Monroe Clark Middle School School Counseling & Guidance Program Classroom Guidance Results Danielle Duarte San Diego State University Field Work Student

Classroom Guidance Delivery Plan Presented lesson in all three 8th grade House B English classes (approximately 100 students) 50 minute lesson on helpful teen habits and setting goals Lessons were delivered in September 2008

Guidance Curriculum Topics Helpful Teen Habits Defined ‘habit’ and brainstormed good and bad habits Students filled out a worksheet based on their important and unimportant activities and discussed ways to prioritize. Goal Setting Used Goal Setting Section in Student Agenda to read examples of short- and long-term goals. Students created their own goals and wrote them in their agenda.

Goals of the Lesson Goals Included: To help students identify their productive and non-productive habits and understand the importance of prioritizing. To teach students to differentiate between a short- and long-term goal and apply the principles of goal setting to create their own goals.

American School Counselor Association National Standards Academic Standard A Students will acquire the attitudes, knowledge and skills that contribute to effective learning in school and across the life span. Career Development Standard A Students will acquire the skills to investigate the world of work in relation to knowledge of self and to make informed career decisions. Personal/Social Standard B Students will make decisions, set goals and take necessary action to achieve goals.

American School Counselor Association Student Competencies A:A2.1 Apply time management and task management skills C:A1.6 Learn how to set goals PS:B1.9 Identify long- and short-term goals PS:B1.12 Develop an action plan to set and achieve realistic goals

Why Goals? Research tells us… Goal setting is one critical component of school success.1 Setting goals helps students develop responsibility for their learning and helps them gain an internal sense of control.2 Brigman & Campbell, 2003 Educational Research Service, 2004

Results from California Healthy Kids Survey 2007 Why Goals? Achievement Data Results from California Healthy Kids Survey 2007 7th Grade students who reported they have goals and aspirations San Diego Unified California California healthy kids survey: Technical report for San Diego Unified School District & California (Spring 2007). WestEd.

Why Goals? Achievement-Related Data Results from California Health Kids Survey 2007 7th Grade students’ reported level of self-efficacy (believe in their abilities to succeed) Low Moderate High California healthy kids survey: Technical report for San Diego Unified School District (Spring 2007). WestEd.

Based on first quarter progress report Why Goals? Clark’s Achievement Data Percent of 8th Grade students receiving F’s in their core classes: 12% with F’s in English 20% with F’s in Math Based on first quarter progress report Reminder – only students with no F’s on their last semester report card can participate in promotion activities!

What Do the Students BELIEVE? Students who believe their habits can be changed Number of students who strongly agree increased by 181%! Students who believe their habits can be changed

What Do the Students KNOW? Percentage of students who understood the definition of prioritize Pre-Test Post-Test The percent of students nearly doubled

What Do the Students KNOW? Percentage of students who could differentiate between short- and long-term goals Pre-Test Post-Test That’s a 194% Increase!

What SKILL Did They Learn? 91% of the students created short- and long-term goals and wrote them in their student agenda.

Types of Goals Students Created Most students created goals based on grades and/or promoting from 8th grade

Achievement-Related Results Six months later, 76% of students reported they were halfway to their goal or further.

Achievement-Related Results Six months later, 94% agreed or strongly agreed that completing their goal for the year would help them reach other goals in the future.

Implications & Limitations Students showed they already knew some of the material presented A few students looked at their pre-test answers when completing the post-test Results data was not measured for this lesson Some of the pre/post test questions were confusing The prioritizing activity was a bit complex and should be more developmentally appropriate

Recommendations Give pre-test to a sample of students and adapt the lesson based on their responses, prior to administering lesson to entire House Use different scantrons for pre and post tests Accommodate for different academic and developmental levels when designing the lesson Consider visiting the classrooms for a follow-up lesson to see where students are at in their goal-setting process and provide further support

Next Steps Analyze this year’s CHKS data for the percentage of students who reported having goals and aspirations Speak with teachers about conducting a short follow-up lesson to reinforce the lesson concepts Work with students individually and in small groups for more support of developing and maintaining goals (intentional guidance) Analyze academic data to analyze any improvements

Thank You Monroe Clark’s Counseling Department is striving to guide all students to achieve their full potential in the areas of academic, career, and personal/social development. Thank you for your support!

References Brigman, G. &Campbell, C. (2003). Helping students improve academic achievement and school success behavior. Professional School Counseling 7(2), 91-98. Retrieved December 5, 2008 from http://www.umass.edu/schoolcounseling/PDFs/BrigmanCampbell.pdf Educational Research Service (2004). Motivating reluctant learners. Retrieved December 5, 2008 from https://www.psdschools.org/documentlibrary/downloads/Teaching_Resources/ERS_Supporting_Good_Teaching_Series/Motivating_Reluctant_Learners.pdf Hatch, T. (2007). Using the FLASHLIGHT BUILDER © approach to measuring and sharing results! The Center for Excellence in School Counseling and Leadership. Retrieved December 15, 2008 from www.cescal.org/flashlight.cfm