While I had not heard of the phrase "growth mindset" before, I have heard of similar ideas such as "grit" (perseverance and pushing through challenge). This way of thinking is a wonderful idea that many people need to hear. Academia can be extremely discouraging when a person receives a low grade, and it can make anyone feel inadequate. I have definitely been affected by this, as I have always been praised for the results I get rather than for the amount of work I put into my process. Carol Dweck does an incredible job of describing how important this is. She mentions that we need to reward kids for the process--improvement, strategies, perseverance--rather than intelligence or talent. This is vital in ensuring that children develop to have a good understanding of their worth and abilities. We want them to know that they are valued for so much more than what they can produce. Building a character of perseverance and curiosity can create a generation of people who are inspired to help improve the world. Right now, I feel like we have a world of people who are discouraged and doubtful of their abilities.
Something I have thought about recently (and something I have seen others my age discuss) is that many of us were labeled as "gifted" when we were children. We were told we were grades ahead of our peers and we were given more challenging work. We were praised for being gifted. Eventually, though, everyone else caught up to us and maybe we even got behind. We started feeling unintelligent and we realized we were just average. This was very difficult for us to accept because we thought our intelligence made us unique. Without that, what are we? Many of us now have problems with procrastination, motivation, and ambition. I believe we grew up with a fixed mindset because we were heavily praised for getting answers right and not having difficulty with assignments. If we would have instead been praised for our process we might not feel the way we do today.
In this video, Tiffany Ferg does a wonderful job of explaining being "previously gifted" (which is also the name of her podcast).
("The Curse Of Being A 'Gifted' Student" by Tiffany Ferg on YouTube)
It is so incredible what a mindset can do, even for those who are given fewer opportunities in life. Dweck mentioned that children on a Native American Reservation put the growth mindset to use. When they did this, they went from the lowest performing students in their area to the top. The power of the mind and confidence in one's own ability can completely transform lives. With the growth mindset, effort becomes something intriguing and exciting.
This idea of the growth mindset is very inspiring for me. I have a tendency to fall into the trap of thinking I am not enough if I get a low grade. If I receive a failing grade, I feel as if I should just quit because I'm obviously not cut out for the work. But if I instead read "not yet," I know I would feel like there is still potential in me. I would feel more driven and excited to work towards yet. There are so many subjects in school that I have given up on because of poor grades. I just assume that I am worse at those subjects than others, and I stopped trying a long time ago to be better at them. If someone would have just told me "you're not there yet, but you'll get there if you keep trying", I would be stronger in every school subject. Instead, my past experiences and grades have discouraged me and have served as a reminder that my talents do not lie in certain areas. This has hurt my confidence greatly. This meme does a wonderful job of reminding us that that is not the path to follow. The past is the past, and we should only use it to be better next time.
(Image from Growth Mindset Memes blog)
Then again, I do have the criticism of the growth mindset that it is not always effective. Some things my life I have worked extremely hard for but have still not been able to achieve (for example, I have worked hard enough in certain college courses to get an A but instead I got a B or C). This makes it difficult to want to work hard in other areas of life, but overall I would say that sometimes you just won't get what you worked so hard for because it was not meant to be. That does not mean you shouldn't try in other areas of your life.
Woo! That was a lot. It seems I have a lot to say on the topic. I'll leave it there for today.
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