Appendix Section 6: Professional Goals and Dispositions

Part 1: Short Term and Long Term Goals

A recent short-term goal Ive set for this school year is related to the Student Growth
Project I am completing for my new school district. The goal is based around thesis writing for
history course essays. I am working on my scaffolding skills for teaching thesis writing so that
my students have a strong or mastering skill for thesis writing. Another short-term goal I have is
to attend at least 2 professional development programs outside of district-sponsored
professional development each semester. Attending professional development programs
outside of school not only provide educators with new content and pedagogy knowledge but
they also serve as a way for teachers to collaborate with other educators to improve teaching
practices. Since the start of this school year I have been searching for and discussing potential
professional development opportunities with both my colleagues in my department and with
other educators who I completed my undergraduate program with. These searches and
discussions have helped me find PD opportunities around the Chicago suburbs and within the
city itself, as well as some national opportunities in the future. Finally, a third short-term goal I
have is tied to my professional development goal, and that is I would like to be a presenter at a
teaching conference again. This past spring I presented at a technology conference about using
the Google Apps for Education in the classroom, and I would like to make a similar or the same
presentation at other education conferences and/or professional development days in my new
district. I have been discussing presenter opportunities within the district with my
administration and I am also talking with the organizers of the technology conference I
presented at previously to do another presentation at this school years conference.
A long-term goal I have in relation to my career in education is adding ESL/ELL courses
to my daily teaching assignment. During my Masters degree program, I specialized in ESL/ELL
education, so I would like to use the skills and techniques I learned in my ESL coursework to
help culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) students succeed with the English language. A
second long-term goal I have is that I want to continue to take coursework after I complete my
Masters program. Im still deciding on if I will continue into an education doctoral program, but
either way, continuing to take graduate level and higher coursework is a goal. Finally, a third
long-term goal I have is that I would like to become a department chair or coordinator for a
school districts social studies department. As a department coordinator/chair, I would be
taking on a more administrative role, but still being able to be in the classroom for at least one
class period a day (or possibly more depending on the school district). I think a department
chair position would be the best administrative role for me because I enjoy being in the
classroom and teaching students each day, but I also enjoy taking on the leadership roles that
administrative positions provide. To reach this goal, the previous long-term goal mentioned is a
great stepping stone (taking more graduate-level coursework). Obtaining another Masters in
education administration or even a Masters in history would help me reach this goal.