Professional Growth Goal (2022-23)
After completing my Individual Development Plan, CSTP Self-Assessment, and discussing with my supervisor, my Professional Growth Goal for this year was centered on CSTP 2 Creating and Maintaining Effective Environments for Student Learning & CSTP 5 Assessing Students for Learning. Specifically, I focused on incorporating high standards and support for all students. Additionally, I aimed to provide feedback in a timely manner based on assessment data.
Outcome: As I reflect upon this year and my post CSTP Self-Assessment, I realize the amount of growth that took place throughout this year. To begin, I made the intention to connect with my students more this year by getting to know them through resources like funds of knowledge surveys or mid-year surveys that have them reflect on their learning and my teaching. These surveys provided me with more insight on my students' backgrounds, their strengths, and their needs for improvement. In addition to the surveys, I also stepped out more of my comfort zone to have interpersonal communication with my students to show that I recognize they are human, and to demonstrate that so am I. This has helped a lot as students are now more likely to approach me and communicate how I can better support them in the classroom.
In regard to assessments, I significantly improved in this area in comparison to any of my previous teaching years. I made it a personal goal of mine to have grades up to date within a two-week period. This allowed me to not only provide feedback in a timely manner, but also make modifications to the instruction based on the data that I collected from the assessments. I also experimented with different types of assessments this year. One of them was incorporating a presentational summative assessment, which I have never tried before with my 5th & 6th grade classes; the result of this assessment turned out better than any traditional assessment I have used in the past. Overall, I really learned to appreciate and recognize the importance of assessment within the classroom, and how I can use the data to enhance the quality of my teaching and the learning environment.
Outcome: As I reflect upon this year and my post CSTP Self-Assessment, I realize the amount of growth that took place throughout this year. To begin, I made the intention to connect with my students more this year by getting to know them through resources like funds of knowledge surveys or mid-year surveys that have them reflect on their learning and my teaching. These surveys provided me with more insight on my students' backgrounds, their strengths, and their needs for improvement. In addition to the surveys, I also stepped out more of my comfort zone to have interpersonal communication with my students to show that I recognize they are human, and to demonstrate that so am I. This has helped a lot as students are now more likely to approach me and communicate how I can better support them in the classroom.
In regard to assessments, I significantly improved in this area in comparison to any of my previous teaching years. I made it a personal goal of mine to have grades up to date within a two-week period. This allowed me to not only provide feedback in a timely manner, but also make modifications to the instruction based on the data that I collected from the assessments. I also experimented with different types of assessments this year. One of them was incorporating a presentational summative assessment, which I have never tried before with my 5th & 6th grade classes; the result of this assessment turned out better than any traditional assessment I have used in the past. Overall, I really learned to appreciate and recognize the importance of assessment within the classroom, and how I can use the data to enhance the quality of my teaching and the learning environment.
Professional Goal Moving Forward
As I continue to develop as an educator, I would like to improve in setting short-term and long-term goals with my students. Focusing on assessments this year has helped me to better understand the areas of how I can improve my instruction so that students are more likely to succeed in their learning. However, it seems that many times students receive feedback and they don't take the time to personally set goals for so that they can improve and excel. That being said, I want to create an environment where students set goals for their learning, and I can support them through my instruction. I want there to be a genuine passion to want to learn and eliminate the focus of simply getting a good grade in class. To do this, I need to begin by setting my own instructional and learning goals for my students and communicating that to them so that they are aware of my expectations. In addition, I can have surveys where students establish their own personal goals. Afterwards, I can dedicate time to check in with them to talk about their progress and how I can better support them in attaining their goals. All in all, setting short-term and long-term goals allows us to be accountable to each other and create a positive learning environment.
The Profession of Teaching
Each year of teaching I recognize there are so many aspects that make up the teaching profession. For many, the teaching profession can cause burnout if not prepared properly. For me, one thing that has helped me to reduce burnout is to remain connected with other educators and grow my professional learning network. For example, I am constantly in contact with my mentor teacher from my credential program, and my high school French teacher. They have been amazing mentors and encouragers as I try my best to navigate through this profession. In addition, I have joined online professional learning communities created specifically for French teachers where we can ask questions, share ideas, or even vent about our concerns. Another thing that has helped me professional is seeking growth in my subject matter. I do this by researching newest teaching strategies, trends, information, etc. that can help me to stay current with the content, and enhance my teaching quality. This in return helps me to stay passionate about teaching because I never find myself in a routine or teaching the same thing over and over without any modifications. Overall, the advice I could give to a newer teacher is to find a good work-life balance and stick to it. The burnout begins to form when we are spending too much time at work, or when we fall behind because we are spending too much time in our leisure activities. Finding that balance is key to not burning out which will allow you to stay passionate about students, teaching, and learning.