I have never hear dog Carol Dweck and or the growth mindset before. After watching these videos, I was blown away by her insight and ideas. In the video "The Power of Believing That You Can Improve", she gave ten year olds problems that were slightly too hard. Some of them reacted positively, having a growth mindset. Others felt this was tragic, having more of a fixed mindset. They felt as if their intelligence was up for judgment.
"They were gripped in the tyranny of now", she stated.
No matter what age, I see this in the classroom. Whether it is volunteering with middle schoolers or looking around a classroom full of my peers. Some don't grow out of this mindset because for some people the goal is to get the best score they possibly can. There is a need for constant validation attached to this mindset. She mentioned this idea of a grade, "not yet". We are on a learning curve. Instead of receiving a failed grade, we can receive a "not yet". This creates the mindset that we are on the uphill climb to constantly improve ourselves.
I'd like to say that I have a growth-mindset when it comes to academics, but sometimes in the moment of taking a test or getting my test results back I find myself with "fixed" commentary running through my head. I can be too hard on myself or convince myself that I have failed. When I am able to take step back I realize that this isn't true. During my time at OU, I have been completely pushed outside my comfort zone. I feel more comfortable in smaller classroom settings, but at a big university I have been a part of large lecture classes. I have had to make an effort to get to know my professors without getting lost in a sea of students. Every aspect of college is not easy. Whether it is putting yourself out there, applying or things on campus or applying yourself in the classroom.
During "Make Challenge the New Comfort Zone" Dweck explains the idea of easy versus a challenge. If it was easy, every one would be doing it.
"We should make the students feel cheated if the work is too easy."
She showed us the idea that challenge should become the new comfort zone, not easy being the new comfort zone. This is an incredible idea of testing every individual to reach their full potential in all aspects of their life. I was raised in a home where my parents gave my siblings and I the freedom for challenge. They raised us on independence and determination. They encouraged us to challenge each other and ourselves. They never set a standard for us, but they expected us to set a standard for ourselves. Dweck's idea of challenge brings back moments of my childhood where I learned the most from doing things outside my comfort zone. I would love to continue learning about the Growth Mindset this semester. I think it is a great accountability tool to show that there is always room for improvement.
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