how to transition students from a "fixed" mindset to a "growth" mindset dr. tom...

How to Transition Students From a "Fixed" Mindset to a "Growth"

Mindset

Dr. Tom Keefe, Participant, IUS Facet Leadership GroupApril 21, 2023

2015 FACET/ILTE Spring Teaching Symposium

April 21, 2023

Main Content Areas

• My Students

• My Story

• Mindsets

• The Power of Belief

• Teach a Growth Mindset

• Group Exercises


My Students

• Most are non-traditional• Many lack learning skills of traditional

students• Many tend to be passive learners• Many don’t feel like they belong• Suffer from poor performance outcomes. Only

about 8% of our students graduate in 4 years. Only about 32% after 8 years

• Wanted to do something!

April 21, 20232015 FACET/ILTE Spring Teaching Symposium

My Story• Sabbatical: Self-regulated Learning, (theory focused on

goal orientation), masters of their own learning• Encouraged: metacognitive strategies • Skills: time management, planning & organizing,

active reading, deliberate practice, use of goals like learning & performance goals

• With a growth mindset: students believe they can grow and develop their talents. Goal oriented, motivated to learn skills, engaged @


Mindsets• Stanford Professor Carol Dweck defines

mindsets this way,

“Mindsets are beliefs—beliefs about yourself and your most basic qualities. Think about your intelligence, your talents, your personality. Are these qualities simply fixed traits, carved in stone and that’s that? Or are they things you can cultivate throughout your life?”

http://www.mindsetonline.com/abouttheauthor/index.html

April 21, 2023Customize header: View menu/Header and Footer

Fixed Mindset

• The belief a person has that their basic qualities, such as: ability, intelligence or talent, are fixed traits

• Success and failure in performance is seen as an attribute of intelligence or talent that is fixed

• Performance on a test or assignment proves they are smart or dumb at something

• Thoughts, feelings, and speech about performance is focused on evaluating personal qualities/traits


Examples of Fixed Mindset Statements

• I’m smart. For me school is easy. It’s just common sense.

• Nice! Looks I got the spelling gene!• Some people are just math brains and

others aren’t! I guess I’m not!• Why disappoint myself and even try. I can’t

write!


The Brain that Changes Itself

• Science indicates that the qualities of the brain may not be as fixed once thought

• Neuroplasticity: throughout life the brain reorganizes itself by forming new neural pathways, helps overcome injuries, learn new information and adapt to changes.

• Dr. Norman Doidge


Growth mindset• A person Believes/Knows that their most basic talents

can be developed through dedicated hard work, learning skills, & good choices

• IQ, brains, talent & innate abilities are just the starting point

• Performance, ability & intelligence are things that can be improved & developed

• Success: hard work, learning skills & good choices• Tests validate a strategy, choice, or effort• Thoughts, feelings & speech focus on the process of

learning @


Examples of Growth Mindset Statements

• I love a challenge – its how I get better!• I messed up the last test. I will have to think

about what I did and regroup.• Mistakes are okay. I learn from mistakes.• I had a good semester. It took me a while to

figure it out, but I came on strong at the end.• Hey, that study session really worked. I put

in the time and I got the grade.


The Power of Belief – Mindset & Success: Eduardo Briceno at TED


To Teach a Growth Mindset

• First, listen to how students are saying things

• Remember to speak back with a growth mindset voice


When a student says, “I can’t ________!” Respond by saying ...

“yet!”What we say belies what we think and teach our students!


Speak with a Growth Mindset:

• Communicate a growth mindset attitude• Communicate positive expectations about

effort. Winning happens because of work hard, learning the right way to do things, and thorough practice.

• Focus feedback on the process of learning• Recognize student use of a growth

mindset


Practice a Growth Mindset in Class• Tell students: mistakes & failure are natural, golden

opportunities! Signals for change• Change to Win. When one way does not work, adapt

and innovate• Winning is not about “I/Q”, it’s about “your” use of the

right strategy, “your” effort, & “your” persistence• Expect hard work and practice to be necessary. It’s

not just for some. • Recognize students: for their use of a growth mindset• Teach learning skills not just content • Challenge students to be masters of their learning


Group Exercises

• Recognizing Fixed and Growth Mindset Statements is the first step

• Students are asked to develop three (3) growth mindset statements:

• Business Students – coming example• Nursing Students – speaking to a patient• Education Majors – speaking to a student• Arts and Letters – thinking about your own work• Faculty – Feedback on written projects


Class Exercise for Business Students

• In groups: • Select a management job you are familiar

with• Come up with three (3) growth mindset

statements about a subordinate's performance

• Are you sure they are growth mindset statements?

• What makes them growth mindset statements?

• Are they focused on qualities or process? @

Class Exercise for Nursing Students @

• In groups: • Imagine you are talking with a patient• Come up with three (3) growth mindset

statements that you can use to counsel patients


• What makes them growth mindset statements?• Are they focused on qualities or process?

Class Exercise for Education Majors @

• In groups: • Imaging you are student teaching!• Come up with three (3) growth mindset

statements about a student’s performance on homework


• What makes them growth mindset statements?

• Are they focused on qualities or process?

Class Exercise for Arts & Letters @

• In groups: • Think about how you criticize your own work.• Come up with three (3) growth mindset

statements about your own work• Are you sure they are growth mindset

statements?• What makes them growth mindset

statements?• Are they focused on qualities or process?

Faculty Exercise: Giving Written Feedback

• We should model a growth mindset with our feedback

• We should Focus feedback on the process of learning

• Good feedback: Descriptive, Objective, & Timely

• Research indicates 38% of the time feedback is associated with decreased performance


Why Doesn’t’ Feedback Always Work?

• Too much negative or destructive feedback• Too infrequent• Too ambiguous • Too much about the person, not about the

process – praise not feedback• Student’s aren’t ready, willing, or able to use

it


Some Feedback Statements Made to IUS Students? (source: IUS, Writing Center)

• Awk. • Did you read this? • What? • Do you really believe this?• I have no idea what you are trying to say.• This is a jumbled mess and makes no sense.• Did you stay up all night writing this? It sure looks

like it.• Where did this come from?• Is this how you learned to write in high school?


Helpful Instructor Feedback• Assume good intentions• Create expectations & offer recognition of effort• Tells students what they did wrong with respect• Coach for success by focusing on what they did,

or need to do, to be successful . Use specific, practical suggestions

• Offer suggestions when students are ready, willing, and able to use the feedback


Compare these statements (What’s Implied)

1. Your opinions are not objective. Your writing is slanted.

2. You can use your opinions, but you have to use better evidence to support those.


We Need to Talk About the Elephant in the Room

• Good Feedback can be a lot of work, which can take lots of your time!

• Look at the next few examples….


Compare these statements

1. Did you read this?

2. I know you work hard to write better. Here is a strategy that may help. Put your writing down after you have finished the first time. Come back to it later and read it out loud to see how it sounds.



1. This is a jumbled mess and makes no sense.

2. I appreciate your hard work. I can see you have written and rewritten this section many times. It still is jumbled and I have a hard time following what you are trying to say. I would like you to go to the writing center. Take your paper. Ask them how you can improve the flow of my writing. Use the word - flow. They will know what you mean and want to help.



1. Do you really believe this?

2. I know when you write, things seem to make sense. But here is the problem with your statement _________. Here is a strategy that may help. After you are finished, ask someone else to read it to see if everything makes sense.



1. I have no idea what you are trying to say.

2. I want to help you write better. There is a problem here with how this statement relates to what you are writing about. Here is something I want you to try. After you have written a statement, ask yourself if it is clearly related to the subject of the paragraph.



1. Where did this come from? Did you stay up all night writing this? It sure looks like it.

2. I can see you are working hard and must have been tired when you wrote this. Here is a suggestion. Look at your schedule and plan ahead. If there is going to be a log jam, shift the work backward to an earlier part of your schedule so you can get it done without being so tired.


Suggestions to Make Good Feedback Practical

• Use rubrics. Canvas is great!

• Scaffold your feedback. Avoid bombarding students with too much feedback

• Ask students what feedback they want

• Cut/paste frequently used feedback statements into electronic submissions

• Use brief written feedback statements supported by detailed face-to-face feedback

• Use computerized testing to automate as much of the feedback process as possible – full feedback!


In Summary, Helpful Instructor Feedback• Assumes good intentions• Creates expectations & offers recognition of

effort• Tells students what they did wrong with

respect• Coaches for success by focusing on what

they did, or need to do, to be successful . Use specific, practical suggestions

• Offers suggestions when students are ready, willing, and able to use the feedback @


References• “Mindsets” by Dr. Carol Dweck• Self-regulated Learning, Dr. Dale Schrunk• Neuroplasticity, Dr.Norman Doidge• Metacognitive Strategies: Thinking about their

thinking• Active Reading: Reading with a purpose• Deliberate practice, Dr. Anders K Ericsson• 1.Learning goals & 2. Performance goals• Time management, & Planning skills @


The End @


Scaffolding, a helpful teaching technique

• Students need many skills in place to be able to advance and learn. Also, many subjects require learning material in sequence

• Not every student is at the same place at the same time

• Scaffolding means targeting feedback to bring students to that next level

• As instructors, we need to know our material and our students


Cautions When Using Feedback

•Desire of recipient for feedback is important. Accurate timely cognitive processing of feedback is much less than a given.

•Not everyone wants feedback.

•Not everyone is ready to hear feedback

•If you are unsure if a student wants feedback ask!

•You may be surprised how many times they turn you down.


Focus on Process in a Positive Way

• Use statements that assume good intentions & recognized effort

• Tell the truth with respect and compassion

• Coach for success

• Encourage students to visualize their success

• Help students to master thinking and speaking growth mindset

• Self-monitor personal prejudices and negative non-verbal cues


how to transition students from a "fixed" mindset to a "growth" mindset dr. tom...

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