Presented by Jeffrey Mattison and Jennifer Uhler at the 44th Annual TESOL Convention in Boston, Massachusetts on March 27, 2010.

1. 44th Annual TESOL Convention, Boston, Massachusetts
27 March 2010
Creating Community and Revitalizing Practice
Jeffrey Mattison, La Paz Middle School, Salinas, California
Jennifer Uhler, Georgetown University, Washington, DC

2. Self-Introductions
Blogging as Reflective Practice
Outcomes and Pitfalls
Future Outlook
Questions & Answers

4. Background
Educational Settings
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California, Japan,
Jamaica, and Russia
Highlights & Challenges
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5. Community
Professional Development

7. IEP
Community
Collaboration

8. Teacher Connections, Global Reflections
http://teachingwithoutborders.blogspot.com

9. Belief in the utility of reflective practice
Desire for professional development
Outlet for teacher talk
Digital experimentation and innovation

10. Bartlett-Bragg, 2003

11. 4/15/07 - In this blog you can expect to read three posts a week, one from each of us,
with reflections from our classroom or institution activities. We'll ask questions of
ourselves, each other, and our readers to build some dialogue. Please leave
comments to create a conversation!
How did you get started?
Invitation (March 2007)
Title negotiation
Blog hosting site
Reflective entry format
Tags
Frequency of posting
Public

12. 7/6/07 - Thanks to this blog as an outlet for my thoughts!
What features were evident in the initial
blogging stages?
Enthusiasm
Structured questions from writer
Conscientious responses from co-bloggers
Growing awareness of cyber audience

13. 5/12/07 - I'm glad I have this blog as some purpose and
outlet to look at my work through a TESOL lens.
How did your awareness of the reflective process grow
through blogging?
Extracting meaning for further evaluation
Future learning from past experiences
Frequency of posts
Expression of emotion
Writing for ourselves
Emerging trends

14. 2/12/08 - I hope that by writing this blog I’ll be able to
get some ideas from readers…
How were your voices as individuals displayed
in your writing?
Self-directed writing
Writing styles
External sources and references
Learning conversations

15. Known to Self Unknown to
Self
Known to Others
Unknown to
Others
Luft and Ingram,
1969

16. 9/30/09 - This blog has helped me to discover or reveal features of
my teaching that no observer or video camera could reveal.
How do you think your blog provides guidance
to readers?
Shared experience – you are not alone
Model of reflective teaching
Informed, sympathetic, authentic
professional dialog
Learning opportunities

17. March 23, 2007 – January 1, 2010
100 posts: Jenn (49); Jeff (45); Others (6)
Averages:
2007 43 posts
2008 27 posts
2009 30 posts
Comments
Visitor Traffic: 5,377 hits

18. 1. Classroom Management/Behavior
(28+18=46)
2. Motivation, Frustration, Burnout
(19+5+6=30)
3. Planning, Curriculum Design (12+5=17)
4. American Culture (12)
5. Flexibility/Adaptability (6+5=11)
6. Environment, Community (6+4=10)
7. Time Management (7)

19. Web Traffic TAPoR Corpus Analysis
http://www.sitemeter.com http://portal.tapor.ca
8,275 page views Analyze keywords in context
Visits fall precipitously after Eg. “awareness” occurs 14 times
privatization
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TIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.

20. Self-review & awareness raising
Jeff - Thanks to this blog, now I’m aware of it.
Cyclical reflection
Jenn - Even though Jeff and I share a commitment to reflection through this blog and I
believe wholeheartedly in systematic, purposeful reflection as a useful tool shaping my
teaching, I sometimes question whether it is a part of everyone's regular practice.
Advantages of digital medium
Jenn - This blog is an excellent outlet for professional conversation and support. It is perhaps one of
the best ways that I can let loose about the lingering questions that I have about my teaching.
Collegiality
Jenn - I apologize for neglecting this blog and the collegiality that I find here.
Active development
Jenn - I believe deeply in the importance of continuing professional development
(probably one of the reasons I am participating in this blog!)

21. The world is too small: Public vs. Private
Jeff & Jenn - We removed public access in June 2009.
Widely different contexts
Jenn - How do you deal (obviously in a very different context) with hostile
students?
Over-magnification of insecurities
Jeff - Perhaps these are my own insecurities as a teacher that I'm voicing.
Attrition, participation
Hisako - Unfortunately, for personal reasons, I am very sorry to announce that
I won’t be able to continue participating in the regular postings.
Time
Jeff - I apologize for the two weeks of quiet on this blog.
Changing foci and reflective outlets
Jeff - I realize that going on my third year with this blog, I have regressed
further and further into classroom management and self management.

22. Teaching without Borders 3.0?
Some considerations
What reflective practice has been most
meaningful to you as a TESOL professional?
How do you think technology could enhance
that reflection?

23. Bartlett-Bragg, A. (2003). Blogging to learn.
The Knowledge Tree: An e-Journal of Flexible
Learning in VET, Edition 4. Retrieved from
http://knowledgetree.flexiblelearning.net.au/
edition04/pdf/Blogging_to_Learn.pdf
For a full list of our Reflective Teaching and
Blogging references, please email us!

24. Jeffrey Mattison
jsmattison@gmail.com
Jennifer Uhler
jenniferuhler@gmail.com
*For more details on the technical side of how
to set up a reflective teaching blog, please
email us!