http://www.nycwp.net/madelinebrownstone/2007/05/19/at-risk-o

Teaching 7th graders is a treat. Really. (Stop laughing, it’s true.)

They are bright eyed and bushy tailed creatures open to new ideas. It’s

the “Gee wiz, Mrs. Brownstone, that’s cool.” state they are in that

makes them such a joy. How is it then, that when they get down into the academic work, there are some among that

group who are at risk of failing? I’ve become interested in a psychology professor Carol Dweck. (I’ve ordered her book on Amazon–Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.) In a recent article about her work Marina Krakovsky wrote:

Students for whom performance is paramount want to look smart even if it means not learning a thing in the process. For them, each task is a challenge to their self-image, and each setback becomes a personal threat. So they pursue only activities at which they’re sure to shine—and avoid the sorts of experiences necessary to grow and flourish in any endeavor. Students with learning goals, on the other hand, take necessary risks and don’t worry about failure because each mistake becomes a chance to learn. Dweck’s insight launched a new field of educational psychology—achievement goal theory. STANFORD Magazine: March/April 2007 > Features > Mind-set Research

What does it take to change their mindset to be goal oriented? And to be able to try to reach that goal? I have been having a frustrating time with one of my 7th grade classes. It seems that there are around half who are able to engage in inquiry learning and sustain their interest in learning when they leave the classroom and work unassisted at home. The other half are not working well in the classroom in small groups and rarely do much quality work at home. Friday I asked the students if they thought that there were some students in the school who were just plain “smart” that they were born with a gift and everything comes easy to them. Many hands went up.

Dweck explains. People with performance goals, she reasoned, think

intelligence is fixed from birth. People with learning goals have a

growth mind-set about intelligence, believing it can be developed.

(Among themselves, psychologists call the growth mind-set an

“incremental theory,” and use the term “entity

theory” for the fixed mind-set.) STANFORD Magazine: March/April 2007 > Features > Mind-set Research

It’s their mind-set that I must change. I must teach them to think differently about their And here I thought I was teaching design technology.

Culture can play a large role in shaping our beliefs, Dweck says. A

college physics teacher recently wrote to Dweck that in India, where

she was educated, there was no notion that you had to be a genius or

even particularly smart to learn physics. “The assumption was

that everyone could do it, and, for the most part, they did.” But

what if you’re raised with a fixed mind-set about

physics—or foreign languages or music? Not to worry: Dweck has

shown that you can change the mind-set itself. STANFORD Magazine: March/April 2007 > Features > Mind-set Research

I have begun giving cues that are about putting in more effort, and trying harder. It sounds so strange to say that because I have unlearned that lingo. In my school (BSGE) we try to make our comments to the students grounded in the specifics of their work. We make a positive statement about what is working, what is going well, with reference to something specific they did. Then, we make one statement that starts something like this: “To reach a higher level of achievement you need to do X.” “X” is never “try harder”; it is always a very specific action they need to take on their next project.

The most dramatic proof comes from a recent study by Dweck and Lisa

Sorich Blackwell of low-achieving seventh graders. All students

participated in sessions on study skills, the brain and the like; in

addition, one group attended a neutral session on memory while the

other learned that intelligence, like a muscle, grows stronger through

exercise. Training students to adopt a growth mind-set about

intelligence had a catalytic effect on motivation and math grades;

students in the control group showed no improvement despite all the

other interventions.

“Study skills and

learning skills are inert until they’re powered by an active

ingredient,” Dweck explains. Students may know how to study, but

won’t want to if they believe their efforts are futile. “If

you target that belief, you can see more benefit than you have any

reason to hope for.” STANFORD Magazine: March/April 2007 > Features > Mind-set Research

Looking forward to reading Dweck’s book. I want to help these children. I’m growing weary from my futile efforts thus far.

 

technorati tags:education, k12, failure, goals, culture, learning, Dweck, psychology, effort, teched, IB, MYP, BSGE

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