Friday, May 1, 2015

Do teachers promote growth mindsets in teaching?

      It is a critical question that we need to think about it as teachers. There are many students that they have a fixed mindsets and they don't aware of their talent and capacity in which they actually can expand and improve them. For sure there are multiple intelligences, so every individual has unique learning styles and strategies, and they are better in especially some fields. For example, some are good at math, some are good at literature or music. But why not student who have mathematical intelligence also good at literature as well as math?      
       As a matter of fact, almost all students limit their self efficacy and teachers don't encourage them about their efforts even if they fail or they make mistakes. Many teachers act only grade oriented and praise students for their high grades such as they put a smile near the grade on the paper, they have favourite student who always get high grades or they give tangible rewards (such as chocolates or stickers) after activities to who finished the first and correctly. Inevitably, students begin to acting and thinking only grade oriented, their biggest goal is getting AA :) Inevitably, their mindsets are fixed. When they make mistakes or they failure to a task, they forget their efforts and not consider their progress. They predominantly think that "I need to get high grades", "Which subjects we have for the exam", "If it is not gonna be in the exam, I don't need to study". As a result of this grade oriented system, students compete each other, they don't focus improve their skills, strategies and growing their mindsets.
        If we reward students' strategies and progress, praise their efforts, show their improvement, encourage them about not to afraid of making mistakes and failure as teachers, we can change their mindsets. They can get smarter and they learn something on their mistakes. 
       I have a teacher that he is very disciplined about his courses. I failed in his class last year and I assumed that I am not good at English Literature, so I'll never be successful in this course. This year, I am taking this course again and I am really working hard. One day before the lesson he said "your progress is really good, you are doing very well", he encourage me about my effort, in consequence of this praising I've started to think "yes, I can do better". He has changed my mindset about his course and I've realized my progress.
       In sum,  we can create more productive teaching environment by praising students' efforts and progress. If we believe that effort is more important than high grades and, so our students will.

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