Assistant Principal / Leader of Pedagogy

The importance of having a GROWTH MINDSET

My newsletter article for this issue is intrinsically linked to my last article: Fast Feedback.  This week I’m focusing on the importance of building a growth mindset in our young people.  As teachers and parents, this is the greatest gift we can give our children.  The alternative is a fixed mindset which certainly does not help us move into the future in a positive way.

People who have a fixed mindset will only have a go at things they are already good at.  They are terrified of failure, avoid negative feedback and keep doing what they have always done.  In contrast, people with a growth mindset love trying new things.  They aren't afraid of failure, seeing this as an opportunity to learn.  They seek feedback from people and thrive on learning.

Image:  A Growth Mindset Vs a Fixed Mindset - (Bansal, 2020)

It’s not hard to see the importance of understanding these two mindsets. It’s also important to acknowledge that we are not always one or the other. I imagine most of you, as you read this, can classify yourself as having more of one or the other: A fixed mindset or a growth mindset. Even if you normally have a growth mindset, there are times when it’s natural for you to switch to a fixed mindset.  This is especially the case when our energy levels are low or we are in times of trouble.

I’m sure you can see why this is important for us as educators and parents.  We want our children to try new things and to see problems as opportunities to grow.

One of my favourite videos regarding education is How To Help Every Child Fulfil Their Potential by Carol S. Dweck. As a bonus, the production company RSA has adapted her TED talk with animations.  Here is the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl9TVbAal5s&t=331s

Carol says a few things that have stayed with me since I first listened to her talk around 6 years ago.  Most of her discussion is about how to build a growth mindset in our young people.  To make it even clearer, she explained what types of things build a fixed mindset. I was shocked to learn that much of the positive affirmation I was giving to my students daily was actually doing them harm!  My comments like “This is a great response! You are so smart!” were likely to encourage those students to have a fixed mindset. I changed my praise from then on to praise the process the students have used. This includes things like “You have worked so hard on improving your explanations. Well done.” So, there is still room to praise our young people.

Christina Winter is a teacher and researcher who shares her ideas online to benefit everyone. I found this table which gives examples of ways we, as teachers and parents, can help build a growth mindset in our young people by praising process (process praise) rather than praising how smart they are (people praise).

        Encourages a FIXED MINDSET                        Encourages a GROWTH MINDSET

This is the same theory that explains why we don’t encourage teachers to give the mark or grade to the tasks done by students in our classes.  Feedback that encourages the student to improve is much more effective.  Once a grade is given, there is the tendency for students to say: “Hey, I got an A!  I’m so smart and I don’t have to try anymore!”.  Or “I got a D.  This subject sucks!” or “I got a D. I’m so dumb!”  All of this is classic fixed mindset thinking.

In closing, I want to acknowledge that I’m preaching to the converted.  If you are still reading this article, I’m sure you primarily have a growth mindset and agree that we need to build a love of learning in our children.  What I’m asking is for you to talk more with your children about this, and please Praise Process, not Intelligence.

By the way, if anyone wants to comment on my articles, please feel free to email me at schapman@arm.catholic.edu.au.

Mr Stephen Chapman

Assistant Principal - Leader of Pedagogy

Never stop learning; for when we stop learning, we stop growing  - Jack Lewman

References

Bansal, V. Fixed Mindset vs Growth Mindset: How To Shift To A Path Of Learning And Growth. Tech Tello (2020). Retrieved from https://www.techtello.com/fixed-mindset-vs-growth-mindset/

Dweck, C. RSA ANIMATE: How To Help Every Child Fulfil Their Potential. 2015.

Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl9TVbAal5s&t=331s

Winter, C. Process Praise: The Importance of Giving Students Effective Feedback. Mrs Winter’s Bliss (n.d.). Retrieved from https://mrswintersbliss.com/growth-mindset-process-praise/