I am delighted to welcome you to this exciting new self-publishing feature on the Education Matters Blog.

Register now as a contributor to the Education Matters Blog and you can self-publish your news, views, and stories directly on the website.

The first edition of the newsprint Education Matters published in 1987

As the founder of Education Matters more than 30 years ago, I look now at a well-worn copy of the first newsprint edition from 1987 and find that my reasons and aims for launching it are just as relevant and valid today.

In that first edition, I introduced Education Matters as a ‘new medium for teachers’:

“One of our primary objectives is to provide a platform for educators to communicate their news and views to one another. Currently, there is little or no scope to do this across the education sectors. Moreover, the structure of the educator’s day tends to bind him/her to their books and their students. They live in a child-orientated or adolescent world and have little opportunity for meaningful exchange with colleagues. The hope is that this newspaper will go some way towards alleviating the isolation frequently experienced by educators. . . .

Not least of our aims is to stimulate, entertain, and motivate educators, who often have to battle to preserve self-esteem in an unappreciative ethos.

Vital issues such as stress at work, unmanageable numbers, lack of in-service training, feelings of inadequacy in the face of new technology, student apathy, the absence of a formulated philosophy within a particular school, lack of literacy at Third level, lack of integration between First, Second and Third level, outdated curricula, the examination system, and many other relevant issues, will be raised in future editions.

This newspaper is your newspaper. We rely on your interest and support to make it a success and invite you to write to the Editor, sending your comments and recommendations. If you feel strongly about a matter relating to education, write about it in Education Matters.”

Much has changed since the 1980s – but some things have not, such as the human need and desire for communication.

We invite you to use the Education Matters Blog to express yourself, share your professional news and views, tell stories, ask questions, and make suggestions – in a word, to communicate with your fellow educators and others in the education space.

Our thanks to Graphic Designer Jeroen for adding this new facility to our website.

Beir bua agus beannacht

Go raibh maith agaibh