Goals and Criteria for Learning by Ennis William Cosby

Meet Ennis In His Own Words	Ennis' Poems
Teaching from the Heart	Why Write	Sisters
Finding Solutions	Blue and Grey	Patience
Goals and Criteria for Learning	God

Goals and Criteria for Learning
by Ennis William Cosby

When I work with students who learn differently, my goals may be slightly different than the goals of the regular education teacher. My principles and goals are the following:

I should be a teacher who can motivate students toward increasing their self-esteem and confidence. Most students who are diagnosed have very little confidence or self-esteem.
I must come to class well prepared and I also must be prepared for change. Students may have personalities that will alter the whole lesson plan of the day. My preparation motto is, "Try to be ready for the best and the worst."
"Quitters never win and winners never quit." I have always tried to listen to positive feedback from other special education teachers. Most of them have warned me about how students can damage a teacher's pride and ego to the point where a teacher contemplates quitting. "Never take things personally," one teacher recommended to me. This is probably the hardest theory to live by. I have promised myself that I will never quit. Instead, I will try to create the best solution for every problem I face.
The students' overall performance and behavior will be my tools for measurement. There must be gradual improvement.