What can educators do to help students care about their learning and become more invested in their own success? Chase Nordengren describes how a school district created a goal-setting culture in all classrooms at all grade levels. The district began with a complex, research-based, prescriptive program that teachers found did not work well with certain students. Young students, for example, did not understand the goal-setting forms that were part of the program. As teachers adapted the program to fit their students, Nordengren was able to discern certain commonalities in teachers’ use of goal setting that made them successful. Based on these observations, he suggests that educators start their goal-setting efforts early, set short-term goals, provide visual tools, make goal setting personal, and center student choice.
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