Quality GOALS need1:
- to be clear, specific and focused
- to monitor and evaluate progress
- to create plans
- to get and keep you motivated and engaged
- to provide you feedback
FOR EXAMPLE, Ian wants to go to a top university in Canada. His goal is to go to McGill, Waterloo, or UBC for Engineering – a clear, specific and focused goal. Ian knows that to gain acceptance to these schools, he will need to do well in his courses. He knows that he must have an 86% average for each of these schools’ admissions – his average is something he can use to monitor and evaluate his progress. Ian will focus on every assignment, lab, quiz, test, project in his class and work with his teachers when he is struggling – this is part of his plan to accomplish his goal. Knowing that university is less than a year away, he knows that his grades really count – keeping him motivated and engaged in his school work. Since Ian’s school gives reports every six weeks, he can be aware of his average – giving him a concrete record and feedback on his academic performance.
Quality GOALS have the following properties2.
Quality GOALS give you insight. They motivate you, increase your effort, the help you maintain your persistence, the influence you affective reactions. Goals are fundamental for self-regulatory cycles because they define standards for planning, monitoring, evaluating and regulating learning1.
ACTIVITY
To test your memory on the 8 properties of quality goals…
8 Goal Properties, GET A GRIP ON GOALS
To check your answers…
8 Goal Properties, Answers, GET A GRIP ON GOALS
Return to SRL and Goals, Get a Grip.
References:
1Hadwin, A. F., & Winne, P. H. (2011, in press). Promoting learning skills in undergraduate students. In M. J. Lawson & J. R. Kirby (Eds.),The quality of learning: Dispositions, instruction, and mental structures. New York: Cambridge University Press.
2Zimmerman, B. J. (2008). Goal setting: A key proactive source of academic self-regulation. In D. H. Schunk & B. J. Zimmerman (Eds), Motivation and self-regulated learning: Theory, research, and applications (pp. 267-295). New York, NY: Erlbaum
So you Really want 2 Learn (SR2Learn)? 
[…] GET A GRIP ON quality goals. […]
By: SRL and GOALS, GET A GRIP! « So you Really want 2 Learn (SR2Learn)? on June 7, 2011
at 9:49 pm
I really do appreciate the fact that there is a balance of information that is both theoretical and practical. You supply real life examples of goal planning. When I went to school in elementary and high school, goal planning was something that was expected to be intrinsic. Your teacher expected you to have goals, and expected you to know how to achieve them. I do not remember a teacher ever asking me anything other than, “what I wanted to be when I grew up”. And students who lacked the ability to plan, let alone attain goals, were somewhat cast aside. I was lucky enough that I had the drive and motivation to self regulate and plane and achieve the goals I have set out for myself.
As I then became a teacher myself, I have to admit that I also for many years continued that pattern of behavior of my predecessors. As I moved to teaching adult education, however, I noticed that my bag of tricks, or my lack of them, when it came to goal expectations was slowly dwindling as my course attendance and success would diminish every session no matter how hard I tried teaching what seemed to have function previously.
I attended an interesting professional development session on adult education learners one normal pedagogical day, which started clarifying how to help adult learners. I asked the McGill University professor why my classes and adult education in general was strife with learning issues, from attendance, learning disabilities, course abandonment, and behavioral issues. What he explained to me, and helped me start change my perception of goal attainment was that adult learners in particular needed to be given examples for them to understand many of the behaviors that some teachers may believe to be “innate” in people but may not actually be. For example, he mentioned that it would not be enough for me to tell a learner to not be late for class, but to give an example of what being late was, and how to react when one was late. What was being late for class for me, may not have been registered as such for a learner. Same thing for goals. He suggested that I specifically outline what the goal of completing the class successfully looked like (images, written, template, agenda etc.). Again, what I thought it “looked” like and what learners did did not necessarily match. Providing examples to learners is an important part of SRL, and it is a process that I will continue to work on. So far, I have tried to post more learner examples on my teacher website that I have provided for my students, whether it is about being late, or how to write a paragraph. I can add more!
This is what I enjoy about not only this post, but a few others. There is a discussion about goals, whether it is on quality, getting a grip, or a better understanding, but then there is a provision of an example. Providing examples for learners, whether it is for teachers or for students, is more of a modern philosophy and is well aligned with the popular growing movement of the growth mindset. I am not sure my grade three teacher, from 1978, who often called us “nitwits” had such a belief. It was already assumed and publicly hinted at who was going to be successful versus who wasn’t simply by their ability to self regulate. And, sadly the ones who were successful at regulating did get more positive and motivating feedback. By the way, my parents never called or flinched at the idea of being called a “nitwit”….how times have changed!
By: Isabelle Bertolotti on July 29, 2018
at 1:21 am
This Blog article on quality goal setting really stood out to me because it provides enlightening and informative details about making a good goal. In the past, I have asked myself what makes a good goal? Is this a good goal? Will this work? The Youtube video in this section expanded my knowledge on how to make a meaningful goal, because it will:
(i) Increase your persistence to achieve the goal
(ii) You will make choices and give attention that align with the goal
(iii) Gives you feelings of accomplishment and pride (when you have competed proximal goals aligned with the distal goal, and lastly
(iv) you will notice yourself increasing your effort. I think these are great tips in helping myself and others decide on whether or not we have made a good goal or not!
In addition to helping one decide if they have a good goal or not, this video provide further details on what your goal should include! Once you have decided on the quality goal, they should also have these 8 properties:
1. Your goals are specific and detailed.
2. Include proximal goals
3. Are broken into hierarchical structures
4. Ensure your goals are aligned and congruent
5. Have a degree of difficult or challenging
6. They are self-set, rather than assigned.
7. Determine whether or not it is a quality goal.
8. Are focused on the process of performance.
I really enjoyed the information this article has on quality goal setting. I will certainly refer back to this article and the information within it as I set new goals in the future. Thank you very much!
By: Crystal Wod on October 23, 2018
at 3:28 am
Many of us, in both our academics and personal lives set goals. I agree that our goals need attention to ensure the goal is of high quality. We can’t just a set the goal and then give it little or no attention. Ensuring that goals are specific is important to success. If we have to much ambiguity surrounding our goal it will be difficult to achieve. As we try to achieve our goals, I agree that is essential to monitor and evaluate. As we are going through the process of reaching our goals there needs to be time to reflect with the possibility of making changes. One of the most important aspects to having a quality goal, is having some aspects in which are challenging. If the goal does present any challenges, there is a good chance there will be a lack of motivation. Whether it be that the goal overall is challenging or just a portion. Challenging pieces lead to motivation, which can then lead to success. We can all set goals for the sake of setting goals but it is the ones that are of high quality that improve on our learning and success.
By: catherinewadden on October 24, 2019
at 2:10 am