Chapter 7: Parents, Teachers, and Coaches: Where Do Mindsets Come From?
After reading this chapter watch the following news clip: Click Here
Also, read the following article: Classroom Strategies to Foster a Growth Mindset, and focus on the different strategies to foster a growth mindset environment.
Comment on the following:
What are some ways you could put the growth mindset strategies into practice right away?
This chapter offers quite a bit that i am sure as parents/teachers you can relate to. Please take the time to reflect and share with the group any comments you may have after reading this chapter and comment on each others posts as well.
Also, read the following article: Classroom Strategies to Foster a Growth Mindset, and focus on the different strategies to foster a growth mindset environment.
Comment on the following:
What are some ways you could put the growth mindset strategies into practice right away?
This chapter offers quite a bit that i am sure as parents/teachers you can relate to. Please take the time to reflect and share with the group any comments you may have after reading this chapter and comment on each others posts as well.
Based on Dweck’s work, 4 things that I think could be done to put the growth mindset into practice right away include:
ReplyDelete1. Challenge students. Let students know you expect the best. Set high expectations. When introducing a difficult topic, tell students "this will seem tough, but you are going to learn it. Guaranteed. No exceptions. Don’t make me look bad (LOL).”
2. Make your classroom a safe place. Mistakes should be welcomed and encouraged. Give historical examples of people who failed but kept pushing on (i.e. Thomas Edison). Let students know effort is valued above perfection, and that the amount of progress they make individually is more important than how they compare to others.
3. Praise Effort. Avoid praising children for their "smartness," and instead help them understand the importance of their own actions in achieving success.
4. Use yourself as an example. Help to build relationships with students by sharing stories of your own growth experiences. Share anecdotes from your own life that show how you developed your own intelligence. We can help our students take a growth mindset sharing our own experiences, failures, vulnerabilities and growth.
LOVE #2 this is often not a concern with teachers!
DeleteI especially like #4. What better way to demonstrate a growth mindset and foster a connection with your students than to offer up your own failures, experiences and vulnerabilities.
DeleteTo implement growth mindset strategies right way, you could:
ReplyDelete1. Create a risk tolerant learning zone. Create an atmosphere where your students feel comfortable and safe and aren't afraid to step out of their comfort zones.
2. Set high expectations and let students know you believe in them. Students tend to rise to the challenge if they know someone believes in them. By setting the bar high students tend to do their best to meet or surpass the expectations.
3. Give feedback that focuses on the process - try to be more specific with your comments and praise effort, not just the final product.
I like how Mike B. offered using yourself as an example. If kids see your own growth experiences they may make important connections with both you and the importance of having a growth mindset.
I think trying to be more specific with comments is important. I wish we were given more time when preparing report cards. I've actually had students complain (jokingly) that they are tired of "Pleasure to have in class." If we were given the time, I think being able to make specific comments could make a difference.
DeleteI agree Kim and with the feedback, it needs to be immediate at times and not left for days!
DeleteSome things I can do as a teacher to establish a growth mindset is:
ReplyDelete1. Talk to my students about what a growth mindset is. I have briefly discussed what I have learned with my students. Since I teach seniors, some were receptive and interested in the idea of a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset.
2. As Kim and Mike have both said, it is paramount to challenge my students. If you put forth an effort then you get results. Too often kids give up before they even start something.
3. Take these opportunities as teachable moments and have a discussion why it seems like a challenge. If you talk it out, it doesn't seem so difficult.
4. Establish a classroom atmosphere that kids feel they can asks questions, make mistakes and know it's okay.
I love how you would take advantage of a teachable moment and talk it out. I feel as educators we are always in a race against time and all of the demands of our daily routine. Taking the time out to ensure that your students understand not only builds a great rapport with your students but the overall atmosphere of the class I believe would benefit greatly
DeleteI love the idea of just teaching the kids about growth mindset vs. fixed mindset. Making kids aware of the different ways of thinking. Using class experiences to teach them what we are learning in a way that can begin to CHANGE and GROW their minds. :)
DeleteWouldn't this book be a great idea for Character Ed. Programs !!??!!
DeleteAs a teacher in order to establish a growth mindset in your classroom you could
ReplyDelete1. Atmosphere! Is it warm and inviting? Do you greet your students and say goodbye as
You part ways? Do you have a set list of rules and expectations that are reachable
For all your students to reach?
2. Challenge. Do you
Challenge your students? Is it enough or not enough? Are they attainable? Your students should feel challenged on assignments but not to the Point where they feel failure will occur. Make sure they can build off of prior knowledge on the subject.
3. I love the idea of leaving specific feedback. I have seen where students get a very broad comment on an essay and instead of leaving suggestions they leave comments that the student will take as a personal attack and tend to shut down. I think it's important to always encourage your students to try their best and to embrace differences and to be themselves. Make them feel that they are accepted.
Great ideas Shannon, love them all!!
DeleteI like the idea about the classroom atmosphere. Students are very perceptive and know most of the time if you really care or are just going through the motions. If kids feel comfortable and that they can express themselves then you have the ability to develop growth mindsets in your students.
DeleteWays to put the growth mindset into action that spoke to me include:
ReplyDelete1. Teach students how the brian is malleable. In speech therapy sessions, I often explain to my students that we are "training our brains". In other words, we are practicing hard things so our brains can form new connections and change the way we think and learn.
2. Focus on the process not the product. Putting emphasis on coming up with multiple ways to solve a problem can illustrate that flexibility and problem solving are more important that coming up with the "right" answer.
Great idea in #1 and love the application to speech
DeleteAs a counselor I do not plan my time or activities with my students. My position is unique because when I meet with my students it is typically for academic or career guidance. With that said in applying the 4 ideas which lay a positive foundation for students that I work with.
ReplyDelete1. Students that know me and hear the things that I say understand that I have high expectations of them. I do not care where they come form or what their story is. I do believe that they as well have what it takes to accomplish whatever goals they have for themselves. I explain to kids that I want them to think about what they want out of life. It doesn't have to be a long term lofty goal. It can be as simple as "I want to go to college". Setting high goals is the best way to work toward their best self.
2. This is incredible important. Creating a risk tolerant zone. If kids feel embarrassed or ashamed to talk about what they want out of life or the goals they have they won't achieve them. That is why I never tell anyone they cannot do something or achieve their goals. In fact what I typically say is that you got only one life go out there and make it amazing and make your dreams happen.
3. What good is goal seeking if you don't have feedback. This is one of the most important. When kids learn at a young age to seek feedback and use it to their benefit it opens a world of opportunity. When I meet with kids and give them feedback I also offer up an opportunity for us to discuss what other alternatives are out there and how the can use what they have learned.
4. I often try and explain to kids that who they are now will change as they get older. They will learn so much about themselves if they listen and learn all that they experience. This will allow them to have a growth mindset and also to take advantage of all the amazing opportunity they will come by.
I wish someone would have done this with me when I was 17 years old!
Trina
I love reading your input Trina because it comes from a counselors point of view and i think that its so powerful for teachers to hear! Thank you!!!
DeleteEveryone posted so many great ideas! I agree with them all! In my classroom I would do the following right away:
ReplyDelete1. Teaching them what growth mindset is vs. fixed mindset. Point out examples when they happen. Possibly even break off into groups and do small activities to teach the students how to identify the differences between the two types of thinking. Once that skill is mastered, break it down even further by asking them to take fixed mindset scenarios and see if the kids could provide growth mindset thinking to replace the fixed mindset.
2. Building relationships and creating a safe classroom are definitely important, and I think the best way to do that is by setting the example for the students through our own words, actions, reactions, etc. The students are watching everything. There are times I will make a comparison between the way I COULD HAVE handled a situation and the way that I DID handle it and I ask the kids if they can imagine how it would have been different if I had responded differently. It definitely gets them thinking.
3. I learned many things from this book but one of the best is praising the effort not the intelligence. Now that I am aware of it, I will definitely be focusing on using this to the advantage of all kids.
My favorite quote is "Never, never, never give up" - Winston Churchill; I think that plays right into my hand for lifting up the growth mindset and turning away from the fixed.
I am extremely frustrated. I wrote a post for this chapter on a different computer and it wanted me to sign in as a Google member but in the mean time whipped out my post before it was published.
ReplyDeleteIt is easy for instructors in my school to build relationships and let students know that we are here only for their success. We have 2.5 hours a day with our students so we encourage them to utilize all of their avenues to master their desired trade.
I work at a Career and Technical Center so our students choose to come to us for a specific trade so we already have the upper hand on a growth mindset. Now getting them to stay and be successful is the next challenge. With the amount of time we have with them, the support staff we have and their dedication already in place it is easy for our students to have a growth mindset.
Everything a student learns with us is new, they are praised constantly for their efforts because they are not expected to be experts right off the bat... In fact they are not expected to know anything so it is easy to see the potential for growth.
They are also given different avenues to branch off in while learning their trade. For example they can get good at and feel the desire to be a make up specialist in cosmetology while another classmate might have the desire to do the hair. So they are encouraged to excel at what triggers them and they are not expected to constantly compare themselves to their classmates or a "norm."
We are lucky where we teach and our students see the value in the path they have chosen. It is sometimes the first path they actually choose for themselves in their educational lives.
I am SO sorry Sarah! It seems to be a bit tricky especially when working with school districts filters. I apologize!
DeleteWow, this is a GREAT list from everybody! I am going to add it to our google doc created earlier and you will all have access to it!!
ReplyDeleteGreat Job!!!
Ways to implement growth mindset strategies in the classroom:
ReplyDelete1. Build relationships! I teach special education and at risk high school students and if I didn’t focus on the relationship building piece I would not have the success I do!
2. Set high expectations! These expectations should be on academics, standards, curriculum, as well as a strong focus on character building. Respect sometimes has to be taught and encouraged to foster learning and growth.
3. Use failure as a learning tool! Show examples of people who have failed and persevered. So they can see that its ok to have to work at something and it doesn’t always come easy. Offer opportunities for them to fail and challenge themselves for success.
After reading the chapter and the article, I found that some of the points made were things that I have been doing. I give quizzes often, which encourage students to study, which can lead them to be successful and to build self confidence. When grading papers, having class discussions, doing lab activities, I am sure to praise students for their effort and the way they think through a problem. Designing classroom activities, which include students cooperating with other students in a group, and having students focus on the process of learning, is easy in the science classroom.
ReplyDelete