When students face academic challenges, when they receive poor grades on a subject, and when they see unchanged performance -even though they put effort on a task- they often develop the belief that they are not capable of overcoming challenges. Continuous underperformance affects students' self-efficacy and belief that success is an achievable goal. The purpose of this paper is to explain the process of goal setting with continuous reflection to support students' writing growth and persistence. The paper further comments on teachers' goal setting for instructional and professional goals in order to support their instructional delivery and their growth as learners and professionals.