4 ways to develop your subject knowledge this year
Keeping up to date with subject knowledge can feel like a real challenge in the era that is missing those wonderful exam board hosted training days that used to walk you through how to deliver content to your learners on specific courses.
However, do not panic! There are tweaks you can make to your routine which will help you keep your subject knowledge fresh in this year and beyond.
Here are 4 tips to help you develop your subject knowledge this year…
Magazines
1. Check out a subject-specific magazine and ask your school/department to pay for a subscription – monthly CPD for less than £5 sounds like a good investment to me!
Bookmark the best things!
2. Create a bookmark folder in your web browser and label it ‘subject knowledge’ (this works really well if you use Google Chrome). Every time you find yourself on a website you will want to come back to, or one you know updates regularly, simply right click on the bookmark folder and choose ‘add to bookmark’. Now you can revisit the page easily without having to remember its name or address in future.
Hashtags in Social media
3. Check out subject specific # on FaceBook, Instagram and Twitter (eg #HistoryIcons and #TeamEnglish) and join subject/phase specific groups on FaceBook. These are all great ways of keeping knowledge up to date via colleagues who, like you, are in their classrooms trying things out every day! It is current subject knowledge and because it’s social media, you can ask how something worked in class and how easily something can be explained or demonstrated, opening up a dialogue with colleagues across the country or world.
Gatherings
4. Find subject-specific gatherings to attend (preferably free ones, but if there is a cost don’t be afraid to ask your faculty/department to cover the cost – this is CPD after all). Teachmeets and some of the bigger offspring from these events like #PrimaryRocks and #HistoryIcons “un-conferences” are super events that allow you to network with other teachers in your phase/sector/subject. They can enable you to connect with people who know a little more than you and you can learn from them how they’ve overcome the subject knowledge hurdles you might be facing.
I hope these 4 simple tips help you maintain and develop your subject knowledge this year.
Happy teaching!
