realize that your ideas are valuable and your insights are profound. We believe that reflecting and writing about our own teaching practices has made us better teachers and allowed our students to benefit as well. Writing is a very powerful tool that all teachers should have in their toolkit.
- Socrates
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