Patrick F. Bassett, NAIS President bassettnais.org

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Mindsets How Fixed Mindsets Hurt Students
School Systems
Patrick F. Bassett, NAIS Presidentbassett_at_nais.or
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Two Mindsets
Mindsets The New Psychology of SuccessSource
Carol Dweck, NAIS Board Meeting, 11/11/07

• Fixed Mindset Intelligence is a fixed trait
  (nature)
• Growth Mindset Intelligence is a malleable
  quality a potential that can be developed
  (nurture)

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People with Fixed MindsetsSource Carol Dweck,
NAIS Board Meeting, 11/11/07

• Why do so many bright students quit working when
  experience a setback?
• Why cant many athletes take feedback/criticism
  without exploding?
• Why do so many employees, especially the
  Millennials, need daily rewards and recognition?
• Because
• They have a fixed mindset, thinking that
  intelligence, or athletic ability or professional
  competence are set.
• Fixed mindset people organize their lives around
  trying to look talented and trying never to look
  inept. Blame others for setbacks. (The young John
  McEnroe).

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People with Growth MindsetsSource Carol Dweck,
NAIS Board Meeting, 11/11/07

• Believe that intelligence/ability is a malleable
  quality, a potential that can be developed with
  hard and persistent work and resolve.
• Presented with setback, see a challenge and
  learning opportunity, not a defeat.
• Presented with success, they seek improvement
  e.g., the mature Tiger Woods, who dismantled his
  winning swing, began losing, stuck with the
  growth plan, and has returned with an even better
  swing and more success.

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People with Growth MindsetsSource Carol Dweck,
NAIS Board Meeting, 11/11/07

• Understand that Einstein wasnt Einstein when he
  was born, and didnt become Einstein until after
  years of dedicated, passionate study. In fact,
  Einstein was a delayed learner.
• Note Gladwells Outliers (study of
  high-performing individuals-Mozart, Gates, etc.
  and high-performing cultures-Asian Not genetics
  but hard work persistence opportunity to do
  hard work the basis of success. (See Gladwell
  YouTube Interview on Outliers.)

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What Do Mindsets Do?Blackwell, Trzesniewski,
Dweck, 2007
Stanford Study of 400 7th graders over 2 years in
math.

• Mindset Revealed by Ones Goals
• Learning Goal The Growth Mindset
• Its much more important for me to learn
  things in my classes than it is to get the best
  grades.
• Performance Goal Fixed Mindset
• The main thing I want when I do my school work
  is to show how good I am at it.

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What Mindsets DoSource Carol Dweck, NAIS Board
Meeting, 11/11/07

• Mindset Revealed by Ones Beliefs on Effort
• Growth Mindset - Effort is positive
• The harder you work at something, the better
  youll be at it.
• Fixed Mindset - Effort is negative
• To tell the truth, when I work hard at my
  school work it makes me feel like Im not very
  smart.

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Mindset Revealed by Reaction to Failure
Asking children what they would do if they did
poorly on a test in a new class they liked

• Mastery-Oriented Growth Mindset
• I would work harder in this class from now on.
• I would spend more time studying for the tests.
• Helpless Fixed Mindset
• I would spend less time on this subject from now
  on.
• I would try not to take this subject ever
  again.
• I would try to cheat on the next test.
• PFB Fight or flight reactions.

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Mindset Revealed by Reaction to Setbacks

• Dweck as advisor to high-powered Stanford Golf
  Team
• Kids are champions when they arrive (and often
  valedictorians) They expect to be perfect and
  winnersand struggle when discover the
  competition is fierce. Duck syndrome on the
  surface appear calm, but paddling for their life
  under the surface.
• Their coach emphasizes its good to struggle
  creating safety to struggle and fail is
  tremendously liberatingand encourages the growth
  mindset.
• Dweck also advises NASCAR racers Those with
  growth mindset find it easier to stay in the
  zone in long racesmistakes are inevitable and
  opportunities to make adjustments and win more
  races.

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How Are Mindsets Communicated?
Students told the test measures their aptitude
lose interest as difficulty increased some lie
about their scores on an anonymous survey.
Students told the test poses a challenge that
develops their learning ask for more problems.
Answer 7
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How Are Mindsets Communicated?

• Teachers and Parents Those with fixed mindsets
  promote fixed mindsets fixed teaching style
  strategies fixed assumption about which students
  can learn and IQ fixed belief that great
  teachers are born not made. Ways schools
  contribute to fixed mindsets?
• Please remove that student from my class shes
  not a good match for my teaching style.
• Nature of Communicating Mindsets Important
• Weaving biography into math and science Edison
  the perfect example of inventiveness being 10
  inspiration and 90 perspiration. Einstein
  failed algebra but eventually fell in love with
  math.
• Vs. emphasizing the genius of prodigies.
• Those told the former did better in math than
  those told the latter.

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How Are Mindsets Communicated?

• Self-Esteem Movement Undeserved Praise Creates
  False Expectations and Undermines Work Ethic
• PFB Note PISA test results and attitudes, US
  vs. Asian PBS Special, Are American Kids
  Stupid?
• Nature of Praise Communicates Mindsets
• Intelligence Praise Wow, thats a really good
  score. You must be smart at this.
• Effort Praise Wow, thats a really good score.
  You must have tried really hard. It was easy?
  Well lets have some fun and do some hard ones
  so you grow.
• Control Group Wow, thats a really good score.

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Number of problems solved on Trial 1 (before
failure) and Trial 3 (after failure).
Random mindset sampling in all 3 groups So type
of teacher praise TRUMPS natural mindset,
positively or negatively.
Number of Problems Solved
Type of praise impacted confidence, effort,
performance ( honesty)
Progressively harder trial tests
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Fixed Mindset Instructions

• The test you are about to take, the verbal
  portion of the MCAT, is a measure of your verbal
  intelligence and verbal reasoning ability.

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Growth Mindset Instructions

• The test you are about to take is not a
  measure of verbal ability rather it is a measure
  of your current level of reading comprehension,
  retention, and speed. All of these can improve
  considerably with practice.

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Mindset Instructions on MCAT Problems (Dweck
research at Columbia)

25.9 better
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Dweck Research on Testing

• Showing students performance and strategies of
  those who did much better and those who did much
  worse
• The fixed mindset students focused on those who
  did worse, said I feel much better now, and
  performed worse on the next test.
• The growth mindset students focused on those who
  did better, said I see now, and performed
  better on the next test.
• Related findings introduction of gender or race
  as demographic question before testing depresses
  performance.
• Performance is maximized for minority students
  when a growth mindset is highlighted.

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Growth Mindset School Values

• Stretching and engagement over talent
• Feedback focused on process of learning
  Constructive not judgmental criticism.
  Student-led parent/teacher conferences My goal
  is. Im not there yet-my plan is.
• Message Setbacks tell you what to do next
• Grading for learning Ungraded schools. Not yet
  as a grade in one school. Has Alfie Kohn been
  right all these years?
• Message Keep on learning

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Growth Mindset Parent Values

• Messages to your child
• Failures are useful.
• Message Setbacks tell you what to do next
• Grades measure progress not being.
• Message Keep on learning
• Successes come from hard work.
• Message Youll succeed as long as you
  continue to learn.

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Growth Mindset Case Study

• Your daughter, 9, is lean and tall, built for
  gymnastics, which she has taken to with relish.
  She enters her first competition with dreams of a
  blue ribbon, and is devastated when it turns out
  she earns none, since the other girls were more
  skilled. What do you tell her?
• We thought you were the best.
• You were robbed by poor officiating.
• There are more important things than
  gymnastics.
• You have the ability, and next time you will
  win.
• You didnt deserve to win this time.

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Growth Mindset Case Study

• We thought you were the best.
• Insincere, since you and she know otherwise.
• You were robbed by poor officiating.
• Blames others when she was just not as good.
• There are more important things than
  gymnastics.
• Message is to devalue what you dont do well in.
• You have the ability and next time you will
  win.
• Desire not the same as ability.
• You didnt deserve to win this time.
• The other girls have worked longer and harder. If
  you want this, you can do likewise.

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ConclusionsSource Carol Dweck, NAIS Board
Meeting, 11/11/07

• Mindsets play a key role in motivation to learn.
• They affect achievement.
• Mindsets can be changed.

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The End