Cycles of Growth

Description
One-on-One Activity | 10 minutes

The Cycles of Growth breaks down Sharing Power into a simple conversation framework with four stages: reflect on failure, hold students accountable, stretch, and set high expectations. These stages help students reflect on their mistakes in a productive way, so they feel empowered to keep learning. Click here to download this page as a PDF. This approach, by turning mistakes into opportunities for dialogue between tutors and students, can:

Help limit perceived hierarchies so that students feel safer to share their mistakes with their tutors.
Help students practice learning from their mistakes and build resiliency.

A diagram of the four elements of the cycle of growth

Instructions

1. Reflect on failure.

First, create a space for students to reflect on and explain their mistakes. Remind them that mistakes and failures do not impact their fundamental identity, belonging in the tutoring program, or learning ability. The more specific students are as they reflect, the better. A statement like “I'm just bad at math” doesn't create much momentum; whereas, saying “I got the wrong answer on this problem” offers a tangible place to begin.

2. Hold students accountable.

Holding students accountable starts when students and educators commit to one another and the learning process itself. Dialogue with students and ask them how they would like to respond to the mistakes they've made. Make room for them to explore what next steps are best for them. Then, help them keep that commitment. For more on letting students lead their learning, see Share Power.

3. Stretch.

How do students feel about the level of challenge? Help students stretch by identifying next steps that both help them practice their previous mistakes but also push them to keep learning. For more on this, see Scaffolding.

4. Set high expectations.

After you've clearly communicated specific and attainable goals for students to strive towards, convey that you truly believe they are up for those challenges because you believe in them!

Tips and Tricks

Group Adaptation. One option would be to have students pair off and reflect on their mistakes. You might need to be strategic and intentional about how to pair students, as pairing students could be tricky if they're both struggling with the exact same math problem.

Online Adaptation. This conversation structure easily adapts to video conferencing. It's also possible to adapt the Cycles of Growth as an online survey that students can fill out over the course of their math learning.

Engaging Families. You can invite families to try this activity at home by providing this activity as a handout or sent electronically

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