GROWTH MINDSET Nurturing Better Learners

In your groups, come up with short sentences that sum up your current understanding of the terms “growth mindset” and “fixed mindset” Intro Task

What’s fixed and what changes?

Growth Mindset The belief that intelligence and talent can develop with the right kind of effort Fixed Mindset The belief that intelligence and talent are fixed, unchanging attributes

So which is right?

So what?

Why Does Mindset Make a Difference? To figure that out we need to consider how life looks from fixed and growth mindset perspectives Task 2:Take the statements and put them where you think they belong in the table

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is… Life is… The primary concern is… Failure… Challenge… Effort… Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… The primary concern is… Failure… Challenge… Effort… Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… Failure… Challenge… Effort… Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… managing others’ impressions (LOOKING SMART) exploring one’s own curiosity (BECOMING SMARTER) Failure… Challenge… Effort… Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… managing others’ impressions (LOOKING SMART) exploring one’s own curiosity (BECOMING SMARTER) Failure… demonstrates a lack of ability, unworthiness presents an opportunity for learning Challenge… Effort… Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… managing others’ impressions (LOOKING SMART) exploring one’s own curiosity (BECOMING SMARTER) Failure… demonstrates a lack of ability, unworthiness presents an opportunity for learning Challenge…generates fear creates excitement, eagerness for learning Effort… Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… managing others’ impressions (LOOKING SMART) exploring one’s own curiosity (BECOMING SMARTER) Failure… demonstrates a lack of ability, unworthiness presents an opportunity for learning Challenge…generates fear creates excitement, eagerness for learning Effort…shouldn't be neededis the KEY to learning Others’ success… The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… managing others’ impressions (LOOKING SMART) exploring one’s own curiosity (BECOMING SMARTER) Failure… demonstrates a lack of ability, unworthiness presents an opportunity for learning Challenge…generates fear creates excitement, eagerness for learning Effort…shouldn't be neededis the KEY to learning Others’ success…diminishes, exposes or threatens lifts up, offers a chance to learn and grow from others The end result is…

Attitudes of Fixed and Growth Mindsets For those with a…Fixed MindsetGrowth Mindset Intelligence is…immutable; set by genetics or chance mutable and can be developed, improved and expanded Life is… a test where we have to PROVE ourselves a journey where we get to IMPROVE ourselves The primary concern is… managing others’ impressions (LOOKING SMART) exploring one’s own curiosity (BECOMING SMARTER) Failure… demonstrates a lack of ability, unworthiness presents an opportunity for learning Challenge…generates fear creates excitement, eagerness for learning Effort…shouldn't be neededis the KEY to learning Others’ success…diminishes, exposes or threatens lifts up, offers a chance to learn and grow from others The end result is… an early plateau, never reaching one’s potential ever higher levels of achievement and a greater sense of personal agency

Can we influence childrens’ mindsets?

“Kids… are exquisitely sensitive to what is going on in a situation – what other people value – what they are being judged on”

A Personal Perspective I got a lot of intelligence-focused praise as a kid I definitely developed a fixed mindset, and I can see how this limited my development The experience of becoming a teacher developed my growth mindset

A Professional Perspective

My S3 maths class in 2012 October Progress Test December Progress Test time performance threshold Contact with parents Growth mindset Clear goal Extra revision+hw

What Now? Survey of all S1 and S2 students to explore their mindsets, and their perceptions of the school’s mindset, repeated next year PLCs focusing on pedagogical strategies that nurture growth mindsets Growth mindset information for pupils in assemblies This event!

Survey My intelligence is something that I can change by making the right kind of effort. I enjoy being given feedback about how I can improve. There are some things people know that I will never be able to learn. My intelligence is something very basic about me, and there isn't much I can do to change it. Making mistakes is an important part of learning. There are some subjects I will never do well in, no matter how hard I work. Hard work matters more than natural ability if you want to achieve your best. You can learn new things, but you can’t really change how intelligent you are. Really smart people don't have to try hard to succeed. I feel embarrassed if my classmates see me making a mistake. No matter how much intelligence you have, you can always change it quite a bit. I will learn more if I work harder, but that won't change how intelligent I am. Test marks tell me how clever I am. I enjoy being given challenges that I might not succeed at. The most successful people fail a lot. My teachers believe that I can become more intelligent. My teachers don't think I will do well in some subjects, no matter how hard I work. My teachers know that I can always learn more in every subject. It is important for my teachers to figure out how much I'm going to be able to learn in their subject. My teachers think it's a good thing if I make mistakes. My teachers are still learning more about how to teach well. My teachers like to hear my opinions about how I learn best. My teachers will be cross with me if I don't understand things in class. My teachers believe that some pupils are smart and some aren't, and there isn't much they can do to change that. My teachers are more interested in the progress I make each year than in how much I already knew at the start of the year.

What Will Success Sound Like? “Adults believe that I can become more intelligent if I make the right kind of effort. They don't really talk about growth mindset - I can just tell by the way they speak that they have faith in my capacity to improve. Adults celebrate my mistakes and failures, and I enjoy being given really challenging tasks." What Should we Avoid? “Adults keep going on about how I should have a growth mindset. The fact that I give up apparently proves that I have a fixed mindset, and that's bad. So not only am I rubbish at school; I also have a fixed mindset - just another thing that's wrong with me."