Each semester, Grade 11 and 12 students participate in a goal-setting meeting with the DP Coordinators, where they establish two non-cognitive skills goals and two academic goals that they want to achieve by the end of the semester. Non- cognitive goals often focus on areas such as motivation, perseverance, self- control, social skills, or creativity. Academic goals, on the other hand, typically relate to improving achievement in specific subjects or raising overall academic performance. Students reflect on why they selected these goals, identify concrete strategies to achieve them, and revisit their progress at the beginning of the following semester to evaluate their growth and plan next steps.
The students featured below generously shared their insights on how the DP goal-setting process has shaped their experiences at KIST:
At the beginning of the year, me and my fellow classmates had the opportunity to meet with our DP Coordinators on a one-on-one basis, to discuss our goals for this semester. Given the significant leap between IGCSE and DP, most of us were wor- ried about our grades being negatively impacted and had numerous questions about how to manage our time, stress, and sleep amidst a plethora of assignments, tests, and homework. However, personally, after consulting with my teachers during this goal-setting meet- ing, my worries faded slightly—I recognized the importance of reminding myself that mistakes, failure, and imperfections are a natural part of the learning process. Setting these goals has helped me monitor my mental health and academic wellbeing. Through- out this semester, I have successfully tracked my emotions and self-care tasks on a mobile app and engaged in mindfulness exercises. I believe a common goal I still share with many of my classmates is time management and sleep; however, as we progress through our DP journey, I am confident we will be able to persevere through challenges, and inch closer towards achieving our goals. Ankita G11B
Goal setting has significantly helped me progress through my DP journey. Being explicit in listing out what goals I must achieve allowed me to be reflective of both my progress and my objectives, guiding my actions throughout each semester by providing clarity on areas where I can improve. For instance, at the end of Grade 11, I realized that I did not balance my time evenly across all my subjects: dedicating more effort to subjects I was fond of, but not so much to those I lacked interest in. To ensure I am productive in all my subjects, I began working with my friends on tasks I found less motivating and tried linking different subjects together to make them more interesting. This allowed me to gain a deeper appreciation for all the subjects and made me better balance my workload. As I work on my college applications, goal setting is helping me stay resilient and focused on my tasks. Sherwin G12B
By encouraging students to set their own goals and outline the steps they will take to achieve them, we aim to help them develop greater self-reflection and a clearer understanding of their areas for growth. The ability to set meaningful goals and create a concrete action plan is an essential life skill – one that we hope will support them not only in the classroom, but well into adulthood.
