Success, the accomplishment of an aim or purpose. Success in my life represents a balance between my school and sports obligations and having time to spend with the people I love. To me success represents high achievements in my AP World History, Spanish 2, and Honors English classes. Every one of the classes will have a different set of challenges I will face throughout the school year. My educational journey will take twists and turns but if I have my mind set on a goal for each one of these classes I will be able to finish this school year knowing I have accomplished all of the goals I have set for myself. My AP World Histoy goal is to take the information I have gained from written assignments and to apply it to real world scenarios. In Spanish 2 my goal is to hold a through conversation Spanish with more confidence and less hesitation. Finally in Honors English I wish to write essays without anxiety.
In AP World History Success looks like me getting an A in the class and passing my AP exam in May. In order to achieve this goal I will take good notes and avoiding procrastination. Some challenges I may face while trying to accomplish this goal is taking difficult tests I will not be prepared for. The best strategy that will help me accomplish my goals is effort because I need to put in the time and effort to make sure my assignments are well written, so when a test is coming up the notes I have taken will actually help me. Effort is the best strategy to use because if I put in more effort into my assignments it will help me achieve my goals rather than putting in no effort. For example, Angela Duckworth, the author of “Effort Counts Twice” was interviewing Will Smith about how effort affects his life and he said, “Without effort, your talent is nothing more than your unmet potential...With effort, talent becomes skill and, at the very same time, effort makes skill productive” (Duckworth “Effort Counts Twice” para. 10). This quote supports why effort will help me accomplish my AP World History goals the quote shows that with the effort you put in you can make your talent skill and my talent has always been memorizing historical dates so if I put in effort my talent can be a skill. This is related to effort because if you put more effort you talent will become second-nature and you will have more skills. Secondly, in “Effort counts Twice” by Angela Duckworth she says, “How many treadmills, and other fitness equipment are collection dust right now ̈ (Duckworth “Effort Counts Twice” para. 6).This quote explains why effort is the best strategy to use because it shows that with no effort you put in the time you have spent can be for nothing. This is related to effort because with the more effort you put into achieving a new goal you will be less likely to give up easier. In AP World History this year I want to get an A in the class and I want to pass the AP exam in May, in order to accomplish these goals effort will help me the most.
In Spanish 2 success to me looks like getting an A on all of my exams and understanding new vocabulary terms. In order to achieve this goal I will make vocabulary flash cards and take good notes. Some challenges I may face is not wanting to make flashcards out of laziness. The best strategy that will help me accomplish my Spanish 2 goals is deliberate practice. Deliberate practice would help me accomplish my Spanish 2 goals because working hard for a short period of time will help the memorization process of my vocabulary terms go faster and I will be able to learn new rules in a shorter period of time. For instance, in the informational text “Practice” by Angela Duckworth she interviewed gold medalist rower Mads Rasmussen after meeting the Japanese rowing team and he said, “ It’s not hours of brute-force exhaustion you’re after, he told them. It’s high-quality, thoughtful training goals pursued.. For just a few hours a day, tops ̈ (Duckworth “Practice” para 32.). This quote explains why deliberate practice is the best strategy to use in order to accomplish my Spanish 2 goals because if I put in quality practice over a short period of time I will learn more information faster, than practicing for a long period of time with little quality. This way you are putting in quality work rather than sloppy work over a long period of time. Secondly, Angela Duckworth explains that setting a routine helps accomplish your goals, “... when you make a habit of practicing at the same time and place every day you don’t need to think about getting started ̈ (Duckworth “Practice” para 35). This quote explains why deliberate practice is the best theory to accomplish my goals because by making practicing consistent with the same amount of quality each time, it will be easier to begin practicing and I will accomplish my goal faster. This is connected to the strategy because by practicing for the same time everyday it makes practicing less like a chore. This year in Spanish I want to get an A on all of my exams and to understand my vocabulary terms and in order to accomplish this goal deliberate practice will help me the most.
In Honors English success to me in the class looks like improving my essay writing skills. In order to achieve this goal I will plan out my essay ahead of time and consult with my teacher about my essays Challenges in the class I will face include failing an essay I have worked very hard for. The best strategy to accomplish my Honors English goal is growth mindset. Growth mindset will help me accomplish my goals because I will look at failure as a way to improve myself instead of a brick wall I cannot pass over.
For example, from chapter 1 of Carol Dweck’s “Mindset’ she explains the growth mindset can help overcome challenging moments in your life, “the growth mindset helps others overcome some of the most challenging moments in your life ̈ (Dweck Chapter 1 para 8). This quote shows that the growth mindset can help overcome failure and get you back to your feet. Failure should not be discouraged and that everyone will fail at one point in their life and we need to learn how to over come from failure.
Finally, when Carol Dweck asked people when they feel smart one replied, “ it’s about learning something over time ̈ (Dweck Chapter 2 para 22). This quote shows that you do not need to be perfect the first time you try something, it may take several times to accomplish your goal. In English class this year I want to improve the quality of my essays and the Growth Mindset will help me accomplish this goal. All in all I have set high goals for myself In AP World History, Spanish 2, and Honors English and in order to accomplish these goals I will use effort, deliberate practice, and the growth mindset.
