Part of that tutorial will include a section dedicated to blogging for Professional Development.
Here is a small excerpt from my coming tutorial. (This was developed from adapting Teach.com’s Teach100 “10 Reasons to Blog as Professional Development”)
10 Reasons to Blog as Professional Development
- Blogging Helps you Think and Write more clearly.
Just like how students benefit from writing for an authentic audience, so will you. When you realize you are writing for other educators, or interested parties, you will write with more of a purpose than just providing feedback on 90 essays a semester.
2. Blogging connects you with other thought leaders.
By blogging, you will be connecting with other like-minded individuals; who you can argue with, and collaborate with. It will also provide you with an opportunity to get advice from teacher who perhaps have more experience than you.
3. Blogging will keep you accountable in meeting your learning and development goals.
Just like using an agenda helps you plan and meet deadlines - so can blogging. Even if you only have a few readers, they are still your readers. They are waiting for your publish your next post. Therefore, blogging will keep you going. It also provides a chance to get feedback from your readers about your learning and development.
4. Blogging will help you reflect.
Blogging, like journaling, or keeping a diary is a great way to collect and meditate on your teaching practice and experience. It can be extremely enlightening to look back on your posts and see how you have grown.
5. Blogging creates a landing page for your most important notes/thoughts.
No matter what you are blogging about, beit curriculum ideas, resources, or recaps; having a blog and being part of a digital community is a great way to keep track of what you have learned and already know. It also provides others a resource to look towards for advice on similar experiences.
6. Blogging can help you teach with Intention.
Blogging in and of itself is a declaration of who you are as a person and as a teacher. In making this declaration you will be publically (or privately, depending on your blog settings) saying you are determined to be the best you can be.
7. Blogging can give you an important and necessary motivation boost.
If positive reinforcement wasn’t so important, many of us wouldn’t be hooked on Facebook or Twitter. Blogging about your passions and teaching practices can be a great way to get support from your fellow teachers and education professionals; which will drive you to do better.
8. Blogging keeps you in the loop.
Blogging will help keep you current on the latest best practices in teaching, educational technologies, education reform, and much more.
9. Blogging may shape a new interest.
Who knows, your blog might be the stepping stone you needed to try something new. It could also help solidify you as an expert in what you are posting about.
10. Blogging is a source of feedback.
Beit positive or negative, teachers require feedback. Blogging is a great way to get global feedback on your lesson plans, teaching practices, field trip ideas, and much more. This feedback often leads back to number seven.
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