Part 1.4: Learning Goals

BECOMING A BETTER LEARNER…

I’ve made excellent progress in terms of handing in everything on time (Goal 1). As of when the goal document was first handed out, I have not missed a deadline. Setting up Trello for tracking due dates and reminders has been a huge help, as it keeps me on top of upcoming deadlines and helps me prioritize tasks. The way I track this goal is simply by Google Classroom, ensuring that I give myself sufficient time to complete each assignment to the best of my capability. I want to keep this goal moving into the second term as a big problem I faced last year was late assignments, and deadlines are super important to be able to handle. Currently, I would say that I have successfully completed this goal beyond my expectations, making this “E” level.

Term 2 Update: In the second half of the semester, I continued to maintain this goal as best as I could, but unfortunately it became significantly more difficult with more and more outside responsibilities piling up. I continued to utilize Trello for tracking due dates and reminders that greatly benefited my ability to hand in assignments prior to the deadline. However, I failed to avoid mismanaging my time and end up cramming in assignments last minute. For example, I completed the final essay within a few days of the deadline instead of utilizing time over the winter break to showcase my best work. This is why I believe that I have downgraded my performance on this goal since the midterm and think that I met expectations, but certainly did not exceed them.

For questioning skills (Goal 2), I believe that I ask a ton of questions in class when I feel stuck or need clarification. Before, if I was stuck on a problem, I was expected to figure it out myself, but opening up with confusion and asking my peers and instructor have greatly benefited me. Whenever I’ve asked a question, it’s always helped me get back on track. Thus, I believe that this goal is worth having going into the next term. However, I may be asking too many questions without first carefully reading over instructions. I haven’t been thoroughly tracking my questions throughout this term. For some major questions, I like to note them down on my phone to remember what I asked and the answer, but I could definitely start tracking them in the learning tracker. Reflecting upon this, I believe I have exceeded my goal and therefore, this should be “E” level progress.

Term 2 Update: Throughout the rest of the semester, I continued to ask questions whenever I was confused and often asked Ms. Oliver as well as the peers around me regarding any topic I was confused about. However, I learned to read carefully and try to be as independent as possible prior to asking for help from others. Although I asked less questions, the questions that I did ask were more reasonable and ultimately helped me more. These questions are reflected in my learning tracker. I believe that I have exceeded my goal and therefore, this is also an “E” level progress.

As for my goal of taking detailed notes in class (Goal 3), I haven’t had the chance to take any notes yet. However, in future discussions that contain important information to my learning in this course, I will use notability to jot down points and start a habit of reviewing and summarizing material at home. This will ensure I build healthy habits moving into post-secondary education. Since I haven’t actually followed through on this goal, this goal needs improvement which makes it “N” level.

Term 2 Update: I ended up removing this goal as I believed throughout the second semester, there were rarely any chances to take effective notes that I could refer back to that would greatly benefit me.

I believe that these three goals are useful to my learning and will help me keep on track of all my classwork, making it necessary to keep these goals moving forward. However, I need to be able to actively track all of them in order to visibly see any improvement.