Reflective Teaching Month Day 1

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This challenge could not have come at a better time!  I want to be committed to blogging because I appreciate the opportunity to reflect on my practice.  However, I will agonize over topics for an eternity, and before I know it the moment has passed and another blog is lost.  So thank you @teachthought for giving us a question a day to blog about.  Now no excuses!  So here I go with day one...

Prompt: "Write your goals for the school year.  Be as specific or abstract as you'd like to be!"

As an Administrative Team, we identified our goals a few weeks ago.  I am not going to list them here verbatim as they are very specific to our site.  However, I will gladly share the 30,000 foot view so as to keep me honest and to provide motivation and accountability:

1. Improve communication.  Many of our constituents have faulty perceptions of what we do on a daily basis to help their daughters grow intellectually, spiritually, and personally during their 4 years with us.  However, perception is always reality.  Thus, my job is to change the perception this year, or at least begin the process.  Besides our parents, the faculty and staff are often frustrated by policy changes so I am trying to help alleviate those frustrations through better, more frequent, and clearer communication.

2. It is important to say "Great Job!"  For that reason, I am striving to let students and adults know when they have done a great job.  This might be for getting a solid grade on their first test as a freshman, leading the charge on a project no one wanted to head, or anything in between.  Sadly we have been back for two weeks already and while I have a list of students and adults that I want to send those first notes to, I have yet to find the time to do so.  Note to self: write those notes!

3. There are lots of technology changes in place for this year on our campus.  However, I can't ask the teachers to improve their technology skills if I don't do the same.  So, for my own growth and development I will continue to learn new tech skills (hoping that this will be the year I learn how to make a cool iMovie!) and attend tech conferences as well as seek to present at conferences. I have already been accepted for #FallCUE and get to attend #IntegratED SF with a couple of colleagues after one of them won admission when we were attending #edcampSFBay.  So this goal is well under way.

I am happy to have these goals noted here because I think a more public acknowledgement of them will help me stay more focused on achieving them.

Good luck to all the educators undertaking the 30 day blogging challenge this month.  May we all support each other and learn a little bit more about ourselves in the process.

Happy Reflective Teaching Month!

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