What have I learned from the year gone by?
Here are a few insights to give you a sense of everything I’ve been doing throughout 2022 in my bid to support teachers to work more efficiently.
1. We teach in a beautiful country!
I’ve visited 44 schools and colleges throughout 2022, reaching Amman (Jordan), my first trip since COVID, plus to various corners of England and Wales. E.g. Belfast, St. Davids, Durham and Poole. What I’ve learned from …travelling across the UK is that we have a beautiful country that few have had the chance to see!
2. All teachers work hard
I’ve worked with ~3,000 teachers. What a privilege! You can get a sense of my physical footprint across the UK from this map (excluding my trip to Jordan). What I’ve learned from … working with 1,000s of teachers is that everyone is working flat out, doing their best!
3. Teachers like emails!
I’ve shared 114 newsletters throughout 2022 – apologies to subscribers. What I’ve learned from … sharing mailshots is that no matter when you send them, people will still open them if they are useful and regular.
4. Teachers open emails on a Friday afternoon!
Since September, I’ve emailed you 53 times – apologies again!! What I’ve learned from … this year is emailing teachers on a Friday afternoon is popular!
5. Newsletters are king!
If we factor in 45,000 regular readers, that’s 5,130,000 emails. What I’ve learned from … sending lots of emails, is that it’s the best way to reach your audience.
6. Teachers want resources
On the blog, 771,000 people have read almost one million pages on this site – take a look! What I’ve learned from … blogging is that teachers need exemplary materials.
7. Peak reading time
Peak reading time (68% of you in the UK) is always on Sundays to Thursdays, 7-9 PM. This has been the case for many years, which is why blog posts and resources are shared at these times to suit your reading habits. What I’ve learned from … analytics is that all teachers read up after working hours, but don’t bother on a Saturday!
8. The challenges remain the same …
Over 250 blogs have been published, and 41 new resources. The most popular blog post of the year; over 15,000 people read it, even though it was published in 2018. What I’ve learned from … writing about the challenges teachers face across the system, is that you will be inundated with responses, and the same challenges are not getting any easier.
9. Watching the watchdog
Published in 2022, this blog gathers your views on the current challenges, resonating with 11,000 people. What I’ve learned from … research is that teachers are curious about what the Department for Education and/or Ofsted is researching.
10. Most popular resource
This resource remains the most popular download; access to this is approaching 3.5 million downloads! Finally, this new resource published in 2021/22 is very popular, with over 3,000 teachers using The Toolkit. What I’ve learned from … sharing resources is that the 5-minute lesson plan is my greatest hit; popular worldwide!
Oh, and my new book is now available on Amazon!
It’s been another interesting and busy year. Wishing you all the best for the term ahead …
Image: Art classroom, The Hayling College, Hayling Island.
