International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education 2017, Volume 29, Number 1, 61-72 http://www.isetl.org/ijtlhe/ ISSN 1812-9129 Goal Setting as Teacher Development Practice Heather Camp Minnesota State University, Mankato This article explores goal setting as a teacher development practice in higher education. It reports on a study of college teacher goal setting informed by goal setting theory. Analysis of study participants’ goal setting practices and their experiences with goal pursuit offers a framework for thinking about the kinds of goals teachers might set in university settings. This analysis also sheds light on potential factors that help and hinder goal achievement, especially goal commitment and self-efficacy. The article concludes with recommendations related to these areas. The overall aim of this article is to assist teachers and teaching supervisors who may be interested in using goal setting to foster growth in teaching. Goal setting is a widely embraced practice in Conclusions drawn from this study suggest that for corporate settings and a highly regarded subject in some teachers, goal progress may be stalled by a lack of literature on the workplace. However, its presence is goal commitment and low self-efficacy. Therefore, this weaker in higher education scholarship on teaching. piece concludes with recommendations related to these Recent research on the primary and secondary levels of areas. The overall aim of this article is to assist teachers education gives reason to pay greater attention to and teaching supervisors who may be interested in teachers’ goals. Findings indicate that teachers’ goals using goal setting to foster growth in teaching. may impact their professional growth and instructional effectiveness. A teacher’s “goal orientation” appears to Literature Review impact his/her likelihood of seeking help in the face of teaching challenges (Butler, 2007), effort at creating The term “goal” takes on different meanings in classroom environments that emphasize growth over different contexts; thus, some definitional work is in competition (Shim, Cho, & Cassady, 2013), commitment order. In an expansive sense, goals can refer to “the to serving as a socio-emotional support for students object or aim of [any] action” (Locke & Latham 2013a, (Butler, 2012), and resistance to teacher burnout p. 4). Under this broad definition, goal pursuit (Retelsdorf, Butler, Streblow, & Schiefele, 2011). encompasses the grandiose and the mundane, the The potential impact of teachers’ goals on student deliberate and the subconscious. Goals include experience makes teacher goal setting an important biological and social needs that are met through routine research area. Researchers interested in studying decision making, as well as more abstract values and teacher goal setting in higher education might take cues ambitions that drive an individual’s “personal projects” from the previously cited studies and focus on goal (Little, 2014). Often, both types of goals are largely orientation; alternatively, they might look at other areas intuitive, woven into a person’s everyday patterns of related to goal setting, including characteristics of thinking and behavior. effective goal setting programs and factors that aid and In common parlance, “goals” generally refer to impede teachers’ goal progress. Such research might more concrete and mindful ends. They are performance shape campus-wide and discipline-specific teacher outcomes or learning targets that individuals use for preparation practices, influence programs offered by self-evaluation, “a criterion against which to assess, Centers for Teaching and Learning, and help individual monitor, and guide cognition” (Pintrich, 2000, p. 457). faculty pursue teaching growth amidst other They are also aspirational, orienting the individual professional responsibilities. toward a “desirable future state of affairs” (Shah & This article explores the value of goal setting as a Kruglanski, 2000, p. 85). Through New Year’s teacher development practice. It reports on a study in resolutions, for instance, individuals identify positive which twelve teaching assistants in an English changes they want to make for the coming year, often department were acquainted with basic tenets of goal emphasizing the improvement of health habits. In setting theory, set teaching goals, and reflected on their business environments, SMART goals—a popular goal progress at midterm and the end of a semester. acronym used to identify the characteristics of effective Analysis of teachers’ goal-setting practices and their goals--are often set by individuals or teams as a means experiences with goal pursuit provides a framework for to boosting productivity and achievement. thinking about the kinds of goals teachers might set. This familiar and concrete definition of “goal” This analysis also sheds light on potential factors that appears in higher education research in studies that use help and hinder goal achievement, especially group goal setting to promote student learning and dysfunction and competing demands on time. achievement (Emery et al., 2014; Huang, 2015; Kato, Camp Teacher Development Practice 62 2009; Wang & Ertmer, 2003). In Glynda Hull’s (1981) citing one study in which participants setting the study of goal setting in a college writing course, for highest goals outperformed those with the easiest goals instance, first-year students doubled their journal by 250% (2013a). Numerous literature reviews and a writing production when they were working toward series of meta-analyses substantiated the abstract vs. lines-per-day and entries-per-week goals and were specific goals conclusion as well (2013a). tracking their progress. Latham and Brown’s (2006) Locke and Latham attribute the effectiveness of study of goal setting in an MBA program indicated that goals to four mechanisms. Goals have a directive effect: students’ goal setting may influence their end-of- they direct attention and effort toward goal-relevant semester GPA and satisfaction with their degree activities and away from goal-irrelevant activities” program. And George, Reis, Dobson, and Nothnagle’s (2002, p. 706). They have an energizing and a (2013) study of the use of a faculty mentor to facilitate persistence effect: “effort is mobilized and expended in goal setting for second-year medical school residents proportion to the difficulty level of the goal,” and we underscored the value of providing students with work longer at the task than we otherwise would “protected time for self-directed learning.” (2013a, p. 6). Finally, they promote strategy use and While such examples illustrate how goals and development, causing us to search our problem-solving goal setting have been used in higher education repertoire for skills relevant to the task or, when research to support student learning, research that lacking, to generate alternatives. examines the use of goal setting for teachers is Beyond defining the nature of the goals that should noticeably absent. Thus, we lack information about be set, goal setting theory sheds light on the effect of the benefits and drawbacks of goal setting for this feedback, or knowledge of results, on performance group. This research aims to help fill this gap. The outcomes. Findings indicate that an individual’s questions guiding the study were as follows: awareness of his/her progress on a given task is Can key findings from goal-setting research be essential for goal setting to be effective, and, just as used to facilitate teacher improvement? What important, absent goal setting, knowledge of results is a challenges might deter teaching supervisors from using weak facilitator of improvement. Tellingly, the latter this theoretical framework for teacher development? finding is buttressed by workplace studies in which What opportunities does this theory open up? employees receive a performance review but aren’t instructed to set goals based on their appraisal (Latham, Theoretical Framework Mitchell, & Dossett, 1978; Nemeroff & Cosentino, 1979), a scenario reminiscent of peer or supervisor Industrial-organizational (I/O) psychology has a feedback on teaching or personal reviews of one’s strong research tradition around goal setting that can be student evaluations. useful to the college teacher. In fact, goal setting has One intriguing tenet of goal setting theory been characterized as “one of the most extensively concerns the orientation of the goal, whether directed studied topics [emphasis added] in the fields of toward learning or toward outcomes. In situations industrial-organizational psychology, organizational that are complex for an individual, the literature psychology, and management” (Locke, 2001, p. 44). indicates that a person is better served by setting a The accumulated findings from I/O research on specific, difficult learning goal, emphasizing the goal setting have been compacted into a set of patterns acquisition of knowledge and skills, rather than a and assumptions now referred to as goal setting theory. goal focused on results. The former will help her Described as an “open” theory in that it evolves with learn how to tackle the problem, equipping her with new research, a key version of goal setting theory was the skills to succeed, while the latter will deplete formulated in 1990 based on 400 studies (Locke & cognitive resources that are needed for task learning Latham, 1990). Since then, more than 600 studies have and strategy development. Outcome goals set in been completed (Locke & Latham, 2013b, p. xi), novel, complex circumstances can also reduce an leading to new findings and additional areas of inquiry. individual’s self-efficacy—belief in one’s ability to Goal setting theory has been acclaimed as “among succeed on a task—in turn, impacting performance the most valid and practical theories of employee (Kanfer & Ackerman, 1989; Latham & Brown, 2006; motivation” (Locke & Latham, 2002, p. 714). A Winters & Latham, 1996). number of principles comprise its foundation, the most immutable of these being that setting specific, difficult Method goals produces stronger outcomes than setting easy or medium goals or simply trying to “do your best.” This These findings from goal setting theory informed finding was central to the 1990 formulation of goal a semester-long, IRB-approved study of college setting theory. Locke and Latham noted a linear teacher goal-setting activities. Twelve graduate relationship between goal difficulty and performance, teaching assistants (0.5-2 years college teaching Camp Teacher Development Practice 63 experience) volunteered for the study. These teachers inductively, and patterns in teachers’ goal areas, goal were the instructors of record for English types, progress facilitators, and progress impediments composition courses at Minnesota State University, were recorded. A goal setting theory framework was Mankato, a Masters-granting institution in the US also applied to analyze teachers’ written goal plans. with a student population of 15,000. Each teacher Finally, aggregate Likert responses from the midterm was enrolled in one of the English Department’s survey were used to identify trends in teachers’ views graduate degree or certificate programs: five and experiences. Creative Writing, three Teaching English as a Second Language, two Literature and English Results Studies, and two Technical Communication. Each of the teachers had taken a two-week summer teaching Generating Goals workshop prior to teaching and, during his/her first semester, enrolled in a weekly teaching course and a In the goal-setting workshop, four goal areas peer mentor group. The teachers also took part in the surfaced more frequently than others in teachers’ English department’s ongoing teacher development brainstorming. Teachers were interested in setting goals activities, including classroom observations and related to: conferences over their teaching. At the beginning of the semester, teachers who had • Organization: being more prepared for class volunteered for the study attended a workshop that • Use of class time: eliminating “busy work,” introduced them to the central tenets of goal setting creating worthwhile class activities theory and that assisted with goal setting. Using self- • Engagement: increasing student interest and reflection, student evaluations, and peer/supervisor investment in the material/course feedback as a guide, teachers identified general areas in • Class discussion: facilitating more productive, which they wanted to grow. In the workshop they were active conversations encouraged to select areas that would make them feel more effective in the classroom and satisfied with their Some goal areas were named less often but still teaching. They left the workshop assigned to a peer showed up more than once--specifically, tailoring group intended to support their goal progress and with teacher ethos (e.g., being stricter or more personable); the following goal-setting instructions: strengthening the selection, organization, and delivery of content; and speeding turnaround time on grading. • Pick one area in your teaching that you would Conceivably, teachers’ gravitation toward the Big like to focus on this semester. Four may be tied to their newness to teaching. For • With your group’s help, develop one or more new teachers, pragmatic concerns pervade; speaking difficult, specific goals for yourself related to of new Composition teachers, for instance, Jessica this area. These may be outcome or learning Restaino notes, “[F]rom the vantage point of the new goals. writing teacher, the challenge of what to do each day • Determine how, when, and from whom you looms” (2012, p. 31). Organization and use of class will receive feedback on your goal setting. time goals may reflect this beginning teacher Possible individuals include group members, preoccupation. The popularity of engagement and the Composition Director, other TAs, English class discussion goals suggests that for many teachers, faculty, students, and/or yourself. immediate concerns had been sufficiently handled to • Submit an action plan by the end of the week. attend to teaching methods. Jody Nyquist and Jo Sprague (1998) categorize such thinking as second Following the workshop, teachers composed (and stage, or “colleague-in-training” concerns in the arc of in some cases revised) their “action plans,” identifying TA development. the teaching goal(s) they planned to pursue that In the week that followed the goal-setting semester and the steps they planned to take. At midterm workshop, teachers had to narrow their focus and select and the end of the semester, teachers completed a one or more goals to pursue. All twelve teachers questionnaire about their progress within, and feelings selected goals and generated a written plan that about, the goal-setting program. described how they would accomplish them. Across The data for this study consisted of notes from a plans, three categories emerged that differentiated the full-group discussion held during the goal-setting goals by their primary emphasis: workshop, teachers’ written goal plans, and mid- and end-of-term goal-setting questionnaires. These • Content goals emphasized mastering, or documents were examined via a “grounded” coding developing strategies to master, a body of content technique in which categories were developed in order to be better prepared to teach it. Camp Teacher Development Practice 64 • Course management goals emphasized learning varied widely. Quantitative precision was evidenced in or instituting practices that would improve the implementation steps like the following: administration of a course. • Teaching strategy goals emphasized learning Kyra’s Learning Goal: or instituting teaching practices in order to improve the quality of learning. Learn techniques for teaching to a wide range of skill levels in one classroom. Identify at least 3 In this study, teaching strategy goals were most new strategies through (a) conversations with at popular (59%), followed by course management goals least 3 experienced teachers and (b) gathering at (36%), with only one content goal being set (5%). Here least 3 pieces of scholarly research on the subject. I again, teachers’ stage of teaching development may will test at least 2 of my identified strategies in the have had an effect on goal distribution. It’s plausible classroom this semester and report back to my that more experience would have increased teachers’ feedback group on my experiences. contact with the teaching profession and with disciplinary literature; that contact, in turn, may have Dana’s Learning Goal: alerted teachers to content areas in which they wanted to grow. Furthermore, it’s likely that cuing from the Research 10-15 effective practices for facilitating goal workshop influenced teachers’ goal selection. class discussion. Teachers were directed to use teaching evaluations, peer and supervisor feedback, and reflection on their Adam’s Outcome Goal: teaching to inform their goal setting. These cues may have directed attention to teaching strategy and course I will have my lessons prepared at least twenty- management over content goals. four hours in advance. Table 1 categorizes goals by their focus. It lists the more specific outcome that individuals intended to Ellie’s Outcome Goal: achieve with their goal(s) and identifies the number of goals that had each focus. For this group of teachers, Use Jing to create a tutorial for my class next improving class discussion was a top priority. In general, semester. teaching strategy goals varied (with the exception of class discussion) while course management goals tended On the other end of the spectrum were plans to group in similar focus areas. that identified goals but adopted vague steps for As far as goal orientation, goals directed toward implementation. Sometimes this vagueness seemed achieving results (outcome) were more popular than to be due to the nature of the goal itself; other those that emphasized gaining knowledge (learning). times, it seemed to be more a consequence of the Ten of the twelve teachers (83%) set outcome goals, teacher’s lack of understanding of or effort to with four of these teachers also setting learning design a precise goal. goals. Half of the total number of teachers set Excerpts from Megan’s plan illustrate the challenges learning goals. The mean number of goals set by that teachers had setting specific goals. In her plan, Megan teachers was two. identified two goals she intended to pursue: improving her discussion leading skills (outcome goal) and cultivating a Applying Goal-Setting Tenets more authoritative teacher ethos (learning goal). In discussing the first goal, she indicates that during the In the goal-setting workshop, teachers were previous semester, she had “been so overloaded with instructed to set specific, difficult goals and to delineate work” that she succumbed to “correcting” and “telling” a mechanism for receiving feedback on their goal over “guiding.” Her first goal was intended to curb that progress. Each factor is considered below. habit. She writes the following: Specificity. Generally, teachers’ written plans identified one to two goal areas that the teachers wanted My goals for my teaching this semester are to listen to work on and laid out steps for pursuing these goals. more to what my students think while focusing my Listing implementation steps was essential to moving energies on open-ended questions to begin to develop teachers from abstract, high-level goals to concrete, their interpretative viewpoints and analytic skills. In low-level actions. addition to asking more [open-ended] questions, I Locke et al. define specificity as “the degree of intend to allow the silence to hang longer while I wait quantitative precision with which the aim is specified” for them to begin to answer the questions. To give (Locke, Shaw, Saari, & Latham, 1981, p. 126). Across myself more opportunities to do so, I intend to spend plans, the specificity of teachers’ implementation steps more time scaffolding the types of analysis and Camp Teacher Development Practice 65 Table 1 Focus of Goals Number of Goals Goal Type Goal Focus with this Focus Content Learning MLA Guidelines 1 Course Management Using class time effectively 3 Improving organization 2 Constructing an effective teacher ethos 2 Returning student work in a timely manner 1 Teaching Strategies Improving class discussion 5 Increasing student engagement 2 Fostering student independence 1 Improving delivery of content 1 Leading effective peer reviews 1 Teaching different levels of learners 1 Teaching using active learning 1 Teaching with technology 1 activities as a whole group before moving to small teachers’ implementation plans: personal weakness and groups or individual responses. lack of time. A few teachers signaled that their source of goal In her quest to develop a “guiding” teaching style, then, difficulty came from personal characteristics they were Megan intended to: attempting to address. Brandi, for example, set a number of sub-goals related to organizing and 1) Listen more simplifying her teaching routines and materials. 2) Invest more energy into open-ended questions Commenting on their difficulty level, she writes, “I am tied to interpretation and analysis and always have been one to worry, overthink, 3) Allow silence to hang longer overplan, and overextend myself, leading to anxiety, 4) Spend more time scaffolding indecision, and poor organization. . .[My goals may] at first glance seem to be deceptively simple goals. Each of these sub-goals could be stated in such a However, this is subjective to the individual, and for way to make it quantifiable. For instance, Megan could me, the very difficulty lies in simplicity.” Likewise, indicate how many seconds she would remain silent one of Dillon’s implementation steps related to while waiting for a student response. She could strengthening the teacher-student relationship, delineate how many open-ended questions she would including being more outgoing and friendly. He cites pose per week. Doing so would require her to define his tendency to “feel awkward in large groups” and the meaningful, cross-situational standards—no easy fact that he “[is] not the most personable teacher out task—and to create and implement sensitive feedback there” as sources of goal difficulty. mechanisms. In lieu of this complexity, she names Too much to do, too little time also was cited as a general practices that support her goal. source of difficulty in implementation plans. “The Difficulty. Locke recommends that goal level biggest challenge for me in graduate school is time should be “very hard—even outrageous” [emphasis in management,” writes Adam, “These goals may not original] to produce optimal results (2001, p. 50). sound difficult by themselves, but I am already feeling Harder goals induce goal setters to expend greater pretty challenged to balance all of my responsibilities as effort; thus, even if individuals don’t achieve their a student, a writer, and a composition instructor.” goals, their achievements outweigh those of their easy- A third source of difficulty that was evident in goal or no-goal peers. At the same time, individuals teachers’ plans was the elaborateness of their plans must perceive their goals as attainable; impossible goals and/or the consistency that would be needed to backfire by undermining confidence and motivation achieve their goals. Elaborate plans might include six (Kerr & LePelley, 2013). In the present study, teachers or more steps, each requiring a significant determined for themselves what constituted a difficult investment of time and energy; consistency-intensive goal. Two sources of difficulty were mentioned in plans required frequent inputs: daily study, for Camp Teacher Development Practice 66 instance, or manually tracking students’ participation • “Setting goals that are specific forced me to during each class period. really think about my teaching practices.” Feedback. The mechanisms for feedback that • “It did raise my consciousness of what I am teachers adopted depended on the nature of their goals doing in the classroom somewhat.” and the specificity of their plans. Self-monitoring • “Simply setting the goals was a beneficial through written records, peer teaching observations, and process because it helped me think about my goal-setting group contact/observations were all listed strengths and weaknesses as a teacher and has as sources of feedback on goal progress. helped bring focus to my teaching.” • “This experience has helped me become a Teacher Self-Assessment better teacher because I realize what makes me comfortable and what makes me feel At midterm and the end of the semester, teachers underprepared.” completed a questionnaire on their progress on, and attitude toward, their goals. The questionnaire had two Teachers’ comments suggest that they valued the sections: a series of short answer questions and a kind of thinking facilitated by goal setting and saw it as Likert scale. The short answer questions asked a mechanism for growth. Goal setting instigated teachers to describe their goal activities, identify purpose-driven reflection, entailing an overarching factors that aided or impeded their goal progress, assessment of one’s teaching paired with a careful assess their satisfaction with their headway, and share tracing of root causes and exploration of mechanisms their thoughts about the strengths and limitations of for action or change. Teachers appear to have valued using goal setting theory in teacher development, this process for its ability to provide self-understanding based on their experiences (see Appendix). and a sense of focus, direction, and control. For them, Nine of the twelve teachers completed a self-awareness and vision were important components questionnaire at midterm. Six of the twelve teachers of growth, whether or not immediate action was taken. completed a questionnaire at the end of the semester, Factors that supported teachers’ goal progress including two teachers who did not complete midterm varied. Teachers attributed their success to their surveys. Except in an instance in which a teacher intrinsic motivation to teach well, the immediate “feel- completely revamped her goals at midterm, Likert good” payoff associated with achieving certain goals, survey responses at the end of the semester strongly accountability to and assistance from others, their resembled those at midterm. Figure 1 displays the increased comfort in the classroom, and the level of teachers’ responses to the Likert scale at midterm, the specificity of their goals. point at which there was a higher return rate. In contrast to this variety, two clear trends emerged In their Likert responses, teachers were positive in the factors that impeded—or failed to support— about the goal-setting process: all nine teachers felt that teachers’ goal progress. These factors were competing their teaching had improved by setting goals, and eight of commitments for time and dysfunctional peer groups. the nine teachers considered the goal-setting process to Additional factors mentioned were ambiguity be a worthy time investment. Interestingly, this was the surrounding how to delineate/measure goal case for teachers who were making progress on their achievement and personal life stress. goals and for those who were not. Goal progress, and Teachers cited lack of time as a hurdle to goal satisfaction with that progress, was uneven, with the accomplishment. They mentioned their graduate course group split between those who appeared to be advancing load, teaching responsibilities, thesis demands, and toward their goals and those who were stalled. Thus, professional writing and reading as priorities that took almost half the teachers were displeased with their lack precedent over their goals. “Most weeks, it seems of progress on their goals yet were convinced that goal virtually impossible for me to complete all of that work setting was strengthening their teaching. and add these other goals to the mix,” observes Adam. Teachers’ short answer question responses He characterizes his teaching goals as “only clarified this puzzling tension. Teachers whose supplementary to my overall experience,” a lesser progress had been impeded nonetheless appreciated priority in comparison to the academic and work- the reflective and directive value of goal setting. related “necessities.” Teachers stated the following: Challenges posed by peer groups included disparate goals (which thwarted the opportunity for • “Putting my goals down on paper helped “joint brainstorming”) and lack of organization and clarify my thoughts.” commitment, facilitated by vague planning (e.g., “we’ll • “It helped give me an overall sense of check in later,”), confusion over group function, and direction.” predominance of social relationships. Camp Teacher Development Practice 67 Figure 1 Teachers’ Likert Responses in Midterm Self-Assessment Discussion categories described here may serve as a generative starting point for teachers interested in defining and What insight does this study provide into the use of pursuing growth in teaching. goal setting as a teacher development practice? First, Second, this study sheds light on the opportunities this study suggests categories of goals that might be and challenges of applying goal setting to college valued by teachers, especially those who are newest to teaching. Findings indicate that teachers viewed goal the profession. Specifically, in this study, teaching setting as a positive investment of time and felt it strategy, course management, and content goals guided improved their teaching. By semester’s end, half of the teachers’ activities. Within these categories, both teachers reported that they had achieved their goals and process and outcome goals were pursued. This general appeared to be satisfied with their goal progress. Even framework might be usefully appropriated by teachers those who did not make significant progress indicated to generate goals for their teaching. that goal setting had been valuable to them through its Conceivably, the type of goals set by teachers in directive effect, facilitating purpose-driven reflection this study was influenced by their years of experience and problem solving. At the same time, teachers and by the instructions they were given in the goal encountered several impediments that stymied goal setting workshop. A different set of instructions or a achievement. Half of the teachers relayed that they did different population of teachers might alter the ratio of not achieve their goals, with the central factors goals in each category or the categories themselves. For impeding goal process being dysfunctional peer groups example, guidelines for teacher goal setting might have and competing time commitments. been broadened to make room for “professional goals,” With respect to peer groups, teachers’ concerns goals related to nurturing one’s teaching identity within varied, and thus no single, clear solution would seem to a community of teachers. Such goals might have helped suffice. It may be that group functioning could be teachers see growth in teaching as a process that improved through establishing a clear schedule and extends beyond the walls of the classroom, nurtured agenda from the outset; alternatively, embedding goal through collegial relationships and participation in the setting within well-established peer cohorts on campus give-and-take of a discipline. Nevertheless, the three may help. For example, the English department’s well- Camp Teacher Development Practice 68 established and highly functional TA peer mentoring across the competing demands” (2009, p. 680). At the program would be a promising site for piloting goal- same time, it’s possible that in many instances, goal setting activities. Embedding goal setting within one of success may hinge less on increased free time than on the faculty programs offered through the university’s goal commitment and a strong belief that multiple goal Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning is achievement is possible. In other words, teachers may another possibility. Still another approach might be to discover that they do have time for goal pursuit, if they explore feedback and accountability measures that do are intent on achieving their goals (“goal commitment”) not rely on peer groups. More experimentation is and have confidence that they can be achieved without necessary to determine how peer groups might support compromising other important priorities (“dual-goal teacher goal setting. expectancy”). For teacher goal setting to be successful, “[A]s a graduate student, time and energy are teachers and teaching supervisors may need to pay scarce resources, and I unfortunately felt too drained particular attention to these areas. or stressed to make extensive progress toward my goals” (Adam). This “lack of time” sentiment was Conclusion shared by a number of teachers. Time constraints may present one of the biggest challenges to effective goal Goal Commitment setting for teachers. Both new and experienced teachers may perceive goal setting as a positive Without commitment to one’s goals, significant activity but low priority, particularly when weighed progress is unlikely. Simply put, “no motivational against other commitments. effects will occur from goal setting if there is no Employees in other work environments struggle commitment to a goal” (Slocum, Cron, & Brown, with similar challenges. As a result, a new line of I/O 2002). Fortunately, many steps can be taken to Psychology research has taken up the competing increase goal commitment, thereby facilitating goal demands dilemma, exploring scenarios in which more achievement. than one goal is at play. Researchers studying multiple Factors that have been shown to increase goal goal pursuit examine how goals are pursued in such commitment include: settings, studying the effects of goal difficulty, task environment, confidence in goal attainment, and • Supervisor investment and support. Deans, incentives on goal activity. department chairs, and TA directors can signal One relevant finding from this literature is that investment in goal setting as a teacher incentives influence resource allocation within a dual- development practice. Goal setting might be goal environment. In their multiple goal research, incorporated into new college-wide Schmidt and DeShon found that “[w]ith an incentive orientations or be allotted time in faculty available for only one of. . .two tasks, participants meetings, for instance. focused heavily on the task with which the incentive • Public Goal Setting. Faculty can institute goal was associated” (2007, p. 938). For participants in setting in public forums, developing Schmidt and DeShon’s study, the incentive was communicative mechanisms that promote financial; however, in many settings, incentives may be greater accountability toward and visibility of more intangible. For example, a first-semester teaching teachers’ goal progress. assistant may be motivated by the desire to secure peer • Incentives. Teaching supervisors can make respect, teacher approbation, and an image of oneself as judicious use of incentives to spur teachers’ an excellent graduate student; these “incentives” may goal setting activities. For example, the lead teaching assistants to focus on graduate course Minnesota State University, Mankato English assignments at the expense of teaching goals. Further department recently implemented an Excellence encouraging this resource allocation pattern are and Innovation in Teaching award for teaching looming assignment deadlines and the intrinsic assistants, a prize conferred through a motivation felt toward a subject matter or craft. While competitive selection process. This award not inherently bad, these forces have the potential to incentivizes effort and creativity in teaching severely undermine teacher goal-setting activities through offering teachers recognition and a through orchestrating teachers’ decisions about time. small cash prize. The department also recently To be sure, time is finite, requiring teachers to created an Outstanding Adjunct Faculty award, decide how to allocate their mental and physical given to someone whose application resources. Write Schmidt and Dolis, “If an individual’s demonstrates his or her “commitment to resources are insufficient to meet the cumulative continued growth as a teacher.” Awards like demand . . .then something has to give, necessitating these can be tied to goal-setting activities, difficult decisions concerning how to divide one’s time thereby increasing goal commitment. Camp Teacher Development Practice 69 • Intangible Rewards. Locke and Latham cite discrepant goal, “to the neglect of the other goal” “internal rewards” as an important factor in (Schmidt & Dolis, 2009, p. 686). Working in this way, goal commitment (2013a, p. 7). This finding they believe, will “increase their chances of meeting at was reinforced by comments Adam made least one of their goals” (p. 680). when explaining why he was able to make The takeaway for teachers is that goal setting will progress on his course preparation goal, even likely be more effective in an environment in which though he was busy. “The reason I was able to multiple goal expectancy is high; in such an complete the first goal so [often] is because it environment, energy spent on daily demands will not was the most rewarding,” he writes, “It is a preclude attention to longer-term developmental goals. very nice feeling [emphasis added] to have Factors that may impact goal expectancy include: lesson plans done in advance so that I don’t have to think about them at the last minute.” • Self-efficacy. Self-efficacy refers to an When teachers select goals that provide a individual’s belief that he/she has the strong emotional or psychological pay-off, capability to achieve a specific task. A they may be more likely to stick with them. substantial body of research indicates that • Concerted Planning. Locke and Latham individuals with strong self-efficacy are more claim that greater mental exertion in likely to stay committed to their goals in the developing one’s goals may influence face of challenges (Locke & Latham, 2013). commitment. They posit that “such intense Albert Bandura (1994), the psychologist who processing makes people more aware of how introduced the concept, maintains that self- the goal might be attained, and thus leads to efficacy is built, first and foremost, by the formulation of well-thought-out plans that “mastery experiences.” “Successes build a in turn increases self-efficacy for robust belief in one's personal efficacy,” he implementation and goal attainment” (2013a, writes, “Failures undermine it, especially if p. 8). Structures and communication that failures occur before a sense of efficacy is underscore the importance of careful goal firmly established.” development may support goal commitment. Self-efficacy and success are increased as • Goal Clarity. One teacher in the study individuals tailor their goals to the nature of submitted a highly elaborate and ambitious the task at hand. When tasks are novel or goal plan. She identified five broad goal areas complex for an individual, or when he/she that she wanted to work on during the semester lacks requisite knowledge, learning goals are (e.g. “consistency,” “interactivity,” preferable to outcome goals. In such situations, “selectivity”) with action items related to each specific, difficult outcome goals increase the area. Her plan was weighed down by likelihood of failure, which decreases self- complexity. In relation to this problem, Locke efficacy. This is because the cognitive offers this advice: “Do not set too many goals demands of self-regulation impede individuals for a given person or unit [emphasis in from developing strategies to succeed (Kanfer original]. Goal overload causes everything to & Ackerman, 1989). In contrast, setting be lost in confusion” (Locke, 2001, p. 49). learning goals enables individuals to acquire essential skills, which, in turn, boosts self- Dual-Goal Expectancy efficacy (Seijts & Latham, 2001, pp. 303-304). Teachers can build their own self-efficacy In addition to taking measures to increase goal through setting learning or outcome goals as commitment, teachers should take steps to help appropriate, given their personal themselves feel confident that they can attain their characteristics, teaching background, and goals, even when other commitments are vying for their goal focus. The right kind of goals can attention. Research on “dual-goal expectancy” provide mastery experiences that keep addresses this situation. Findings suggest that dual-goal teachers on track. expectancy, the expectation that two goals can be met • Goal difficulty. Research on multiple-goal in a given environment, impacts individuals’ allocation pursuit challenges the notion that exceedingly of resources. When dual-goal expectancy is high, difficult goals are the gold standard. In individuals direct their effort toward the goal furthest Schmidt and Dolis’ study, “Assignment of two from achievement, working to reduce the larger difficult goals did not significantly increase discrepancy. They operate under the assumption that total productivity across both tasks a combined both goals will be met. In contrast, when dual-goal . . . [T]he goal conflict created by multiple- expectancy is low, effort is channeled toward the least goal assignments can undermine performance Camp Teacher Development Practice 70 on one or more of the tasks” (2009, p. 688). debriefing improves self-directed learning. Annals Schmidt and Dolis posit that difficult goals of Emergency Medicine, 64(4), S116. can backfire by lowering dual-goal George, P., Reis, S., Dobson, M., & Nothnagle, M. expectancy, leading individuals to sacrifice (2013). Using a learning coach to develop family the broader goal for the more immediate and medicine residents’ goal-setting and reflection attainable. They submit that moderately skills. Journal of Graduate Medical Education, difficult goals may be a better option in a 5(2), 289-293. multiple-goal environment. Huang, S. (2015). Setting writing revision goals after assessment for learning. Language assessment Research on teacher goal setting is still in its quarterly, 12(4), 363-385. infancy. Jan Retelsdorf and Katarina Gunther maintain Hull, G. (1981). Effects of self-management strategies that more research is needed “to investigate and on journal writing by college freshman. Research uncover further details on how teachers’ goals are in the Teaching of English, 15(2), 135-148. effective in educational settings” (2011, p. 1115). This Kanfer, R., & Ackerman, P. (1989). Motivation and project is one contribution. Drawing off of findings on cognitive abilities: An integrative/aptitude- goal setting from I/O Psychology, this study begins to treatment interaction approach to skill acquisition. work out how goal setting might function for college Journal of Applied Psychology, 74(4), 657-690. teachers. Given that applying goal setting to particular Kato, F. (2009). Student preferences: Goal-setting and sites and work activities “is not just a science, but also self-assessment activities in a tertiary education an art” (Locke 2001, p. 48), the move to incorporate environment. Language teaching research, 13(2), goal setting into college teacher development may 177-199. require some tinkering. Yet, findings from this study Kerr, S., & LePelley, D. (2013). Stretch goals: Risks, suggest that there is value in beginning the experiment. possibilities, and best practices. In E. Locke & G. The results from this study suggest that goal setting Latham (Eds.), New developments in goal setting can benefit teachers, whether through spurring them to and task performance (pp. 21-31). New York, directed action or through triggering thinking that leads NY: Routledge. to self-understanding and feelings of control. At the Latham G., Mitchell, T., & Dossett, D. (1978). same time, it’s clear that goal setting has to be Importance of participative goal setting and implemented with care, with an understanding of anticipated rewards on goal difficulty and job potential challenges and a concerted effort to counteract performance. Journal of Applied Psychology, them. Further, goal setting cannot substitute for skills 63(2), 163-171. and abilities that are beyond a teacher’s reach. Goals Latham, G., & Brown, T. (2006). The effect of learning vs. succeed as they energize and direct, encouraging skill outcome goals on self-efficacy, satisfaction and development and perseverance. While not an easy fix, performance in an MBA program. Applied goal setting nonetheless has the potential to benefit Psychology: An International Review, 55(4), 606-623. teachers through providing a lens through which to Little, B. (2014). Me, myself, and us: The science of scrutinize their teaching and the opportunity to chart personality and the art of well-being. New York, their own path toward learning and improvement. NY: PublicAffairs. Locke, E. (2001). Motivation by goal-setting. In R. References Golembiewski (Ed.), Handbook of organizational behavior (2nd ed.) (pp. 43-56). New York, NY: Bandura, A. (1994). Self-efficacy. In V. Ramachaudran Marcel Dekker Inc. (Ed.), Encyclopedia of human behavior, Volume 4 Locke, E., & Latham, G. (2002). Building a practically (pp. 71-81). New York, NY: Academic Press. useful theory of goal setting and task motivation: A 35- Butler, R. (2007). Teachers’ achievement goal year odyssey. American Psychologist, 57(9), 705-717. orientations and associations with teachers’ help Locke, E., & Latham, G. (2013a). Goal setting theory, seeking: Examination of a novel approach to 1990. In E. Locke and G. Latham (Eds.), New teacher motivation. Journal of Educational developments in goal setting and task performance Psychology, 99(2), 241-252. (pp. 2-15). New York, NY: Routledge. Butler, R. (2012). Striving to connect: Extending an Locke, E., & Latham, G. (2013b). Introduction. In E. achievement goal approach to teacher motivation Locke & G. Latham (Eds.), New Developments in to include relational goals for teaching. Journal of goal setting and task performance (pp. xi-xii). New Educational Psychology, 104(3), 726-742. York, NY: Routledge. Emery, M., Bush, C., Bounds, R., Gillett, B., Santen, Locke, E., & Latham, G. (1990). A theory of goal S., & Aghera, A. (2014). Enhancing learning with setting and task performance. Englewood Cliffs, simulation: Setting ‘SMART’ learning goals during NJ: Prentice Hall.