Student Growth Goals
Student Growth Goals
Student Growth Goals is how Richardson ISD supports student academic achievement throughout the school year.
It is a result of our Strategic Plan and district’s North Star Goal:
North Star Goal
Every student, teacher, and leader will meet or exceed their academic growth goal.
Strategic Plan Goal 1:
RISD will design and implement systems that provide the necessary structure, support, and tools to ensure that staff and students achieve individual growth.
RISD will design and implement systems that provide the necessary structure, support, and tools to ensure that staff and students achieve individual growth.
Why Student Growth Goals?
In pursuit of our North Star Goal, students define two personal growth goals:
- Academic Goal: Focused on measurable data and performance.
- Life-Ready Goal: Tied directly to core competencies in RISD’s Graduate Profile.
Why Student Goal Setting Works
- High-Impact Pairings: Goal setting stands as one of the most effective classroom instructional strategies, specifically when paired with systematic, structural teacher feedback. (Marzano 2009)
- Massive Achievement Gains: Ranks student goal setting and self-reported progress among the absolute top influences on achievement. This metacognitive ownership drives a high effect size of 1.44. (Hattie 2009)
- Learning vs. Performance: Student focus on learning mastery goals show significantly higher levels of active academic engagement, self-efficacy, and task persistence. (Schunk 1990)
- Building Autonomy: Goal setting is not a passive task—it serves as the catalyst that enables students to transition from passive learners into autonomous, strategic, and self-regulated achievers. (Zimmerman 2002)
The Impact of Professional Goal Setting as a Life Skill
-
Provides direction and focus
-
Increases motivation and performance
-
Promotes individual growth and lifelong learning
-
Fosters accountability and progress tracking
Professional goal setting is crucial for growth, increased motivation and performance, promotes individual growth and lifelong learning, and creates accountability. It provides direction, focus, and a sense of purpose, leading to greater job satisfaction. By setting clear, achievable goals, individuals can track their progress, identify areas for improvement, and ultimately achieve greater success both individually and as an organization.
Goal setting is a life skill we want our students to learn and master as a lifelong learner.