GOALs SMART Goals

     Wait, What is a SMART Goal?

    Before attending Penn State last fall, I honestly had no clue what a SMART Goal was. Flash-forward to today, and I now know what it is, and also how they can help me set well thought-out goals. For my friends who read my blogs but have no clue what a SMART Goal is, let me give you the run down so you can follow the rest of my blog a little easier. 

Specific: Make your goals specific and narrow for more effective planning

Measurable: Define what evidence will prove you're making progress and reevaluate when necessary

Attainable: Make sure you can reasonably accomplish your goal within a specific timeframe

Relevant: Your goals should align with your values and long-term objectives

Time-Based: Set a realistic, ambitious end-date for task prioritization and motivation

    Basically, SMART Goals help to set specific goals with timelines. Well-planned goals are more likely to become acted upon and achieved within the timeline that was planned for. SMART Goals do take time to create, but they are so helpful when it comes to acting on those goals. 


What SMART Goals do I Have?

    Last week, I was tasked with creating three SMART Goals on the following sentences: 

        1. Encourage students to have an SAE that targets one of the Sustainable Development Goals

        2. Connections are helpful in growing a chapter

        3. Students enjoy creating their own projects and sharing their work with others


    Based on these three sentences, I was able to create three different SMART Goals

1. "Encourage students to have an SAE that targets one of the Sustainable Development Goals"

        During my time as an ag teacher, I will encourage multiple students to participate in an SAE project that targets at least one of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Ultimately, I hope to have at least one student a year whose SAE targets at least one SDG. Ideally, this would begin during my first year teaching post-graduation. For students to better understand the SDGs, my ag classes will participate in an intro lesson to the SDGs so they can understand what they are and how to address them in their community. At the end of my first year teaching, I plan to have at least one student's SAE target at least one SDG. 

2. "Connections are helpful in growing a chapter"

        Though I do not have any FFA connections from my home high school, I do have FFA connections across the country in Kalispell, Montana. My goal is to have my cooperating center's FFA chapter connected with Kalispell's chapter. More specifically, I want my cooperating center's students to have a Kalispell FFA Pen Pal. My hope is that this Pen Pal operation would be a semester-long interaction and that I can implement this within my first month of student teaching in Spring 2023. Conneaut Area FFA is very connected with their community as well as the state of Pennsylvania, but I would love to see them connected with another chapter across the country. By the end of the spring 2023 semester, I plan to have members from both schools send/respond to at least two different letters. 

3. "Students enjoy creating their own projects and sharing their work with others"

        It is not my intention for future students to enjoy creating their own projects and working independently, but rather to exhibit a learning environment that maximizes opportunity to embrace individuality and creativity. This learning environment will also embrace vulnerability so that students know they don't have to face their struggles alone. This will definitely take time, but by the end of my student teaching internship, I want to create a space where students feel comfortable with each other, as well as myself and Mrs. Palmer. I believe that students learn best in a space they are comfortable in, so creating a learning environment that encourages students to be the best that they can be will ultimately encourage students to absorb material and apply themselves in the classroom and beyond. At the end of my student teaching internship, at least one class will create and share a creative, individual project. 





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