What is growth mindset?

Growth mindset is the idea that, with effort, it's possible to increase intelligence levels, talents, and abilities. Students who demonstrate a growth mindset believe their abilities develop over time, tend to seek out opportunities to gain new knowledge and broaden their skills, and do not typically shy away from challenges (Kazakoff & Mitchell, 2017).  Students with a growth mindset believe that they can learn to complete tasks, solve complex problems, or grow their intelligence, rather than assuming they "can" or "cannot" do something based on their current abilities.

Everyday during our class meeting we will discuss a different growth mindset stance:

• optimism—putting aside fear and resistance to learn something new

• persistence—keeping at it, even when a task is hard

• flexibility—trying different ways to find a solution

• resilience—bouncing back from setbacks and learning from failure

• empathy—learning by putting oneself in another person’s shoes.

Having a growth mindset is essential to lifelong success, and it is something that students can develop with practice.