Dean of Studies

Predicting outcomes

Secrets of success

In some relatively recent research, Professor Angela Duckworth - Professor of Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania, author of the popular book, Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance, and founder of the non-profit Character Lab - is asked to provide answers on what predicts success. Parents, students and teachers often want to try to narrow down the key habits, behaviours or routines that may lead to achieving academic success in a quest to find the "secret formula''. Professor Duckworth and some of her colleagues at Duke University and the United States Military Academy revealed through their research that the answer is not always straightforward. They have conducted a longitudinal (long-term) study of more than 11,000 West Point cadets, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and discovered that both cognitive and noncognitive factors can predict long-term achievement, with characteristics like intelligence, grit, and physical capacity each influencing a person’s ability to succeed in different ways.

In 2007, Professor Duckworth published a paper about this in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology showing for the first time that grit was an important predictor of accomplishment. She has continued to collaborate with West Point, collecting data on moe than 11,000 cadets that entered the highly selective and physically and academically demanding military academy. For each student, the researchers have evaluated their grit score as measured by the 12-item Grit Scale, created by Professor Duckworth, and who has stated:

 

“We accumulated all this data in part so we could answer more definitively the question of whether grit predicted success outcomes. We now have more confidence in our original conclusions. At the same time, we wanted to explore where, perhaps, grit wasn’t the most important factor.”

 

Furthermore, the team discovered that different personal characteristics predict different outcomes, and helping people stick with things when they’re hard is important, but it’s not the best predictor of every aspect of success. The findings contributed to the overall knowledge about what factors predict success, strengthening the original premise about grit, and highlighting other attributes that are key to long-term achievement. Leading a happy, healthy, helpful life according to Professor Duckworth and the research team requires a person to cultivate many aspects of their character, including honesty, kindness, generosity, curiousity—and, of course, grit. 

 

The key message is to understand that the impact of grit is significant, but it is not a ‘one size fits all’ that can just be adopted and applied to every situation to guarantee success. Cognitive (academic) ability predicts success in academic achievement and overall fitness in physical challenges, and grit is about developing an attitude and approach that begins with, ‘I will start with the hardest thing first’. In speaking with the Year Nine students this week, and in observing Year Twelve ATAR students enter the final stages of their preparation, developing an attitude for success starts with recognising that even just making a start is the first step, and doing something is far better than doing nothing at all. Skills for examination success might include attempting all questions as opposed to leaving a question unanswered, planning the number of minutes for each question based on the number of marks available, and that asking for help when studying is preferred over trying to solve every question on your own. By developing these actions often, they become habits and when they become habits, you begin to develop grittiness.

 

(Reference: https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/Penn-Angela-Duckworth-looks-beyond-grit-predict-success

 

Year 11 Examination Information

The Year 11 exams have been scheduled to commence on Monday, 8 November in the Business Centre. Students should check the schedule and ensure that they arrive at least 20 minutes prior to the commencement of reading time. 

 

Year 10 Exams

Year 9 Exams

Can you help? Request for exam supervisors

The College is seeking some supervisors to assist with student examinations on the following dates: 

 

                Monday , 8 November (am)

                Tuesday , 9 November (pm)

                Friday, 12 November (am & pm)

                Monday 15, November (am & pm)

 

If you can assist with supervision, please contact Tracey Burgoyne, Assistant to the Deputy Principals, on tburgoyne@norbert.wa.edu.au or call 9350 5433.

 

Mr R  Dowling

(Dean of Studies)