Setting your students up for success during their school years is the best way to help them catapult their adulthood success. If your student needs extra assistance to academically and emotionally succeed, including SMART goals in their IEPs—or Individual Education Programs is essential.

Here is everything you need to know about setting SMART goals in your student’s IEP:

What are SMART Goals?

SMART goals are Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound. These ensure your student’s progress is clearly defined, assessed, monitored, and achieved. Here is why they are so important:

SMART goals offer a structured framework for students’ educational progress. Here are some of the vital benefits:

Specificity - These goals specify what is to be expected. This allows everyone involved to understand the process and the goals themselves.
Measureable – Due to this being a measurable component, SMART goals provide the ability to track the progress of the student. It also holds teachers accountable for offering the support essential to the student.
Achievable – These goals are reachable and achievable, which allows the expectations to be realistic. This helps students with disabilities stay motivated and confident.
Relevance – This ensures the goals are relevant to the student’s needs. They help keep the focus on the most important aspects of each student’s personal and academic development.
Timeliness – Time-bound goals develop a sense of necessity and urgency. This offers a clear timeline for achieving all of the goals and objectives.

How to Formulate SMART Goals

Here is how to set up your SMART goals in the proper way for the students’ success:

Be specific

A specific and clearly defined goal details what needs to be achieved in the plan. It answers the question of the following:

Who is involved?
What do we want to accomplish?
Where will this take place?
Why is this important?

Example: Instead of “improve the student’s reading skills”, a specific goal is selected instead such as “Jill will improve her reading comprehension skills to achieve reading grade-level texts with 90% accuracy.”

Measurable

These measurable goals can include the criteria and agenda for tracking progress. This helps determine when the goal is met. It also answers the following questions:

How much?
How many?
How will I know when the goal is accomplished?

Example: “Jill will answer 8 out of 10 comprehension questions correctly on grade-level books and texts.”

Achievable

Achievable goals are imperative for students’ success. They offer realistic and attainable depending upon your student’s current resources and abilities. It answers the following question:

How can the goal be accomplished?

Example: “Jill will receive 45 minutes of daily reading practice and intervention with a focus on reading comprehension strategies.”

Relevant

Relevant goals help align with the customized needs of your student, including their long-term goals and objectives. It answers the question:

Does this goal matter?

Example: Improving reading comprehension is crucial to the success of Jill’s academic achievements.

Time-bound

Time-bound goals offer clear deadlines, which create a semblance of urgency. This helps the teacher and student stay on track and track the progress. It answers the question:

When will the goal be achieved?

Example: “Jill will achieve this goal by the end of the semester.”

How it All Comes Together

When you are creating SMART goals for your student, it is necessary to involve all members of the IEP team. This includes the parents, school counselors, psychologists, and teachers. Here is a step-by-step process to help you create efficient and effective SMART goals:

Assess current performance – Begin by analyzing and evaluating your student’s current abilities as well as their specific areas of need. Use this data from the analysis and assessment, teacher observations, and previous IEPs.
Define specific objectives – Based on the assessment, you can identify specific behaviors or skills that require extra attention and improvement. Make sure all objectives are detailed, specific, and clear.
Set measurable criteria – Determine how all progress should be measured. This could look like standardized tests, observational checklists, and teacher-created assessments.
Ensure goals are able to be achieved – Consider your student’s current skills and the resources that are available to help them. Set realistic and achievable goals that stretch the student’s abilities.
Align with relevant needs – Ensure all goals tackle the critical areas of the student’s personal and academic development. Make sure each goal is beneficial to the student.
Establish a timeline – Set clear deadlines for meeting all goals. This provides a successful framework and keeps every person involved focused and offers and timeline for evaluating the progress of the student.

Example of a SMART Goal for an IEP:

Specific: Jill will improve her reading comprehension skills.

Measurable: She will answer 7 out of 10 comprehension questions correctly on grade-level texts.
Achievable: She will receive 45 minutes of daily reading intervention focusing on comprehension strategies.
Relevant: Reading comprehension is critical for success in all academic areas.
Time-bound: She will achieve this goal by the end of the current school year.

Bottom Line

By setting up SMART goals in your student’s IEP curriculum, you offer them a chance to succeed both academically and personally. SMART goals are clear, measurable, and achievable progress. By focusing your attention on these factors, your students with disabilities have a great chance of success.

By involving the entire IEP team in the SMART goals process, it ensures every person is on the same page working toward the same goal, and working collaboratively toward the success of the student. SMART goals are more than setting targets—they are effectively creating roadmaps that foster academic and personal growth and nurture the student through their struggles.

Schedule a free consult today to find out more about gifted evaluations Also, get a free copy of our e-book on Smart Tips to Prepare Your Child for a Psycho-Educational Evaluation.

The Mind Center, LLC is a thought leadership mental health brand dedicated to helping parents, their kids, and the schools they attend. At The Mind Center LLC, we specialize in gifted evaluations. With over 15 years of experience and a commitment to unlocking each child’s potential, we’re here to help guide you through the process. Contact us today.

Setting SMART Goals in Your Student’s IEP: A Guide for Teachers