Dear Students,

Welcome to our class! September feels like a new year. And when you start something new, you need to know WHY you are doing it., what is your goal?

In our ESL classes here at the Centre instructors want to know what your goals are. The answer is often, "Improve my English" or "Become Fluent in English". This is a good reason to come to class. It is definitely a good thing to improve your English because speaking English fluently will help you accomplish your life goals, such as getting a new job, volunteering in the community and speaking confidently with anyone outside of your home. BUT. It is not specific enough.

Goals should be specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-bound.

Example:  I am now a CLB level 3344 and I want to improve my speaking and listening and be a CLB  level 4444 by December 2016 because then I can get my citizenship and take the test in December 2016. I want to do this by increasing my English conversation opportunities by volunteering at my children's school, watching English News and T.V and movies and using EnglishCentral App for pronunciation.

The goal is very specific: achieving a specific level, and more specifically Speaking/Listening
The goals is measurable: from S/L 3 to a S/L 4
The goal is relevant: it helps achieve the goal of getting Citizenship/passport :)
The goal is attainable: which means is it realistic? Is it possible? Often you can improve in 2 skills (listening and speaking) in 4 months if you work hard and have a plan for how you will practice and what you will do.
The goals is time-bound: You want to apply for citizenship in December 2016.

Maybe you have a goal of doing something BIG but you don't want to share it. That's ok, Keep it a secret between you and your diary :) But you can still be specific with your goal-writing for this class, just don't reveal that you want to be an astronaut, at least not yet :), first get your degree and do all your training, then share that goal!

Remember, you can accomplish what you really want to do, in fact, you must do it. You only have one life and it is given to you as a gift. When you do what you secretly really want to do you are doing yourself and the world a favour. You will become a gift to the world. Everyone has that potential, no matter what your circumstances, you can manage to find a way to do it, to be it.

What is your opinion about goals?