By referring to it at a later date to review what may have worked and what didn't
James,
Yes, and you've articulated well the point that a teaching journal can be whatever the teacher wants it to be, personalizing with observations, notes, comments, and other such documentation that may or may not be useful in the future. That's the thing, we often don't know what will be useful until later on.
Barry Westling
A journal assists the instructor to not only record what was taught, but how it was taught, what problems/successes were had, and notes for improvement. It can be used in course developement/program review to show gains.
James,
Most instructors who journalize find it becomes kind of addictive, especially after some time has elapsed and they review their notations. They invariably find the time is a wise investment.
Barry Westling
You can see what topics you covered and ones that you still need to cover as well as the methods used and the progress of the students. You can also rate your success in how well you got the material across.
I do not keep one, but maybe I will start now as the benefits will outweigh the extra time invested.
Leon,
Like a personal journal, a teaching journal is personal, for the use of an instructor to jot notes about whatever they may observe, want to record or document, or refer back to sometime in the future. The benefit is in the reflection on these notes at a later date. They often reveal growth, improvement, or are just interesting to see how the instructor viewed their class in the past.
Barry Westling
I do not use this at all but I can see the benefits for new instructors; such as how to resolve issues, common procedural questions, important course events for noting in administrative reports, etc.
Leon Guendoo
Adrienne,
Some of my earlier notations were on 3X5 inch note cards stapled to a page in the curriculum binder. I've since moved to mostly electronic (but I miss the older, tangible ways I used to commnicate with myself). The biggest benefit to elctronic means is the relative easy access by search, whereas, thumbing through pages to find something "I thought I wrote down" was not too efficient. Reflective...yes. Efficient...not really!
Barry Westling
Brenda,
True. By close observation and self analysis, we can see a clearer picture of how things are, and how we want them to be. Upon reflection at a later time, we can also measure our own growth and degree of improvement.
Barry Westling
It can help you to remember what did and did not work in the classroom. I am actually keeping a teaching binder :) It has my lesson plans, handouts, etc. in it so when a student loses a handout or missed class I can easily give it to them. But, I do make notes on my lesson plans and amend them when I think there is some area for improvement or I want to try something new. I save everything both in hard copy and on a thumb drive. I often go back to past class materials and resurrect projects.
By keeping a journal, the instructor can reflect on what occured in the classroom, and how to make adjustments for a richer educational experience, as well as teaching experience.
Sandhya,
Anything that guides instructors to making ongoing improvements in their classes is worthy of doing, and a teaching journal can serve that purpose. It takes little time but can be quite valuable later on. And its personal in a way that allows the instructor to jot notes and use it any way they feel is helpful.
Barry Westling
Keeping a teaching journal allows one to make notes about what is effective and what is not. It provides feedback. One can use the information to make any necessary changes that would facilitate student learning and help them to be successful.
Andrew,
Great ideas that seem to work for you. Reflection on the past makes for better presentation and delivery the next go around.
Barry Westling
Journals are especially helpful to me the next time a teach a course. After each class, I write down a few notes such as how good/bad a particular topic or discussion went, if students seemed to understand the material, and how short/long a particular activity was. Then, the next time I teach that course I am able to better structure the flow of each class and sometimes present the material in a more effective way.
Melanie,
This is a common use for journalizing. Other uses include class observations, interesting student questions, reactions and personal responses to class situations, etc. It's like jotting things that when reviewed at a later date, we see aspects of ourselves, perhaps growth, and how we looked at things compared to present day.
Barry Westling
I believe that it will enable me to look back at the items I have lectured on and remember key information that I wanted to elaborateon next time or change for the next lecture. It will also remind me to fix any errors that were identified.
Holly,
Good! Instructors use journals for a whole lot of reasons, all of them personal, and largely beneficial I suspect.
Barry Westling
I love this idea. I have used a journal many times for personal improvement and discovery, but have not thought about using a journal to reflect on my class or instruction. This makes so much sense, since I agree that the key to instructional improvement is reflection. Taking time after class or lab to write down what went well and what I thought could have been improved should help me see trends and avoid repeating similar mistakes.
Adam,
Good rationale. I reflect on my past notes, whether it's for information, recall of noted facts, or just to review to measure growth over time.
Barry Westling
