Be your own Guina Pig

Ken Hoeg
Ken Hoeg
Jul 30, 2017 · 3 min read

7 simple steps to self study

“Happy Kazan”

Teachers-the year is here. Time to model “self-study” aka self-assessment for your students.

You track data on your students. Here is a simple fun way to track data on yourself and show your students how important this process is.

Any athlete striving to improve to a better performance tracks data. They know in detail what their specific individual performance indicators are.

Think about your own goals and how you would like to improve. What indicators could you track to see if your are moving in the right direction toward your goals?

Edward Deming, the management expert known for helping Japan reinvent themselves after World War II said, “If you can measure it you can manage it”. The word Kazan is the Japanese word for constant and continuous improvement.

You are the product, why would you leave your product quality up to anyone else?

You know yourself better than anyone. You know your values and beliefs and you know what your ultimate long term vision is. So if you haven’t already put yourself in the driver’s seat, set your compass and navigate your own plan.

No matter what your profession, self assessment to improve personal performance is a life skill. You are always in business for yourself. You are the product and you are the one who is empowered to take charge.

If you are publicly tracking data on yourself in your classroom than you are modeling for your students the value of the process. You are teaching them that self-assessment is a critical skill for lifelong learning and empowerment.

When you are in charge of your own plan, all that anxiety that comes with “Teacher Observations” and performance reviews goes away — or at least a little bit.

Recommended steps:

  1. Pick no more than 3 things to might want to track.

Ex:. “I want to listen to others more”.

2. For each item, write down why that is important?

Ex: . “I will not jump to conclusions so much”.

3. Pick one and write down something concrete that you can track.

Ex: “Percent of time I talk vs. listen within a specific time period”.

4. Set up an easy way to track the data — create a simple chart for 1 time daily.

Ex: “I will pick a student to track the minutes I used words during a 30 minute window”.

Make it fun, get the students involved. Let them know you are human and everyone is working on self improvement. Even if you have them believing you are a superhero-even Superman had shortcomings”.

5. Track your baseline for a week. Set some small goals. Get moving a bit at a time, small steps lead to increased energy and increased awareness.

6. Track progress to your new benchmarks — weekly. Ignore any failures or steps back. Remember the goal is to have fun.

7. Every 6 weeks — celebrate and set up an updated plan.

The process of tracking your own goals helps you see that you are in control of your destiny. Focus on those things you can control. There is a direct result to believing you have control over your life’s direction and your overall happiness.

You are the product and on the road to greatness. Make sure you have funalong the way.

We would love to hear your ongoing stories and progress.

“Kazan” and Happy Tracking!

Ken Hoeg

Written by

Ken Hoeg

Ken Hoeg is the owner of Achieve Fit Kids, a company that provides strategies and supports for kids with different learning styles.

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