The power of yet
« Not yet gives you a path into the future. »
INSPIRED BY :
CAROLE DWECK
psychologist
author of Mindset
COPING WITH CHALLENGE AND DIFFICULTY : GROWTH VS FIXED MINDSET
When 10-year-olds were given problems that were slightly too hard for them,
some of them said “I was hoping this would be informative”, "I love a challenge."
Whereas others felt that their intelligence had been up for judgment,
that it was tragic, catastrophic, that not only they were failing but that they were a failure.
Children who feel this way will probably cheat the next time instead of studying more.
They will probably look for someone who did worse than they did so that they can feel good.
They will not confront difficulty, they will run from it.
There lies the difference between a fixed and a growth mindset.
That difference can also be seen when looking at their brains :
hardly any electrical activity vs brains on fire.
Fixed-mindset students don’t try to process things, they don’t engage.
Growth-mindset students correct the error and learn from it.
What if we didn’t get failing grades?
What if we got not yets instead?
Maybe we’d understand that we're on a learning curve.
Maybe it would give us a path into the future.
BUILD A BRIDGE TO YET
To build a bridge to yet we need to praise wisely,
not intelligence or talent but the process they engage in.
Their effort, their strategies, their focus,
their resilience, their perseverance, their improvement.
We need to reward them for process, progress, and effort,
not only for the good grades or for the right answers.
We need to use the words yet or not yet,
studies have shown that they give kids way greater confidence.
We need to teach them the mindset lesson,
teach them to love learning things that are new and difficult.
Because every time they push out of their comfort zone,
new stronger connections are formed in their neurons.
MINDSET CAN CHANGE
There are groups of students who chronically underperform.
And they've done so poorly for so long that many people think it's inevitable.
But when educators create growth mindset classrooms steeped in yet,
things start to shift and change, equality happens.
This kind of improvement has been shown with thousands and thousands of students
whose mindsets have changed and, as a result, so have their grades.
Struggling kids who in time became not only smarter but hardier,
who engaged over longer periods, who persevered when dealing with problems.
It is the meaning of effort and difficulty that transformed,
what made them feel dumb now made them feel smart.
More effort was put and great improvement occurred,
because abilities are capable of such growth.
by : antιdrastιc element
based on : Carole Dweck’s Ted talk
photo credιt : booknode.com
images credιt : stock.adobe.com, clipart-library.com