Reflection
The self-imposed deadline for my goal of learning the phonetic chart is coming up. Wen I started this journey I thought the upcoming date would feel like this:
However, reality looks more like this:
To be honest, I have spent a lot of time debating whether I succeeded or failed at my goal. Did I fail because I didn't reach the outcome I wanted? Or did I succeed because of how much I learned about myself, self-regulated learning and goal setting along the way?
I choose the latter.
I am much more comfortable, familiar and competent with the chart than when I started, but I would struggle to write more than a few sentences without error. I believe the reason I am not where I thought I would be is because my goal was unrealistic (considering the time line), I didn't always dedicate the allotted time to studying the way I said I would (I may delete this ;), and my main strategy for learning - memorization - was not the most effective method.
My interest in earning the phonetic chart is personal rather than situational (Shunk and Zimmerman, 2012) therefore I will not be abandoning my goal but seeking new ways to adapt future methods. This will mainly include readjusting my expected outcome. Over the last several weeks, I have observed that my ability to absorb phonetic symbols properly takes anywhere from 1-2 weeks. This means that after much repetition, review, and practice am I finally comfortable with new things! I have also noticed that need to keep reviewing the old material or else I will forget it or confuse it with new things.
JUST LIKE MY STUDENTS LEARNING NEW VOCABULARY!
Therefore, one strategy will be to review, repeat, review, repeat, review, repeat...
The other strategy will be to be to extend the deadline for competency based on what I can accomplish in a week. I believe based on past performance I should be competent within the next 2-3 months. I am hesitant to post a specific date because I will also be implementing the strategy to continuously reflect on and reassess my progress and methods.
Working towards this goal has had tremendous effects (both positive and humbling) on my own feelings of self-efficacy as an SRL learner and educator. I realize I like to bite off more than I can chew and I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself. However, I am more confident in my capability to self-regulate my own learning and have learned different strategies, techniques, and reward systems to keep me focused and motivated. I have applied the SRL theories in many other aspects of my professional and personal life. I am reviewing the stages of SRL in the classroom more often. I am setting professional and personal goals differently now as well. For example, I am setting different fitness goals when I go to the gym . I have also undertaken the project of organizing all the materials I've collected over the past 4 years of teaching (lesson plans, worksheets, flashcards, activities..) and using the SRL method to keep me focused.
