I went to a conference last week on education reform and what leaders need to do to make sustainable change in the ways we teach our kids. One of the driving messages was the idea that we need to strive for deeper understandings. That it is not enough to just prepare students for tests, that we must ensure that learners can think, challenge and ask the right questions for real learning to occur.

One particular theme hit home for me, as I saw this relating to stuttering as well. “We have a moral obligation to share what we know. Knowledge does no good if we don’t pass it along.”

In the stuttering community, we do have that same obligation. To share our ideas, ask questions, be honest about what works for us and what doesn’t, and talk about our needs. This is the main reason that there are so many good sites and blogs about stuttering. To share information, provoke thought and get us thinking about the tough stuff that maybe is not talked about all of the time.

I know this is why I write. I feel compelled to share what I know, what I think and feel about stuttering in general and my stuttering as it relates to my world and my life. There are many people who are afraid to talk about stuttering. If we don’t talk about it, we lose a precious opportunity to generate ideas and possibly new directions to help each other.

These are a few of the things I feel obligated to do as a person who stutters and has lived this experience.

• openly talk about stuttering, to help normalize it for me and others
• let people know it is OK to ask me questions
• share with people what I think about stuttering
• discuss ideas and research I read or hear about with other people
• teach people who don’t know about stuttering what it really is
• be honest about stuttering feelings – fear, shame, worry, uncertainty
• be encouraging to those who feel negative or hopeless about their stuttering
• talk to kids and parents and SLPs as much as possible about stuttering
• seize teachable moments to help somebody understand on a deeper level
• recognize that each of us who stutter is an expert on our stuttering

We can’t be greedy with our knowledge. Our experience, our journey, what we have learned, is a valuable commodity. We have to share it with others, and as corny as it sounds, light the path for others. I really do believe this is my personal responsibility. We make a difference.

What about you? Do you agree? Do you feel responsible for sharing your knowledge?