I learned something new in the Khan Academy/Carol Dweck video. Sal Khan said when you struggle, get a question wrong, and look at your errors, "you shouldn't be ashamed of your mistake. You should view that as something interesting, something to explore. When you do that, you'll actually physically form neural connections. Your brain will actually grow" (Khan Academy, 2014). I was mindblown! This was so interesting to me and I plan on exploring this more so that I can share this with my students. Starting them at a young age to have a growth mindset would be life-changing for them. Maybe I'll do the puzzle challenge with them as Carol Dweck did in her study.
As much as I don't want to, I have to admit it. I am about 1/3 fixed mindset and 2/3 growth mindset, but it does fluctuate based on the situation. I am a 40-year-old Graduate student. My fixed mindset held me back from going back to school for so long, but my boss made me feel like he believed in me, which pushed me forward towards my journey to a growth mindset. I wish I could be the kind of person that always viewed setbacks as a bump in the road, a person that didn't always need the "A", someone that embraced all challenges, even just speaking in front of people. I try and challenge myself daily. Whether it be to speak up to my principal about an issue or giving a compliment to someone I look up to, confidently, or just speak up in Dr. H's class. That. Is. So. Hard. For. Me. I was so nervous to speak up in Dr. H's 1st class, but I hit the Unmute button and I just went for it. I'm trying to put myself in more situations to challenge myself and what I imagine is someone pushing me from behind saying, "Just do it, Ileana!"
We are all capable of having a growth mindset. We are all capable of learning. It's about being flexible in your learning and teaching and being able to make adjustments to grow. This is where the UDL comes into play. Everyone learns differently. We need to figure out how we best learn and how our students best learn, which will enable us to grow and continue our learning journeys.
Reference:
Khan Academy. (2014, August 19). The growth mindset. YouTube. Retrieved January 30, 2022,
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