Growth versus Fixed mindsets 2017

Contents What is growth mindset? Encourage children to challenge themselves in everyday life Language to use to support this attitude Celebrating effort

What is a growth mindset? How is it different from a fixed mindset Brainstorm session….

What is a mindset? It’s simply a belief- a belief about yourself and your most fundamental qualities like ability, faith, personality, political views, talents etc. Fixed mindsets believe that fundamental qualities like abilities and intelligence are essentially fixed; they don’t change much over time. Growth mindsets believe that these talents and abilities are, well, growable; they can change and be developed through effort, practice and perseverance

Strategies for life long learning It is important that children understand effective learning; the process involved in learning something new or difficult What to do with a mistake, what to do when you get something wrong, what to do if you can’t do something Perseverance, resilience and an understanding that wrong is not a bad thing but an opportunity to learn something new Sorting activity….

Why do mindsets matter? Consider Naz & Rowan- two classmates of similar achievement levels & socio economic background. You give them the same task… Rowan- sets out with enthusiasm. He’s good at this sort of task and values his reputation as someone who gets things right, fast. He finds this task unusually tough and quickly becomes dispirited, worrying that hen comes across as ‘slow’. He tells his friends that the task is boring and he disengages from it. Naz- sets out with enthusiasm. He finds the task tough and his intellectual arousal is heightened. His initial attempts lead nowhere and he laughs when he realises he’s going down a blind alley. He tries a new strategy and engages friends in a task focused discussion. He shows curiosity and perseverance and steadily makes progress. From a comparable baseline, Naz’s growth mindset will trump Rowan’s fixed mindset and these efforts will became increasingly marked over time.

A mindset’s effect Mindset Intelligence is fixed (Rowan) Intelligence is growable (Naz) Priority Prove my learning (show I’m bright) Improve my learning (becoming brighter) Seeks out… Quick wins, easy successes, less able competitors, all these show I’m intellectually good. Challenges, smart friends and other opportunities to learn and improve, as these will assist my developments. Avoids… Tough challenges, effort, difficulty, higher performing peers. Tasks and situations that I’ve already mastered- no new learning there then. When things get tough… I become flaky, flustered and flounder, or simply walk away from the task, doubting my capacity to accomplish it, or maybe I’ll cheat… I try harder or revise my strategy. I show resilience, creativity and determination- and thereby become a better learner

A mindset’s effect Fixed mindset Growth Mindset Praise and other rewards Rowan has always been praised for getting things rights, and quickly- ‘clever boy!’. He now does things in measured proportions to the praise he receives. Naz hasn’t had much praise from his parents, but they do notice and comment on his hard work and show interest in his activities- ‘So why did you choose this colour?’ They give feedback Over valuing ‘self-esteem’ Rowan’s parents are effusive about his every action. Why not? To be critical( or even neutral) would crush his fragile ‘self-esteem’. Naz’s parents don’t see it as their job to donate self esteem. Instead they help him to see problems as intrinsically interesting, and to value effort not easy success The ‘hidden curriculum’ Rowan notices how interested his parents are in his performance relative to his peers. Labels like ‘clever’, ‘stupid’, ‘quick’, ‘slow’ are used to describe people. Naz notices how his parents value the effort and dedication that go into people’s achievements. And how seldom people are described in terms of their ‘natural abilities’.

A little caveat… Although bright pupils aren’t more likely to have growth mindsets, people with growth mindsets do tend to become ‘brighter’ over time. They develop more effective learning skills and strategies, and become more aware of themselves as learners, not merely performers.

Growth Mindset ‘I’ve missed over 9,000shots in my career. I’ve lost almost 300 games. Twenty-six times I’ve been trusted to take the winning game shot….and missed. I’ve failed over and over and over again in my life. And that’s is why I succeed’ Michael Jordan The Beckham effect ( Black box thinking- Matthew Syed)

Time for re-training If our children are to fulfil their potential they have to start thinking differently We are not chained by or bound by our current abilities Challenge is what makes our brains grow

Growth Mindset Failure is the most essential step to success.. Video clip…

Encouraging a growth mindset Consider the language you use everyday eg ‘what did you try hard at today?’ PRAISE effort, persistence, practice, strategies, setting goals, seeking challenges

To finish… Video clip Flyer- ‘what’ questions