Around six months ago I had the opportunity to revisit and contemplate my own growth mindset; considering how I could model and facilitate the blooming of growth mindsets in my students and colleagues. Since then, I've done quite a bit of planning and put a lot of thought into the creation of and use of EPortfolios with my students in conjunction with creating a significant learning environment (CSLE) (Harapnuik). Incorporating an environment that fosters a growth mindset goes hand in hand with the creation and sustained use of EPortfolios.
When I think about mentoring growth mindset use for my students, one of the first things that comes to mind is equipping my learners with the knowledge necessary to understand how a growth mindset can change their lives in numerous positive ways. Teaching learners that having a growth mindset: brings change and propels forward movement, helps us to stretch our abilities and to enjoy achievements we may not have reached, embrace mistakes for the learning opportunities they are, and that they can literally grow their brains as neurons make new connections and that practicing a growth mindset will help learners grow grit and perseverance. These are just a few of the benefits; each one of these is far reaching extending out into other aspects of learners' lives just like the ripples from a single drop of water go far beyond the initial impact (Dweck).
The power of "yet" is equally important for me to model and communicate to learners. Learners will hit roadblocks and feel frustrated and say that they can't or don't know how to do something. By tacking on this one little word, it changes the whole dynamic of the situation. Instead of being stuck and feeling like they can't change, the word "yet" invites learners into a true learning mindset that is positive and embraces learning opportunities. I easily model this by using the word yet when I am faced with something I don't know about and need to learn. The classroom needs to be a place in which the environment celebrates "not yet" and where individuals can bring their abilities to a new level through deliberate practice to reach one's goal (Dweck).
Sometimes, it's not so easy to kick that fixed mindset to the curb and students need the tools to directly confront a fixed mindset when it shows up. Dweck has specific steps to use when confronting a fixed mindset and use them when I model how to talk to that mindset; showing learners that one can move forward and turn that fixed mindset into one of growth. I explain to students that they might feel a little funny talking to their mindset in the manner described on the left, but that in doing so, it helps them to move and change their situation. It's always fun to confront my fixed mindset when it shows up and walk myself through to growth mindset actions. By modeling these steps and sharing my thoughts with learners, they have the knowledge and tools readily available to handle their own fixed mindset monster (Dweck).
Through the continued development and use of EPortfolios, students will collaborate with peers and offer constructive feedback. Feedback in and of itself is something I teach students through examples, non examples, and I offer sentence stems to choose from to frame their feedback. As well, I model and teach students that feedback is an opportunity for growth and that is why it's called constructive criticism. Having a growth mindset enables one to accept feedback and take it for what it is meant, for improvement. The fact that the feedback is given for improvement implies that the task is not yet done and can be changed through effort and strategic practice. Having a growth mindset helps people open themselves up to constructive criticism and in turn use that criticism to grow, strengthen their abilities, and ultimately become smarter in the area being assessed.
When learners focus on learning and not a grade cheating is a non issue. Through EPortfolios, students document their reflections and next steps for their current projects and challenges; having a growth mindset in conjunction with learners reflections moves students to continually improve and go beyond what is already accomplished. It's these actions that must propel our learners; not a grade. In focusing on the learning and changing how students are evaluated, the stakes and effective filters are lowered and students can focus on learning; the need to cheat is obliterated as the EPortfolio is meaningful and owned by the learner.
What's more important here is to model and teach grit and persistence; these traits will take students farther than a grade could ever move them and bring rigor to the forefront. Teaching students that their EPortfolios reveal these traits within themselves to their audience helps me to foster a growth mindset within my learners. Teaching that if one works hard and long enough, you can improve in anything (Duckworth). The continued use of the EPortfolio affords students a place to catalog their reflections, document ideas and next steps, and reveals their persistence and perseverance. Using a growth mindset in conjunction with EPortfolios helps to create a significant learning environment for students to thrive.
Duckworth, A. L. (2013, May 09). Grit: The power of passion and perseverance | Angela Lee
Duckworth. Retrieved July 5, 2019, from https://youtu.be/H14bBuluwB8
Dweck, C. (2010). MINDSET. Retrieved July 5, 2019, from
Dweck, C. S. (2016). Mindset: The new psychology of success. New York: Ballantine Books.
Harapnuik, D. (2015, May 26). Creating significant learning environments (CSLE). Retrieved
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