Blog Post #6- Mindset in the Classroom
In my school district this past year, we frequently discussed the importance of Mindset and how this impacted our classrooms. As a new educator, I knew preconceived notions were detrimental to student learning, but I didn’t realize the impact that a flexible mindset could have. This summer, I wanted to learn more about mindset and how this could impact my fourth grade class and as I began reading more about this concept, I came across an article entitled, “Growth Mindset in the Classroom.”
In our rapidly evolving world, we have built an expectation of speed and adaptability to new information. Individuals are inundated with new technology, information and skills. This speedy pace might seem overwhelming to many because there is no longer ample time to research, formulate and “dig deeper.” Students are expected to learn, adapt and move on. This may cause some individuals to feel like they are “failing,” because they believe they don’t have time to process and learn from their mistakes. So how do we combat this problem in the classroom? Robinson (2017) would suggest that mindset has a strong influence on student’s learning behaviors. By changing an individual's mindset from a fixed to a growth, it encourages them to embrace challenges and use their learning “data” in a way that is constructive toward a solution.
What is mindset? According to Robinson (2017), mindset is a, “set of attitudes and beliefs about abilities, such as intelligence. Students with a fixed mindset believe that they are born with their abilities and that they are unchangeable. Students with a growth mindset believe that their abilities can be developed and improved over time with practice.” After reading these definitions, it’s easy to see how a growth mindset might positively affect a student. By believing that they can achieve allows them to be open to new information and practice. When a student has this, “ I’ll never be able to do it anyway,” mentality, they use that idea to reinforce their belief everytime they encounter a challenge. In a way, they are “stunting their growth” without even realizing it.
I think about my classroom and various growth mindset examples I have witnessed. Last year, I had a student who was learning English as a second language and came in with a very fixed mindset. She told me at the beginning of the year, “I’m really bad at math, so I’ll probably be the lowest in the class.” As we moved through math concepts, she consistently would give up after one or two attempts, chalking her failure up to her mental intelligence. I worked with her frequently one on one and created a classroom community that viewed failure as a temporary road block. By the end of the year, this student was consistently scoring in the top 70 percent of my class. This example illustrated to me the power of personal attitudes and beliefs within a growth mindset.
Moving forward into the upcoming school year, I think about how better to cultivate a growth mindset within my classroom. Robinson (2017) suggests to “reframe your language.” Instead of allowing students to say things like, “ I can’t do it,” change their language to “what am I missing?” This positive language will reinforce failure as a part of a larger learning process, where success is attainable with practice.
Robinson (2017) also discusses the importance of metacognition within your students. By encouraging students to be self reflective, they can better analyze problems and come up with logical, subsequent actions. How do you get students to be reflective of their own learning process? One idea that came to mind, was the practice of “Mindfulness.” Mindfulness is being aware of yourself and your surroundings. In my elementary school, we had a mindfulness lesson once a week with an outside instructor. She trained my students to be internally aware of moments that caused them stress and to think about how they deal with this anxiety. By bringing awareness to these emotions, it encouraged students come up with self-calming strategies and focus on their goal, instead of hyperfocusing on the problem.
Trying to foster a growth mindset within every student might seem daunting, but Robinson (2017) discusses the plethora of resources available to assist educators in this challenge. With Robinson’s (2017) help, there is no question that I will be trying my best to foster a growth mindset with my students in the 2018-2019 school year!
Resources
Robinson, C. (2017, October). Growth mindset in the classroom. Science Scope, 41(2), 18+. Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu.proxy2.cl.msu.edu.proxy1.cl.msu.edu.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/apps/doc/A509163059/AONE?u=msu_main&sid=AONE&xid=86a47d08
In our rapidly evolving world, we have built an expectation of speed and adaptability to new information. Individuals are inundated with new technology, information and skills. This speedy pace might seem overwhelming to many because there is no longer ample time to research, formulate and “dig deeper.” Students are expected to learn, adapt and move on. This may cause some individuals to feel like they are “failing,” because they believe they don’t have time to process and learn from their mistakes. So how do we combat this problem in the classroom? Robinson (2017) would suggest that mindset has a strong influence on student’s learning behaviors. By changing an individual's mindset from a fixed to a growth, it encourages them to embrace challenges and use their learning “data” in a way that is constructive toward a solution.
What is mindset? According to Robinson (2017), mindset is a, “set of attitudes and beliefs about abilities, such as intelligence. Students with a fixed mindset believe that they are born with their abilities and that they are unchangeable. Students with a growth mindset believe that their abilities can be developed and improved over time with practice.” After reading these definitions, it’s easy to see how a growth mindset might positively affect a student. By believing that they can achieve allows them to be open to new information and practice. When a student has this, “ I’ll never be able to do it anyway,” mentality, they use that idea to reinforce their belief everytime they encounter a challenge. In a way, they are “stunting their growth” without even realizing it.
I think about my classroom and various growth mindset examples I have witnessed. Last year, I had a student who was learning English as a second language and came in with a very fixed mindset. She told me at the beginning of the year, “I’m really bad at math, so I’ll probably be the lowest in the class.” As we moved through math concepts, she consistently would give up after one or two attempts, chalking her failure up to her mental intelligence. I worked with her frequently one on one and created a classroom community that viewed failure as a temporary road block. By the end of the year, this student was consistently scoring in the top 70 percent of my class. This example illustrated to me the power of personal attitudes and beliefs within a growth mindset.
Moving forward into the upcoming school year, I think about how better to cultivate a growth mindset within my classroom. Robinson (2017) suggests to “reframe your language.” Instead of allowing students to say things like, “ I can’t do it,” change their language to “what am I missing?” This positive language will reinforce failure as a part of a larger learning process, where success is attainable with practice.
Robinson (2017) also discusses the importance of metacognition within your students. By encouraging students to be self reflective, they can better analyze problems and come up with logical, subsequent actions. How do you get students to be reflective of their own learning process? One idea that came to mind, was the practice of “Mindfulness.” Mindfulness is being aware of yourself and your surroundings. In my elementary school, we had a mindfulness lesson once a week with an outside instructor. She trained my students to be internally aware of moments that caused them stress and to think about how they deal with this anxiety. By bringing awareness to these emotions, it encouraged students come up with self-calming strategies and focus on their goal, instead of hyperfocusing on the problem.
Trying to foster a growth mindset within every student might seem daunting, but Robinson (2017) discusses the plethora of resources available to assist educators in this challenge. With Robinson’s (2017) help, there is no question that I will be trying my best to foster a growth mindset with my students in the 2018-2019 school year!
Resources
Robinson, C. (2017, October). Growth mindset in the classroom. Science Scope, 41(2), 18+. Retrieved from http://link.galegroup.com.proxy1.cl.msu.edu.proxy2.cl.msu.edu.proxy1.cl.msu.edu.proxy2.cl.msu.edu/apps/doc/A509163059/AONE?u=msu_main&sid=AONE&xid=86a47d08