Growth vs. Fixed Mindset (Blog #1 for EDUC 4P17)

In class this week we learned about a concept called growth mindset. This concept intrigued me and I wanted to learn more about it. As a future teacher I want my students to enjoy coming to school. I want my students to be engaged and motivated in their learning and more importantly I want them to have self-confidence. All of these things are encompassed in the concept of growth mindset. Carol Dweck, a psychologist, professor and a major contributor to education, describes growth mindset as the belief that one's abilities can develop and improve. Opposite of a growth mindset is a fixed mindset, where one is afraid to take risks and believes that their abilities are unchanging or "fixed." Saying, "I'm not a math person," before a math test would be an example of a fixed mindset, where the student is already limiting themselves before evening looking at the test. Whereas looking at a math test and saying, "I'm going to try my best" would be an example of a student with a growth mindset.

In order to better understand this concept, I found a YouTube video that describes it quite well.

I believe adopting a growth mindset is not only beneficial for students but for teachers as well. This idea is discussed by Boyd in her article The Growth Mindset Approach: A Threshold Concept in Course Redesign. In this article she notes that teaching is not just about delivering information and that sometimes teachers are too overwhelmed with the pressure to meet curriculum expectations to think about meaningful learning. This is where Boyd calls on teachers to shift away from traditional learning and moving towards transformative learning. As a teacher, I believe having a growth mindset would change the dynamics of a classroom. Having a growth mindset, I would encourage my students to try new things, to make mistakes, and to persevere through challenges that they face inside and outside of the classroom. 

The more I research the topic of a growth mindset, the more I love it. I hope this blog entry has taught you something new and shown you a new approach to learning and to teaching. As teacher candidates I think it is important for us to think about how we would like our students to approach learning and what our role is in this process. For me, I want my classroom to be a safe and encouraging place where my students explore new territories and aren't afraid to make mistakes. 

For those of you who are interested in learning more about growth mindsets I have included a link to one of Carol Dweck's lectures on developing a growth mindset. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hiiEeMN7vbQ

References

 Boyd, D.E. (2014). The Growth Mindset Approach: A Threshold Concept in Course Redesign.                      Journal on Centers For Teaching & Learning, 629-644. 

Mindsets: How to Motivate Students (and Yourself). (2013). Educational Horizons, 91(2), 16-21

Mindset image retrieved from: http://carriekepple.com/2015/04/24/growth-mindset-vs-fixed-mindset-which-do-you-have/