Growth Mindset & CSLE

What a difference time and experience makes! When I first began my DLL journey several months ago, I was pretty well-established in the field of education with over 10 years of experience under my belt. I thought I had a relatively good grasp of how to teach effectively and my record showed that I must have been doing a pretty good job because my classes generally did well on the state standardized test. Enter EDLD 5302 and, in particular, Carol Dweck. In her book Mindset: The new psychology of success, Carol Dweck completely challenged my idea of what effective learning and, thus teaching, looks like. She introduced me to the world of mindsets and how this affects the way students respond to challenges and obstacles in the learning process. I realized that my preparation and, subsequent, “victory” of students doing well on the state standardized test was actually not helping my students in the long-run. By focusing on the style of teaching needed to pass a standardized test, I was encouraging the development of a fixed mindset in my learners that tells them they are either right or wrong with no gray area in between for improvement. How is this effectively preparing learners for real life? I decided then that I had to change my approach.

Fast forward a few courses later to the 5313 course and I am realizing now that establishing a growth mindset is even more important than I first thought, particularly since I am aiming to establish significant learning environments on my campus. As I reread Dweck’s (2007) book, I could see how a fixed mindset is still overwhelmingly at play with the majority of students on my campus. Even after my attempt at introducing a growth mindset plan to my colleagues who, in turn, would introduce the concept to their students, I continue to hear teachers mention that the ones who have difficulty rarely want to try whenever they get to a hurdle while the ones who normally do well completely shut down any time they face a challenge. Furthermore, sounds of “What did I make?” frequently shower their classrooms as soon as students turn in their assignments as well as “What did you get?” only to be followed by expressions of sadness or joy depending on how their classmates responded. In an educational world that emphasizes standardized testing and making A’s and B’s, the fixed mindset is still proving to be king on my campus. But I know that it does not have to stay this way. To believe that this is “just the way things are going to be” is a very fixed mindset to have, don't you think? And, if I truly want to create significant learning environments on my campus, I have to change this fixed mindset. I have no choice! The “right or wrong”, “I don’t know so I will just give up” nature of the fixed mindset simply will not work with the self-directed, inquiry-based, constraint-filled nature of the significant learning environments I plan to implement utilizing my flipped classroom with project-based learning innovation plan.

So, what should I do now since my original growth mindset plan did not work? Well, as any growth mindset individual would do, I am using this obstacle as a learning experience. And that starts with reflecting on what went well and what could be improved with my initial growth mindset plan. As I look back on my original plan, I noticed that I did a good job of immersing my colleagues in a growth mindset environment. They were able to gain firsthand experience with the growth mindset concept as they engaged in activities in which they received positive, constructive feedback regardless of whether or not they reached the answer. If they reached the answer, I modeled good growth mindset practices by highlighting their processes and encouraging them to expand their thinking further. If they did not reach the answer, I applied the message of “not yet” to encourage further exploration towards the answer. I also effectively implemented the 4 steps to change from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset when my colleagues encountered difficulties. One major area in need of improvement, however, was the time devoted to this practice. The amount of direct interaction my colleagues had with growth mindset concepts was definitely not enough. Due to time constraints, I was only able to enforce my plan one time. Several teachers later mentioned that they wish they had more information and practice. This probably played a huge role in why not much has changed in the mindsets of students on the campus. If their teachers do not feel comfortable with the growth mindset concept and how to implement it in their classrooms, how can I expect them to effectively utilize it with their students? So, realizing that time and practice with growth mindset principles were obstacles, I need to adjust my growth mindset plan to account for these factors.

One way I plan to address the lack of practice opportunities is to ask my administrators if we can conduct our weekly team meetings in a growth mindset format. Each week, a different member of the team will host the team meeting and give the group a fun riddle, brain teaser, or problem to solve before they leave. As the team provides their answers, the host will practice utilizing their growth mindset strategies with their team. I think this will be a fun and engaging way for every member of the team to get plenty of opportunities to practice their skills with implementing a growth mindset culture as well as develop their own growth mindsets as they try to solve these “tricky” problems. To address the issue of limited time, I plan to introduce my colleagues to the Growth Mindset: Personal Accountability & Reflection graphic pictured below.

Source: https://usergeneratededucation.files. wordpress.com/2015/09/growth-mindset_-personal-accountability-and-reflection.png

This graphic created by Jackie Gerstein (2015) is an excellent reference tool for my colleagues to utilize as we begin our new quest towards adopting a growth mindset. This graphic could be extremely helpful because this time-saving tool gives my colleague a constant reminder of how the growth mindset thinking process works so they can ensure they are modeling this behavior for their students on a daily basis. Furthermore, they can post this tangible tool in their classrooms as a reference for their students to use as they work on tasks throughout the day to gauge the effort they are putting in. In essence, this can be another way of immersing teachers and learners in the growth mindset process without utilizing a great deal of extra time. And hopefully, as a result of this constant exposure and practice with the growth mindset process, both teachers and learners will begin seeing this practice as a standard part of the learning process.

As you may have noticed, my original growth mindset plan as well as my adjusted plan focus on developing a growth mindset with the teachers. I chose to focus on the teacher because this is where it all starts. The flipped classroom with project-based learning is a brand new concept for many of the teachers on my campus. As a result, many of them may feel that they are incapable of effectively implementing my innovation plan. If they stay in this fixed mindset, significant learning environments will never occur. Therefore, creating a growth mindset within my colleagues first is crucial. I have to continue placing them in situations, such as the adjustments described above, that focus on process rather than final results and create opportunities for them to encounter challenges so they can feel the motivation and encouragement that results from being applauded for their effort, perseverance, and dedication to tasks (The RSA, 2015). They will also begin to build their confidence, see challenges as learning experiences, and realize that they are capable of overcoming obstacles as long as they continue to put forth the effort. Establishing this way of thinking prior to implementing my flipped classroom plan and significant learning environments will make the transition that much easier. They will be more open to the idea and willing to try making the implementation work, even if they have difficulties. Also, by experiencing firsthand the benefits of the growth mindset, this will make the teachers more apt to ingrain this mindset in their students. As a result, significant learning environments will be encouraged and sustained as it will become almost second nature for students to work through the self-directed, inquiry-based, constraint-filled tasks of significant learning environments with motivation, courage, and determination.

References

Dweck, C. (2007). Mindset: The psychology of success. New York, NY: Ballentine Books.

Gerstein, J. (2015, Sept.). Growth mindset: personal accountability & reflection [Infographic]. Retrieved from https://usergeneratededucation.files. wordpress.com/2015/09/growth-mindset_-personal-accountability-and-reflection.png

Harapnuik, D. (2016, June). Creating significant learning environments. [https://youtu.be/eZ-c7rz7eT4]. Retrieved from http://www.harapnuik.org/?page_id=849

The RSA. (2015, December 15). Rsa animate: How to help every child fulfill their potential.

Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yl9TVbAal5s&feature=emb_title

​​Thomas, D., & Brown, J. S. (2011). A new culture of learning: Cultivating the imagination for a world of constant change. Lexington, Ky: CreateSpace.