My tryst with the concept of growth mindset started when I was on a journey of self-discovery. I was at that crossroads of life when material gains and fame were not on my cards anymore. I wanted to make a difference in the lives of others. But who would they be? A young mother then, I enjoyed exploring educational avenues for my young child.
Akin to how Buddha gained his wisdom under the Bodhi tree and Archimedes his “Eureka moment”, I had my “ This is what I want in my life” kinda moment. I knew I had this natural orientation towards children and that’s the space where I could unleash my passion. The child in me resonated with the innocence, curiosity, and purity in these young hearts. From then to now, I have dabbled and experimented with(myself and children) several concepts and one such concept was the growth mindset. From a facilitator of after school activities to now as a full-time educator at Ekya school, “growth mindset” fascinates me as nothing else has.
“Growth mindset” sets a person free: freedom from fear of failure, freedom from poor self-esteem, freedom from “perfectionist” syndrome, and freedom from putting oneself down.
A growth mindset sets one on the path of exploration, grit, and perseverance; all these are the qualities that one needs to achieve one’s goals. So, what is a “growth mindset”, anyway? -A mindset that encourages one to keep trying despite failures, a mindset that enables one to learn from one’s mistakes, a mindset that allows one to learn at his/her own pace, a mindset that allows one to learn best practices from others and so on.
Having a growth mindset is a liberating experience and is worth inculcating. The challenging and changing environment of the 21st century necessitates a growth mindset to be able to handle them successfully. Is it then not necessary to impart a “growth mindset” along with our curriculum?
Classroom scenarios offer amazing opportunities to inspire students in developing a growth mindset. Here are a few examples of how educators can facilitate students in developing a growth mindset:-
Allowing oneself to make mistakes and learn from them is a Growth Mindset.
Learning from failures and moving on with an action plan is a growth mindset.
Catching them with a growth mindset and highlighting it goes a long way in fostering it.
Last, but not least, follow it yourself. Show how you learn from your mistakes. A” Thanks for pointing the spelling error on the board, Ayan” will demonstrate how receptive you are for feedback. Not giving up on your students and telling them “ I am sure you will do better next time” is a great way to demonstrate your growth mindset.
The above was certainly not meant to be an exhaustive list for “ How to inspire children into a growth mindset?”. It just gives a sneak preview of the sea of opportunities for educators to inspire their students into a growth mindset. It does not end here.It just starts here…… Wishing all my fellow educators a great time exploring their own mindsets and inspiring their students into developing a growth mindset. Cheers
Credits :
By
Ms. Mathangi R
Social Science Educator, Grades 5 to 7
Ekya JPN
“The most incredible beauty and the most satisfying way of life come from affirming your own uniqueness.”
Ekya School, Byrathi conducted a special assembly on 25, September 2020. The theme of the assembly was ‘This is Me!’ This theme was chosen to cater to the students about how each one is created to think, process and function in a unique fashion, and how Ekya as a platform for learning encourages students to be unique and works towards unraveling the same.
The assembly began with an invocation song followed by Grade 5 students Prarthana and Anika sharing What it means to be Unique. They explained how two flowers are created with no same fragrance and how no two vegetables are created with the same type or amount of nutrients. The same way humans, even if they are twins living and experiencing the same life are still different from each other. Hence, it is very important to be authentic to oneself and enjoy being you, being unique and different.
Thereafter students read unique news occurring around the world such as the discovery of Pi-Planet, 13- million-year-old fossil fuel in Uttarakhand, Chandrayaan, Venus having a potential sign of life beyond Earth, and the celebration of ‘National engineers Day.’ Post which Grade 6 student, Prisha shared ‘the thought for the day’ regarding the same theme. Next up was a poem recitation by the students of Grades 5 and 6. They recited a poem titled ‘All of me.’ The poem conveyed the importance of accepting the way we are and celebrating all of us, Both strengths and weaknesses.
This was followed by a presentation of students, parents, and teachers sharing what inspires them to be who they are. Where students shared their unique skills such as practicing contortion, playing keyboard, drawing, baking, and fitness. The parents and teachers shared their skills in baking, painting, fitness, museum curation, and theatre art form. It was indeed an inspiring and encouraging experience to watch each one of them share their abilities.
Up next was a presentation by Grade 6 Student, Prisheta which was titled ‘An Original Copy of You.’ This presentation reiterated the thought of being original and believing in yourself. How when we excel being our version it is not advisable to settle for a mediocre version of someone else. Students then watched a video titled, “I am Human” which emphasized on the importance of embracing the unique and imperfect self of each one of us. Soon after the presentation, the students were encouraged to share their stories of being unique. Where Students across the grades shared how helping nature, being kind and loving towards everyone, and painting is what makes them unique.
The assembly was concluded by Ms. Shubra Sinha, the Head of school addressing the school. The speech insisted on identifying strengths and shortcomings in ourselves and embracing it. It also shared how it is wise to adapt skills and good habits from people around us rather than being disheartened by comparison of how we are not good enough or lacking. Finally, the school stood up in respect for the National Anthem. This was indeed an inspiring assembly that refilled the strength to embrace the unique and imperfect me!
Science is learned by doing experiments and making observations. As a science teacher, taking students to the lab and getting them to try experiments gives me a feeling of immense accomplishment. The moment a lab session is announced, the students sit up straight, faces brighten and their questions keep pouring in. Students have ample opportunity to change variables in the experiment, observe changes, and justify concepts. Labs have always been associated with fun, creativity, a safe place to make errors without being judged.
When the school moved to the online mode, there was this one nagging question on my mind - How are the students going to learn without doing experiments? How will I retain their interest without a physical lab? How do we compensate for the lab sessions? My mind at that time could be compared to the busiest crossroad in Bangalore--so Chaotic !!! So I started seeking answers to those questions and finding alternatives. Google gave a lot of options and so did our ELC team. We started to introduce simulations in our lesson plans and many DIY experiments during our science club sessions. I started planning with a lot of apprehensions, practiced clicking on all options possible so that I would be ready with answers when children needed one. To my amazement, most of the students were able to navigate the simulations, interpret results, and in fact, I learned a few shortcuts from them.
Online experiments in our class and club were all about using easily available ingredients and things from home. Students were challenged to design and execute experiments. Again, it was my turn to learn how wonderfully their mind worked… They impressed me with their amazing ideas such as an eco-friendly table ( with a newspaper that can hold the weight of a few books) or a comfortable shoe (again eco-friendly). They also tried out the neutralization reaction with turmeric, soap, and lime.
Whether it was simulations or DIY experiments, the students were patient, curious, observant, helped each other, and shared learnings. Isn’t that learning is all about? ”Lab” or “ no lab” did not deter the curiosity of our young learners. They were ready to accept challenges and work their way ahead. At that point, I realized that Science is not just doing great successful experiments in the lab but is part of everyday life. Real science develops skills, ability, not just knowledge. And it's time that we as educators adapt to change and accept different virtual approaches with an open mind. As hard as we try to maintain predictable routines, unforeseen circumstances lead us to face change whether we’re ready for it or not.”The only thing in life that is certain is change.” Isn’t that the truth? So we need to be ready to learn and evolve and the best part is that I learned it from my students.
By
Ms. Aarthi V B
Ekya, JP Nagar
Teaches Science and Biology from Grades 7 to 10
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