Fixed Vs. Growth Mindset and the importance of motivation.

How can mindset theories improve our understanding of the way in which students learn and what implications does this have for my practice as a teacher?

Teachers, parents, policy makers and even students themselves often wonder why some children fail and others do really well at school. In my 7 years as a teacher I heard a wide variety of answers but none of them seem to truly explain this. It may be true that children from low socioeconomic backgrounds may find school less motivating, or speakers whose first language is not English could fall behind easily. Others are really good at English but when it comes to Science, they may claim it is not their thing and stop trying.  However, this is not always the case and I was always in search of an answer that would help me better understand what was really going on in my students’ mind and what was blocking many of them from truly embracing school.  

I felt this challenge in my last job teaching 3^rd Grade students at a bilingual school in London that was extremely diverse in terms of language backgrounds, students’ socioeconomic level and academic level. It was really difficult to teach this diverse student body so I was always in search of a new way of approaching a topic, thinking of which materials could work and planning activities that could grab everybody’s attention.  However, I would have done a much better job if I had asked myself how these students’ are really experiencing school. Understanding the way in which students really experience school can lead to very powerful interventions. Accoring to Yaeger et al, students’ beliefs and worries often prevent them from learning. According to Dweck, many people believe that a person is born either smart, or not — and that stays that way for life.  This belief has huge implications for schools and I will explore the issue in depth.   I will begin by briefly reflecting on what the research shows to elaborate on the academic mindset theories and the implications that they have for my practice as a teacher and potential school leader. 

Academic Mindsets

Carol Dweck makes a huge contribution to the field of education when she develops the academic mindset theories.  Her research shows that some students think that people’s amount of intelligence is fixed and cannot change (2006). These students are said to have a fixed mindset.  Many of my students in London had a fixed mindset. They believed that they were born with a certain amount of intelligence. Everyone in that 3^rd grade classroom new who was good at what and this was a problem because it stopped many of them from even bothering about learning or caring to much about making mistakes that would expose them.  One student, was so far behind that he completely gave up on school.  His view of effort led him to believe things would come easily to him if he were smart so instead he completely gave up. Like many other students with fixed mindsets he withdrew from the behaviors essential for academic success and gave up easily when he encountered a setbacks.  He did not believe that he could learn and get smarter.

On the other end of the spectrum, other students believe that intelligence is not fixed and it can grow and change through learning.  Students with a growth mindset see school as an opportunity to learn.  They believe that the harder they work, the more their ability will grow.  By doing so, they engage in more productive academic behaviors, and persevere to overcome obstacles to success. Believing that intelligence can be developed opens students to a love of learning helping them see effort as a powerful tool that can help them overcome difficulties.  

Why do students’ develop a fixed mindset?

Now, understanding why some students have a fixed mindset and others have a growth mindset is very important.  In my personal opinion, parents play a huge role in the development of children’s academic mindset from a very early age. At countless conversations during parent teacher meetings I hear them commenting on how intelligent one of their children is in relation to the rest. Praise often comes in the form of “smart kid, well done!” And this, has a huge impact in the way students construct they way in which they think about themselves. By the time they arrive in first grade, students know well what it means to be intelligent. And even a few days into the first days of school they know that the “ the smart kid in the class” has a lot of intelligence.

                        What can school do to help students develop a growth mindset?

Fortunately, school can play a huge role in reversing this pattern but it is important to start early on and with consistency. The first and most important thing that needs to be done to help all students develop a growth mindset is to look at the feedback that teachers are giving to their students.  Comments should be aimed at praising students’ effort. Research by Dweck, showed that when teachers praised students’ for their hard work they remained motivated and wanted to continue working on challenging tasks that they could learn from. It may be tempting for teachers and parents to praise students' intelligence or talent but instead they should be taught that challenges and errors are formative. As future teachers or leaders, encouraging teachers and parents to praise effort is an effective way of helping students’ to develop the growth mindset and by doing so we are teaching our students that they are in control of how smart they become.  

During my high school years, I recall end of the year festivities where awards were distributed among students. I remember there was an award for effort and progress. However, these awards were reserved for those students in the class who had worked really hard even if their grades were about average; those awards related to academic achievement were reserved for the same three of four students who rarely broke a sweat about school. Practices as this one, have a huge impact in the development of students’ mindsets. By making effort a low category prize for those that could never make it to the top, the school was sending the message that students’ could not get better. Schools should be very careful about feedback and practices as this one. Even if the message does not seem to be straightforward it may have a negative impact on the way students perceive school and themselves.   

            Additionally, there may be situations were students try extremely hard and they do not learn what they need to. Teachers here play a huge role in developing students’ mindsets.  To ensure that students’ who are struggling are able to develop a growth mindset, teachers need to make sure that students’ efforts are effective.  By teaching how to apply learning strategies (study skills, 
self regulated learning, time management skills, help seeking behaviors and metacognitive strategies) and the importance of academic behaviors (attendance, homework completion, study habits, participating in class activities and discussion), students will have the necessary tools they need to apply their effort in effective ways and succeed at learning.

How do we make this happen in our schools?

Students do not develop growth mindsets overnight. In order to help students’ develop a growth mindset, school leaders should provide professional development opportunities where teachers can learn about academic mindset theories and what implications these have for their classroom; without consistency it is almost impossible to change the way students think about themselves especially if they are struggling.  

The research has shown that by teaching students how the brain works and the relationship between mindsets schoolwork, students’ motivation and grades improve significantly. There are numerous workshops and opportunities available to help students learn about this. However, because the idea that talent can make us successful is extremely strong in schools, leaders and teachers need to develop a school culture that truly appreciates effort and dedication if they truly want to help students develop growth mindsets. Additionally, even though I would encourage schools to start working on implementing teaching practices that help to develop growth mindsets from a very early age, it is never too late to make a change. Small interventions that emphasize attitudes, beliefs, and dispositions towards school can impact significantly on students’ academic achievement and help them develop a growth mindset with the potential of transforming students’ academic experience into both successful and positive.

See the following website to learn about an online course that will teach students about the "growth mindset" in 4 sessions. 

http://www.mindsetworks.com/mindset-school/