Measuring Success as a Teacher

My philosophy for student success is that there must be a consistent triad system in place. The teacher facilitates learning, the student actively engages in the process and the parents contribute support and assistance. When all these three parts are connecting, we will have successful results for every child. I measure success within interims and within spectrums.
The interim component is broken apart on a daily level, on a unit level, and on a yearly level. Every day I make sure that I have clear objectives, I’m well prepared and I have a back-up plan. As I go through the day with kids, I look for signs of engagement and connection. I have always worked from the gut and I found that it works very well for me. Relationships and effective communication with students and teachers gives me a much more accurate measure of success than data and theory. So if I notice a fire in a student’s eye, a contribution, smile or laugh that connects to the topic, or an intriguing question then we (students and teacher) have been successful on that particular day.
Assessment (Data has its place) is the best measure of success at the unit level. I give a lot of homework and tough quizzes and tests. The intensity of these tests is correlated to the level of the student. However, I refuse to dummy down and I push the kids to make their brain sweat. I always start the year by telling my students that I have never failed anyone in 21 years. If a student does their work, prepares for class, studies for assessments and has a positive attitude, it is impossible to fail my class.
Typically many of my unit grades are quite low particularly with 9th graders. They have come off three middle school years where academic success plays second fiddle to personal survival and identity development. However, once in high school we have got to prepare these kids for the rigors of school and life. As I analyze the results of each unit, I look for small changes that show that the students are starting to get it. The quantity and level of completed assignments improves, and test-taking results demonstrate an enhanced understanding of critical thinking. As the units move forward the amount of students demonstrating improved skills and grades increases significantly. This is my measurement of success at the unit level.
At the end of the year, if my students are well prepared to handle the challenges of the next school year and the pertinent expectations of a typical high school sophomore, then I have been successful.
I also stated that I measured success at a spectrum level. Questions that I pose to myself are as follows: Does the student understand the importance of the integration of courses in their lives? Does the student write, speak, and read more proficiently compared to when we first met? Does the student connect today’s lesson to its purpose in shaping them as future adults. Whenever I interact with these students as kids or as adults in the future, I carefully observe them. If they can intertwine their mastery of science, social studies, mathematics, language, music, etc. together than I along with many of their other teachers have been successful. When I meet a former student years after high school, I look for certain things. If they look me straight in the eye, present a strong handshake, evoke purpose, transcend ideas, and smile with sincerity, then I am one of a team of teachers that have been successful.