The Power of A Growth Mindset​

 

See also my blog post about the Learner's Mindset.

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In his post, Fixed Vs Growth Mindset = Print Vs Digital Information Age (Harapnik, 2013,) Dr. Harapnuik states:

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• If I imagine my primary job as a teacher is to serve information, am I helping solve the current informational problem or make it worse?

• And given the vast complexity of the informational network, if I insist on my centrality, does that establish or harm my credibility as a teacher?

• If assessing information – and the wisdom & experience that requires – is the central challenge of the current informational age, are teachers more or less necessary?

 

He said he bases his role as an educator on these questions. I think these questions are important because they can help us create the right learning environment for our students. My responses to these questions dictate what my classroom environment will be.

 

My goal is to have students understand how math works, not find the right answers. They have math solvers and calculators for that. But they need to know if the answers produced by the solvers and calculators are right. If they don’t have a basic understanding of the type of answers they should get, they’ll never know if they have good information or not.

 

In my second class in my Digital Learning and Leading program at Lamar University, I read Mindset: The new psychology of success by Carol Dweck (Dweck, 2006). This book opened my eyes to what “smarts'' really is and why my students need to focus on learning instead of the grade. They need an environment that supports their learning and the effort they put in instead of just giving a grade based on a correct answer. 

                                         

I try to model the growth mindset during our daily lessons and during projects. When students find my mistakes I thank them for catching them. I applaud them not only for their observational skills but also for telling me, which can be a scary thing for students.  I remind them that everyone makes mistakes and that mistakes are ok. We know we are going to make mistakes which makes communication with others important. They catch what we don’t!

 

Part of my Innovation Proposal involves students engaging in discourse to deepen their learning. If they don’t find their growth mindset voice, the voice that encourages feedback, these discussions won’t be beneficial to them. The growth mindset is important to my plan because students need to support and communicate with each other to increase their learning.

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In my first Growth Mindset Plan, I discussed what I felt would be important to address in my classroom with the knowledge I gained from Dweck’s book and other supplemental materials (see references below).  I’ve tried to implement these ideas in my classroom:

• No late penalty for work received after the due date. 

• Ability to retest for any test failed.

• Encouraging questions and praising students who ask. Things I often say:

  • “If you have a question, someone else does too.”

  • “Asking a question isn’t brave, it’s smart.”

  • “There are no dumb questions, only unanswered questions.”

• Motivational posters placed where all students (remote and in-person) can see them to remind them of important growth mindset concepts:

• When caught cheating, students have another chance to learn the material and show their learning to receive credit.

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