Reflection of SMART Goals 2012
Last year, I said I would:
- Improve my student’s use of math vocabulary in the content area.
- Help transform data into information for all teachers in our school.
- Improve my informal assessment techniques during the class time.
1. Improve my student’s use of math vocabulary in the content area.
Generally, I think I met my goals. I asked my students to use “hypotenuse” for the line opposite the right angle instead of “that line thingie,” or not settling for random guesses but assured values in their math work. The more I used the language in front of the students, they more they adjusted to it. It not only helped them understand the text they were reading in our class, but also have strong dialogue amongst their fellow classmates about the actual math. Their explanations became sharper and more extensive, and our classroom discussions became richer.
2. Help transform data into information for all teachers in our school.
For my second goal, I noticed that some of this work has been taken on by some of the teachers themselves. No longer do I have to explain to colleagues how to operate ARIS or dissect the numbers given on the state test per se. With the help of Dr. Fernandez’s workshops in the beginning of the year, people also got a taste of how to break down data to get a better understanding of their students. Most of the data experts in the building have gotten better at disseminating and sharing strategies for how to look at numbers more effectively. More importantly, people have started to share more about the qualitative and quantitative parts of their jobs. Always helpful.
3. Improve my informal assessment techniques during the class time.
This class took a while to build with my class because of their disparate needs, but over time, they started to make better attempts at answering my more poignant questions. Getting students to think is a legacy I hope to keep building. While some of my students still struggled with those types of questions, they were able to answer some of those questions, and hopefully, their growth will translate to gains when they ascend to higher levels of math.
I also had a set of teaching and leading goals for 2012. Here is an update on those:
At this point, you’ve seen my self-reflection in both teaching and leading as per the rubrics. In setting my goals for next year, I thought about the next steps that the math department and the school could use in enhancing our practice in the building. Thus, these are my three goals.
1. Improve pedagogical communication within the math department.
Last year, I set out on having more clear discussions with the math department about strengthening certain portions of the curriculum so each grade would reap from the benefits of students with better foundations. I have yet to see the data, but the conversations have been happening, on a personal level and on a department level. With the emphasis on the Common Core, people are finally starting to see that they need to make strategic changes to their pedagogy to meet the needs of the students, and make them think critically.
2. Better document how to use data as part of the classroom.
After putting together sample data folders for people, I think the majority of the school has an idea about how to gather, organize, and use data in the classroom to inform instruction. Generally, I haven’t had to do much of the front-end work with data because others have done this. Having said that, we still aren’t at 100% even with the data meetings that Dr. Fernandez has had with the majority of the school in the beginning of the year.
3. Align my student portfolio system to a common set of standards.
This year, the 8th grade pilot teachers focused our efforts on the Common Core pilot which essentially gave us assessments to give as part of our classroom curriculum. We
All of these parts connect to my work as a teacher and a teacher leader, and I hope to embark on another trek towards the best person I can be.
In the artifacts below, you’ll see the evidence of my works throughout the year with small descriptions of what they meant.