Growth Mindset Plan

Hello,

My name is Dani Fry, and I am an instructional coach in Frisco ISD, which is in north Texas. Much of my job is to grow people and work alongside them to use high impact strategies to raise student achievement. I am usually working with teachers on something that is out of their comfort zone, especially when it comes to trying out something new and getting feedback. A lot of my job pushes people outside their comfort zone and into the learning zone, which requires having a growth mindset. 

Yet... who knew such a small word, could change the meaning of a phrase so much? It can change "I don't understand." to "I don't understand yet." The power of yet within growth mindset is so important because it allows people of all ages to believe that they can still learn new things. There is such freedom in that, which allows for an abundance of grace between people because mistakes are just part of the learning process. So much more innovation will happen, more risks will be taken, and people will live fuller lives if they view everything as a learning experience. When adults and children have a fixed mindset, there are so many dangers that appear. The victims of a fixed mindset avoid new challenges, rarely excel at things because they believe they were born with a certain amount of talent that doesn't change, and they are likely to give up after a few mistakes or trials when new tasks are presented (Jeffrey, n.d.). We see from the video, Famous Failures (2012), there are many examples that have become some of the most well known and talented individuals in their craft, not because they were born that way, but because of their growth mindset and desire to achieve and put in the work to get better and better. 

At my school and within education in general, there are many people who do not encompass a growth mindset. We teach students to have one, yet some teachers do not model it themselves. Now, I do attribute a lot of this to our current reality this year of COVID-19, and I do believe everyone is embracing change at differing levels, with some being at their max level of stress. As a first step to having teachers realize their current reality of mindset, I have created the attached professional learning that I plan to push out to my staff next month. In A Complete Guide to Changing Your Fixed Mindset into a Growth Mindset by Scott Jeffrey (n.d.), Dweck references the four steps to change your mindset from fixed to growth. The first thing you have to do is be self aware of what mindset you are having and be able to hear that fixed mindset voice. In order to start my teachers off in the professional learning, I have them taking an assessment, so that they will be mindful of what mindset they are starting out with as a baseline. The next step that she suggests to change your fixed mindset is to realize that you have a choice. Throughout the professional learning I have developed, it really informs teachers of the way they can change the words that they think and say and that there is a science behind how the brain works to learn new things. This essentially busts the myth that people have a set amount of intelligence when they are born. Dweck next says the step is to talk back to your fixed mindset voice with a growth mindset voice. To address that step, I have teachers doing a sort so that they have statements they can say instead of the fixed mindset statements. Next I teach them about the learning pit and how to react when they experience failure instead of quitting and giving into that fixed mindset mentality. In the fourth and final step, Carol Dweck talks about how they need to take the growth mindset action. For this step, I have teachers creating a goal for themselves after watching a video on famous people who have experienced failure, but used their growth mindset to rise to the top. 

The message of "YET" is the most important part to impart, especially to children. In order to impart that though, we have to truly believe it and model it. I think this learning experience that teachers will go through thatt I have created, will give them the reminder of what growth mindset is all about. It is not just a fad that came into play a few years ago. It is a scientifically proven way of thinking that makes our lives better in all aspects. Instead of children focusing on the negativity around them or their failures, it is so important for them to speak the word yet as they experience hardships in learning and other aspects of their lives. Reminding teachers of Dweck's philosophies with her video, The Power of Yet (2014), will help with the implementation in our building that I am hoping will trickle down to students. 

The videos and content that I am using are embedded within this Genial.ly. We actually decided that we will send it out as a personalized learning experience for teachers to gain one of their hours of GT credit this year. They will turn in their reflection in order to receive professional development credit. As I was reading for this project about growth mindset, I realized that I may have some areas of my life where I tend to have a more fixed mindset right now. Going forward, I will be sure to listen out for the fixed mindset voice, and I will use the tools I have found for my teachers in order to reframe my thinking and take action toward a growth mindset, especially when learning new technology and modes of delivery. 

References

Cullins, A. (13AD). The Ultimate Guide to Praising Your Kids. Big Life Journal. https://biglifejournal.com/blogs/blog/praise.

Dweck, C. S. (2008). Mindset: the new psychology of success. New York: Ballentine Books.

Farmer Kris, D. (2015, June 10). Preschoolers and Praise: What Kinds of Messages Help Kids Grow? KQED. https://www.kqed.org/mindshift/40369/preschoolers-and-praise-messages-that-can-help-kids-grow.

Jeffrey, S. (2020, June 23). Change Your Fixed Mindset into a Growth Mindset . CEO Sage. https://scottjeffrey.com/change-your-fixed-mindset/.

Khan Academy. (2014). Growing Your Mind. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WtKJrB5rOKs&feature=youtu.be.

Motivating Success. (2012). Famous Failures. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLYECIjmnQs&feature=youtu.be.

Sesame Street. (2014). Sesame Street: Janelle Monae - Power of Yet. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLeUvZvuvAs&feature=youtu.be.

Take the Mindset Assessment to Learn More about Your Mindset. What's My Mindset? (2015). https://blog.mindsetworks.com/what-is-my-mindset.

TEDx Talks. (2014). The Power of Yet. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-swZaKN2Ic&feature=youtu.be.