Growth Mindset
TxDHH Learning Bites 2/5/2018
Purpose
The TxDHH Learning Bites addresses a topic relevant to deaf educators by providing resources in various sized bites! Whether you have 1, 5, or 15 minutes, or you choose to dig much deeper, you will find resources to help make an impact on you and your students.
For more information, check out our Video!
Why this topic?
Mindset is the attitude we have about ourselves. Psychologist Carol Dweck has looked at mindset in education, and she identified "fixed" mindset and "growth" mindset.
A "fixed" mindset is the idea that intelligence and skill is inherent, and people are either born with talent or not. "Can't" is a commonly-used term, and excuses are made to explain failure.
A "growth" mindset is the idea that abilities can be developed. Hard work, practice, and dedication are required for expertise. "Yet" is the vocabulary to describe "can't", and challenges and failures are opportunities for learning.
As educators, do we have a "growth" mindset or a "fixed" mindset - about ourselves AND about our students? Are we guilty of saying "My students can't do that"? What do we need to do to change our mindset?
How will this work?
If you prefer a topic other than the weekly topic, we have included Mental Health Musings, Terp Topics, and Learning Tech Bytes for you to consider.
When you complete your PD, follow the directions at the bottom of the Learning Bites Smore to apply for your Continuing Professional Education credits.
Just a Minute PD
Prefer to Read a Blog or Watch a Video?
We've also included three different videos for you to choose from.
Teachers Needs a Growth Mindset Too
For a teacher, it’s pretty easy to focus on improving students—that’s our job, right? So when I learned about Carol Dweck’s theory of growth mindset, my first thought was about how I could get my students onboard with this idea.
And then I realized that if I were to better my own craft, I would have to take on the challenge for myself as well.
Growth Mindsets and Effective Effort in Your Classroom
Unpacking the Growth Mindset: Why and How It Works
"Google image search growth mindset and you’ll see hundreds of these bad boys – which is great. The problem is a lot of times we stop here. We look at the table, show it to our team, hang it up in our locker room, and then expect everyone to magically have a growth mindset. It’s just not that easy."
Decades of Scientific Research that Started a Growth Mindset Revolution
"Over 30 years ago, Carol Dweck and her colleagues became interested in students' attitudes about failure. They noticed that some students rebounded while other students seemed devastated by even the smallest setbacks. "
The Growth Mindset Coach: A Teacher's Month-by-Month Handbook for Empowering Students to Achieve
"Created by teachers for teachers, this is the ultimate guide for unleashing students’potential through creative lessons, empowering messages and innovative teaching. The Growth Mindset Coachprovides all you need to foster a growth mindset classroom, including:
• A Month-by-Month Program
• Research-Based Activities
• Hands-On Lesson Plans
• Real-Life Educator Stories
• Constructive Feedback
• Sample Parent Letters
Studies show that growth mindsets result in higher test scores, improved grades and more in-class involvement. When your students understand that their intelligence is not limited, they succeed like never before. With the tools in this book, you can motivate your students to believe in themselves and achieve anything."
Mental Health Musings
Practice is necessary to improve our skills. Improvement takes time, though. Our "best" today is not what our "best" will look like tomorrow. And our "best" years down the line will not look like what our "best" will look like tomorrow. Work hard, but don't stress yourself out while working hard.
Thesaurus Practice: Run
Below is a link to the group Voice Thread. Watch the video with the instructions, then add your video before viewing everyone else's.
What does this look like in action for me?
For any learning experience, our learning is equal to our effort. In order for us to grow from our learning, we need to take the time to pause and reflect. How does our new learning fit in to what we already know and do?
Each of you reading this has a different role, with different responsibilities. Think about what you learned today through the lens of your particular role, as well as your personal and professional learning needs. This is an important part of the learning process!
Take the time to think about a new idea you learned, a new approach you want to try, or a new skill you have acquired. Consider how to put your new insights, skills, and abilities to work! That's where the real learning happens.
Texas Deaf/Hard of Hearing Services
Anne Darr, ESC Region 11 DHH Services
Twyla Loftin, Texas DHH Services
Danielle Battle, Sensory Impairment Services Birth to Three
Miriam Ackerman, DHH Services Technician
Email: txdhh@esc11.net
Website: TexasDeafEd.org
Location: 1451 South Cherry Lane, White Settlement, TX, United States
Phone: (817) 740-7580
Facebook: www.facebook.com/txdhh/
Twitter: @TxDHH