Teachers, we work hard to help our students succeed to their fullest potential so they are both happy and productive now and throughout their long lives. We want them to experience success and enjoy close friendships. Empathy, Self-Control, Integrity, Embracing Diversity, and Grit help our students learn the courage, curiosity, responsibility, and receptivity to tackle the problems they face today and will face in the future. The Big Five are needed both now to help our children to be successful students and to prepare and practice applying these skills to take on ever increasing complex problems and relationships. For example, to tackle the mounting threats caused by climate change each person will be asked to make tough decisions and make personal sacrifices for the good of all. This will take a lot of Grit, Empathy, and Embracing Diversity.
“Creating a Culture of Integrity in the Classroom” by Marilyn Price Mitchell
"8 Pathways to Every Student's Success" by Marilyn Price Mitchell
"Can Technology Make Us More Human?" by Psychology Today
Price-Mitchell, Marilyn. “8 Pathways to Every Student's Success.” Edutopia, George Lucas Educational Foundation, 7 Jan. 2015, www.edutopia.org/blog/8-pathways-every-students-success-marilyn-price-mitchell.
The text from our course, The Formative Five: Fostering Grit, Empathy, and Other Success Skills Every Student Needs, is a great resource to explore skills that every child will need to succeed in our world. The text was rich and helped me to understand the Formative Five. At times, I was left wondering that when my students were Empathetic, showed Self-control, exhibited Integrity, Embraced Diversity, and displayed Grit how this would look to the world. This article, 8 Pathways to Every Student's Success, helped me see how these Formative skills would look in a student who exhibited them.
Our students would be Curious. Their curiosity would motivate them to engage, critical think, and reason to become life-long learners. Curiosity stems from Grit as students learn from their failures and Embracing Diversity as they strive to work with people who not only look different than they do but also have different ideas that they can learn from.
Our students would be Sociable. They would find joy and satisfaction in working effectively with others. Being a good partner involves integrity, self-control, and empathy. Our students would be Resilient. They would work out of their comfort zone, take risks, be challenged and succeed, and learn from their failures. This resilience comes from Grit.
Our students would become Self-Aware. Self-awareness comes when students reflect inward and discuss openly to shape their values and beliefs. Students accomplish self-awareness through Grit, Self-Control, and Embracing Diversity.
Our students act with Integrity. They are honest and trustworthy because they understand what honesty means and acts honestly and use that honesty to shape their actions to identify opportunities to act with integrity.
Our students would be Resourceful. They would need to know how to find reliable and rich resources and use the information they gather to reach their goals, problem solve, and be adaptable. Students who are resourceful show Grit, listen to and learn from others (Empathy and Embracing Diversity).
Our students would be Creative. They would generate wonderful ideas, express these ideas so others can embrace them, and appreciate their beautiful work. They would show Grit, Integrity, and Embracing Diversity as their creativity shines through.
Our Students would be Empathetic. They would listen, understand, internalize, project, plan, and intervene as they show their caring, compassion, and kindness to others. They would better their community and the world around them. They would show Empathy, Integrity, Grit, and Embracing Diversity.