Growth Mindset is a way of thinking. This graphic show the difference between a Fixed and Growth Mindset.
Growth Mindset wasn’t a new idea to me, because in the past I’ve done this How to Learn Math: For Students course and used a Mindset Mathematics curriculum, based on Growth Mindset.
Some of the ideas that stood out for me were:
- Grit is the perseverance to keep trying even if you continue to fail until you reach your goal. One great example of this is Timo the cat learning to use his hammock:
For example, when we did The Medium is the Message project we created a tonne of drafts for an advertisement for Covert Cafe. I kept persevering and making new drafts even when they were shot down by a teacher or the owner of Covert Cafe.
- Failure helps you learn. When you make mistakes, then reflect on them and find what you could have done differently, and it will help you succeed next time. This video gives a very strong explanation of why you need to fail:
One example of failure I have is when I accidentally deleted my whole website. I had to recreate it with no files or saved data of what it used to look like or what text was written. Because of that mistake, I am now very careful which button I press, and export an archive of my website that I can download and use if I ever delete it again.
- Fixed vs. Growth Mindset praise. I have become more aware of Fixed and Growth Mindset praise. An example of Growth Mindset praise is “Wow! You must have worked really hard to achieve this!” whereas Fixed Mindset praise would be like “You’re so smart! You’re a natural at this!” The first example encourages effort, while the second enforces the idea that you are either good or bad at something and you can’t improve and that taking risks where you might fail might make others think that you aren’t smart anymore.
- Goal setting. Setting long term goals is important for motivating you to keep trying because you know what you are trying to achieve. Here is a video with Chris Hadfield talking about goals. ⬇️
So we created a long term academic goal, that we combined with a selfie image. Here is mine:
I think that this will help me to stay focused on my leadership skills with all the teamwork we do in PLP.
We also created a Growth Mindset journal in which we recorded our answers to some driving questions about our Growth Mindsets. ⬇️ Here is mine. ⬇️ (If the book won’t load, try using Google Chrome.)
In my Growth Mindset journal I mention how I have the Fixed Mindset that I can’t play and read music simultaneously. However, since I wrote that I have changed my thinking and now I play and read the best I can and if I make a mistake… Oh, well! Practice makes progress!
I enjoyed refreshing my memory of Growth Mindset, and I will continue to grow my Growth Mindset! Thanks for reading! 👋