9 Benefits to Start Blogging for Teachers and Students

9 Benefits to Start Blogging for Teachers and Students
Having a hobby is something recommended for anyone, regardless of their occupation, status or interests. It’s important that every person has some activity they can enjoy and nurture.

The same goes for students and their teachers.

Since school hours can be quite hectic and stressful for some of them, having a hobby to relax and lose the negativity is a great idea.

However, it would be even better if the hobby brings you more than just a good time and a way to clear your head. Blogging is exactly the type of hobby we have in mind.

Both teachers and students could benefit from blogging on more levels.

If you’re interested to find out why blogging is such a great hobby for teachers and students, just keep reading.

Here are the 9 benefits you simply can’t ignore.

1. Developing Creativity

Creativity is something that we all have within us. All we have to do is learn how to release it.

Blogging is a brilliant way to help you open up to your creative and artistic self.

Writing is a form of art which requires you to:
  • brainstorm ideas
  • experiment
  • use your imagination
  • nurture ideas
  • find inspiration
All of the above mentioned leads to a more creative, imaginative, and innovate you.

This quality can benefit any teacher in terms of:
  • giving more inspiring lessons
  • assigning more original project ideas
  • providing students with intriguing, entertaining, and exciting education.
What students get from being more creative is also a huge benefit in terms of:
  • handling projects easily
  • coming up with unique solutions to problems
  • being more confident and self-assured
  • enjoying the studying process more
Therefore, blogging is definitely something students and teachers should give a go.

2. Expanding Knowledge

Another brilliant thing about blogging is that it allows you to learn while writing.

In order for bloggers to write informative articles which add value to the readers, they need to do some serious research aforehand.

In other words, they need to gather relevant information from authoritative sources using:
  • Google Scholar
  • online journals
  • scientific papers and dissertations
  • authoritative online sources
While researching for a topic, both the students and the teachers are actually:
  • learning new stuff
  • expanding their viewpoints
  • becoming more informed
  • acquiring valuable knowledge
There’s no need to further explain how beneficial knowledge is for anyone, and blogging is a fun way to acquire it.

3. Improving Writing

Writing skills are something any student or teacher should have under their belt.

In order to improve them and become better at handling written assignments, you need the practice. And what better way of practicing is there than writing about the things you love and care for?

Blogging can help students and teachers:
  • learn how to outline
  • revise each new draft
  • structure a piece of writing
  • organize information
  • develop an argument
Students and teachers can learn a lot about writing from blogging, and extensively improve their writing skills.

4. Building Vocabulary

Working on expanding and enriching your vocabulary is always a great idea. It helps you get your message across easily and be regarded as an educated, knowledgeable person.

Blogging helps you expand your vocabulary through:
  • research
  • reading scholarly materials
  • the process of writing and searching for the right words
As a result, you’ll gradually build your vocabulary and adopt new words and phrases you haven’t used before.

5. Handling Negative Feedback

Students often face negative feedback, either from their peers, teachers, or parents. On the other hand, teachers too can face the same problem but are often in the position to give feedback to their students, as well.

In order for students to learn how to handle negative feedback, and the teachers to learn how to give it, they need to be exposed to it more often.

Blogging helps you learn about the negative feedback due to the:
  • negative online comments
  • negative face-to-face comments
Regardless of the way you receive it, you need to learn how to cope with it:
  • recognize the useful advice
  • ignore the mean comments
Use blogging as a platform for dealing with negativity the right way.

6. Creating a Classroom Community

When students and the teacher gather around the same project, wonderful things can happen.
Blogging can be used to create a classroom community and nurture a productive, team-work atmosphere among the participants. Students and teachers can work together to:
  • run a blog
  • produce informative content
  • publish posts on a scheduled basis
  • practice teamwork
They can assign different roles to each participant, and have everyone work together to create an entertaining yet informative blog post. They can also change the roles for each new post so as to have everyone try out different things.

Here are some of the possible roles:
  • brainstormer
  • outliner
  • graphic designer
  • proofreader
  • editor
  • publisher
This will definitely bring the entire class together and benefit the overall school experience for each individual.

7. Following Technology Trends

Blogging requires you to have the basic knowledge of using a computer and browsing the web. However, if you take it just one step further you can learn a whole bunch of interesting, useful stuff.
We’re talking about the tools and apps you can use to make your content even better. Here’s just a couple of things every blogger should know how to use:
  • Design: Learn how to create your own infographics, diagrams, or collages by using online graphic design tools such as Canva or Creately.
  • Proofreading
Learn how to make your blog posts 100% mistakes free by using tools such as Grammarly or services like Rated by Students.
  • Plugins: Find out what incredible WordPress plugins there are and how you can improve your blog immensely by using some of them.
It’s important for a school teacher to follow the latest technology trends and keep up with the rest of the world. Students should also be informed about the way things are done using technology since they will need this knowledge for their future occupations.

8. Improve Critical Thinking

Critical thinking skills are something we all wish we had but not everyone manages to develop them properly.

Critical thinking is a process involving the following steps:
  • gathering information
  • analyzing them
  • combining them with personal viewpoints
  • forming a judgment
In other words, it’s the process of coming to your own conclusions by using cognitive processes and mental skills.

Blogging can help you practice critical thinking and become more self-assured when presenting something, participating in a discussion or an argument.

9. Earning Money

If you’re good at blogging and the content you write gets noticed by a wide audience, you can actually earn money from your blog.

The extra cash would come in handy for students and for teachers. Here’s a couple of ways in which a blog can be monetized:
  • Incorporate Google AdSense (Pay Per Click advertisements)
  • Publish sponsored posts
  • Sell coaching services
  • Sell eBooks
  • Start affiliate marketing
Whichever option you choose, you can earn some cash and turn your hobby into an occupation.
Conclusion

Blogging is a fun hobby with so many benefits. You can see just how much a student or a teacher can learn from practicing this activity. It’s fun, useful, and practical.

Therefore, if you’re thinking about starting a blog, we say go for it. There’s no reason not to do it. You’ll have fun and develop your mental, professional, and social skills.
Guest Author Bio: Daniela McVicker is an editor and blog writer at Top Writers Review. She worked as a college teacher for 3 years and helped a lot of students develop their writing skills. She likes to read futuristic novels, play Fur Elise by Beethoven on piano and play poker.