Perception of the Growth Mindset

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I interpret the message of “yet” as a message of limitless possibilities. Instead of holding you back with “I can’t do it” or “it’s too hard” the word “yet” can simply mean something we haven't learned to do, not something that we will never be able to do. It can also be a very powerful tool in the classroom. Many students are discouraged when they cannot understand the content right away but the word “yet” can help them be patient with their learning and themselves. We all start somewhere and there is always something we do not know YET.

Adopting a growth mindset will help me learn by embracing the learning rather than being afraid of a challenge. We will always face challenges, but it is how we perceive them that will determine how successful we will be. If we focus so much on the end grade rather than actually embracing the learning, then what do we actually get out of going to school? I think our students are so focused on the grade at the end of the day, that if they receive a bad grade they accept things like being “bad at math” or “bad at reading.” A growth mindset would allow students to accept the grade as feedback but also know that it is something they can/will improve. Many students take their grade as a definition of their intelligence rather than something they can improve one. As teachers, we must be the ones to tell them that the grade they earned on their test is a starting point for greater things and a bad grade doesn’t define you.

Fixed and growth mindset are very different. People with a fixed mindset tend to avoid difficult things, give up easily and ignore feedback or probably do not take it well. While a growth mindset will take challenges on, take feedback as possible things they can improve and go towards hard things without giving up quickly. It is truly more likely for someone with a growth mindset to succeed due to the fact that they will keep trying.