September 8, 2008

How mindset affects success in school

My fourth-grader, Kendra, is struggling. Her teacher says she can do the work but isn't motivated to put in the effort. She had reading help in the primary grades but now reads on grade level. She's an average student, so maybe I should just accept her limits. I'm meeting her teacher. Should I ask for more reading intervention?

No harm in asking. Kendra might need more practice in the nonfiction reading skills required for fourth-grade math, science and social studies.

However, since her teacher says she can do the work, her problem could be how she views her abilities. Kendra may see herself as a "problem reader," and that could explain the lack of motivation.

Before you see her teacher, read a book by Stanford University researcher Carol Dweck, "Mindset: The New Psychology of Success" (Random House, 2006). It describes how our mindset affects learning. Dweck spent hours observing children of all ability levels work in classrooms. She concludes that there is no relation between a student's ability or intelligence and the development of mastery-oriented skills.

Dweck has seen bright students avoid challenges and wilt in the face of difficulty. She's watched less bright students persist when things get difficult and accomplish more than anyone expected. Dweck says the difference boiled down to one thing: The less-bright students were go-getters who didn't think there was a limit to what they could learn. They didn't view 'failure' as a negative; they viewed it as a challenge. They had what Dweck called a "growth mindset of intelligence" rather than a fixed notion of their capabilities.

Intrigued, Dweck taught a program with two groups of students: One group learned study skills and how they could learn to be smart. They were taught that the brain is a muscle that becomes stronger the more it is used. The control group was taught the same study skills but were not taught Dweck's expandable theory of intelligence. In just two months, students from the first group showed marked improvement in grades and study habits compared to the control group.

"The students were motivated by the idea that they could have an impact on their mind," Dweck says, recalling one young boy. "When we started teaching this idea about the mind being malleable, he looked up with tears in his eyes, and he said, 'You mean, I don't have to be dumb?' A fire was lit under him."

Teachers who weren't aware of the two groupings were asked to point out students who had shown positive changes while in the program. They listed those who were in the growth mindset group. "The research shows how changing a key belief -- a student's self-theory about intelligence and motivation -- with a relatively simple intervention can make a big difference," says Dweck.

Kendra may have low expectations because she once had trouble in reading. You can help change her "mindset" and become a mastery-oriented student confident enough to tackle a challenge rather than be overwhelmed by it. "Mastery-oriented students think about learning, not about how smart they are. When they experience a setback, they focus on effort and strategies instead of worrying that they are incompetent," says Dweck.

How can you help Kendra?

Focus more on her efforts rather than abilities. When she succeeds, praise her efforts and strategies, not her intelligence, says Dweck. For example, if she grasped a tough text passage by finding the main ideas, point out what a good comprehension strategy that is so she'll use it again. Praising intelligence can backfire by making students overly concerned with how smart they are and overly vulnerable to failure, notes Dweck.

Give Kendra feedback if she struggles or fails. Show her what she did wrong and offer strategies to try instead. "Feedback is a key ingredient in developing mastery-oriented students," says Dweck.

Teach her to value effort. Too few students put stock in effort. They don't see that practice leads to mastery. But as top athletes demonstrate, sustained effort over time is the key to outstanding achievement.

Encourage Kendra to relish a challenge. "Rather than praise her for doing well on easy tasks, convey that easy tasks can waste time," says Dweck. Help her find fun in confronting a challenge and finding strategies that work. This keeps her from becoming discouraged when one pass at a problem isn't sufficient.

Help her value learning. Students get hung up on proving their worth through grades, says Dweck. "Grades are important, but valuing what you learn is more important. "

If a fixed notion of what she can achieve is holding Kendra back, this is a critical year to change her "mindset."

Copyright 2006-2008, United Feature Syndicate, Inc.

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