The Effect of Growth Mindset on Academic Achievement Karen Mason Longwood University Purpose Review of the Literature Methodology Delimitations and Limitations The purpose of this quantitative study will be to research how growth mindset principles will affect students in an elementary school setting. Will students with a growth mindset learn enough effort strategies to increase their achievement? What characteristics will those who do not pass the testing method demonstrate? Students and stress Our American education system has relied on high stakes testing since the induction of the federal program in 2001 of “No Child Left Behind” whose purpose was to ensure that 100% of all students in public schools met certain educational standards. It was also supposed to ensure that teachers were highly prepared and that schools were safe. Its lofty goals have created an education system that has caused principals, teachers and students to be stressed about performance on the tests (Carlin, 2010; Mertler, 2011). The work of Carol Dweck on growth mindset could serve teachers and students as they approach teaching, learning, and preparing for testing. Growth mindset could benefit all those involved in education by giving all parties strategies and assists with goal setting. Growth mindset and academic success Carol Dweck author of Mindset: The New Psychology of Success (2006), has done research on the feasibility of having a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset as a way of setting yourself up for success. In her research Dweck defines growth mindset and the ability of the mind to be developed. Her findings support that when academic challenges are presented that students with a growth mindset tackle the problem with more positive outcomes. They put forth effort which includes finding strategies to access knowledge that the student needs to learn. Some schools with high achieving students have instituted growth mindset principles because even high achieving or gifted students can have erroneous thoughts about their potential and ability to learn, demonstrating a fixed mindset. The students felt threatened by challenges, the success of others and felt that they couldn’t do any better than they were currently doing. Fegly (2010), states that many students weren’t living up to their fullest academic potential." An institution of growth mindset into the school was to become a part of the school culture for the greatest success. Claro and Paunesku (2013) support that growth mindset has “policy relevance” in their national study of Chilean students. They also assert that growth mindset can be taught either by parents or at school through targeted programs and that it can be used with students who may have other factors affecting them like poverty. They believe that mindset can have positive effects on academic achievement. Stephan Allan Saunders (2013) conducted a mixed methods study with a quasi-experimental pre-posttest assessment and a focus group component exploring the impact of growth mindset intervention on reading achievement of at-risk adolescents. His assertion was that self –efficacy beliefs in adolescents would increase their achievement levels. He noted that there were few systemic efforts to increase student motivation in schools. Schools should help students make the connection between effort and success. Saunders also believes that student beliefs about their own intelligence provides a motivational framework for academic achievement. The research shows that the implementation of a growth mindset can be achieved in schools and become school culture. All students can benefit from it from gifted students to at-risk students. Detractors of growth mindset theory Volpe (2016) says that growth mindset theories have been criticized. Even Dweck who is the founder of the theories has stated that others have oversimplified her research. She believes that there can be problems with the implementation of growth if it is not done correctly. Dweck also fears it becoming the new self-esteem movement. Other critics believe that the educational system is the thing that needs to be fixed not the children. They warn of making sure that a child’s lack of success is not due to a need to improve instruction or the communication of praise by a teacher. Growth mindset can be a very helpful tool in student academic success despite its detractor’s beliefs. Dweck wants it to be properly implemented with a strong application of strategies and that students seek out those who can help and guide them to learn. Companies like MindsetWorks and MindsetOnline strive to educate the educators on correct mindset theory based on Dr. Dwecks’s work. Teachers will also need to have a growth mindset about their own practices in the classroom and exhibit the application of strategies and find those who can guide them in the classroom. This study was prepared with the detractions of growth mindset in mind. Subjects Two classes of 4th grade students and teachers as a control group Two classes of 5th grade students and teachers as a control group Two classes of 4th grade students and teachers as an experimental group who receive growth mindset training Two classes of 5th grade students and teachers as the experimental group who receive growth mindset training Instrumentation “MindsetMaker” from the MindsetWorks website is used to train the experimental group of teachers. Procedures Two teachers from each grade level are trained in growth mindset principles. The teachers conduct one half hour lesson per week with students on growth mindset. Growth mindset framing tools are used to help students face adversity. Students are graded with an effort rubric. Students are expected to take on challenges, learn from mistakes, take risks, ask questions, persevere, practice and apply strategies, and accept feedback and criticism. Data Analysis A pre-experiment survey about growth mindset is given to all participating teachers. A post-experiment survey about growth mindset is given to all participating teachers. The experimental group of teachers also are given survey questions about students who did not pass the SOL assessment. Pretest SOL scores will be statically equalized for the control and experimental group. The final SOL test will be analyzed using an ANCoVA to determine statistical differences between groups with an alpha level of p+.05 or less. Question two from the survey will be analyzed with a chi square of independence. An alpha level of p=.05 or less will demonstrate a statistically significant result. This is a small study. The study is at one school. The school is the researcher’s place of employment. The researcher is known to the participants. Classes may have uneven ability levels or uneven gender levels. This is a convenience sample. The Va. SOL’s have become CAT tests that change according to how well students answer questions. Sample Teacher Implementation of “MindsetMaker” Weeks Activity 1 Researcher schedules learning dates 2 Researcher presents” MindsetMaker” to experiment teachers 3 Teachers connect to and register for the “MindsetMaker” Program. 4 Teachers view introductory video. Teachers assess their own mindset. Sharing and reflection 5 Teachers view “Learn How To Motivate” video. Then Teachers apply the learning from the program and complete activities and projects with students. 6 Teachers asses their own mindset. View “Messages That Motivate”. Teachers apply the learning. 7 View “The Malleable Mind”. Apply the Learning Sharing and reflection. 8 View “Molding Mindsets” Apply the Learning. Access tools and resources for review. 9 Administration observations Discuss how teaching has changed with growth mindset. Plan for improvement. Implications for Future Research A larger study needs to be done for generalizability and validity. The study could be expanded with K-5 student to measure long-term effects of growth mindset. The economic feasibility of teaching growth mindset at younger ages could be explored. Growth mindset as a school improvement strategy could be explored. References Carlin, W. (2010). A qualitative study of perceived stress levels of principals in the no child left behind era. (Doctoral dissertation) Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Claro, S., Paunesku, D. & Dweck, C.S. (2016). Growth mindset tempers the effects of poverty on academic achievement. (Doctoral dissertation) Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses database. Claro, S. Paunesku, D. (2014). Mindset gap among SES groups: The case of Chile with census data.( Abstract) Available from Society for Research on Educational Effectiveness. .Dweck, C. (2010). Even geniuses work hard. Educational Leadership, v. 68(1), 16-20. Dweck, C. (n.d.) Growing lifelong learners. Retrieved from https://www.mindsetworks.com/ Dweck, C. (2015). Carol Dweck revisits the growth mindset. Education Week, v. 35(5) 20, 24. Fegly, A. (2010). Cultivating a growth mindset in students at a high-achieving high school. (Doctoral dissertation) Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Mertler, C. (2011). Teacher’s perceptions of the influence of No Child Left Behind on classroom practices. Current Issues in Education, 13(3). Retrieved from http://cie.asu.edu/ Saunders, S.A. (2013). The impact of a growth mindset intervention on the reading achievement of at-risk adolescent students. Available from ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global. Volpe, F. A. (2016) The role of academic achievement motivation in predicting performance on the Northwest Evaluation Association's Measure of Academic Progress. Mindsets Incremental vs. Entity beliefs about intelligence. (Doctoral dissertation). Available from ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global. Research Questions Do students who are explicitly taught growth mindset principles show higher SOL scores in math and reading compared to their peers who have not been taught growth mindset principles? 2. Is there a correlation between a fixed mindset as reported by teachers in a survey and scoring fail/basic on the math and reading SOL tests? The null hypothesis is that there is no correlation between a fixed mindset and scoring at fail/basic on the Virginia Standards of Learning assessment. Importance of this Study Growth mindset is not explicitly taught in elementary schools as a part of the culture. Growth mindset principles could be a powerful tool to reach students and raise academic achievement because students are taught how to face challenges and how to exert effort in the pursuit of academic excellence. The implementation of these principles could be an inexpensive way to prepare resilient students for the 21st century. Growth mindset principles according to its creator Dr. Carol Dweck state that intelligence is not fixed but relies on the effort students put into the learning process. Motivation and achievement are linked through malleable intelligence. QR Code