Reflecting back to learning about the growth mindset, my initial response was this is too simple an idea to be that easy. You mean to tell me all a person has to do to be successful is simply change their mindset? It cannot be that simple, so I stayed reserve in my thinking.
Carol Dweck’s book Mindset (2015) was extremely eye-opening, and watching videos over the success of the growth mindset to others sharing her ideas was excellent, because I could compare ideas from Carol to those of others who shared the same mindset. I perused through multiple videos, read the book mostly page for page, and still couldn’t quite put my finger on what it was missing, still going back to the question is it that simple of an idea? It just couldn’t be, but then again it was. Dweck shares multiple recollections of people who have succeeded and people who have failed, both either referring back to the growth mindset, or showing how those who failed had a fixed mindset.
I ate all of it up, telling myself I have a growth mindset and even pointed to previous successes that I had. I succeeded throughout high school and took pre-ap classes and went on to college, although my parents and siblings had no idea I would pursue this route. Was this the growth mindset? When a few of my friends who went to the University of Texas at Austin with me and dropped out, was that me displaying the growth mindset? After it took some time, the right people, and a few failures to finally graduate, was that the growth mindset? Finally becoming a teacher, working on my craft of teaching, sharing experiences with students and them growing in their learning, this surely had to be the growth mindset! All answers point to no.
It wasn’t until we had to turn in our Growth Mindset plan that I got a wake up call as to what the growth mindset is, or at least I think. I had been working on my plan for a couple of days through using the Microsoft Sway platform. I’ve never used it before and was eager to play around with it. I added some videos, put in some cool graphics and images to make my plan more interactive. I even came up with some exercises that teachers could implement into teaching the growth mindset. It wasn’t until after it was graded and after Dr. Harapnuik stated that we could submit for re-grading and feedback, that I decided to send him my work. Surely my work was better than the B that I received.
“Your growth mindset presentation” Harapnuik stated in his famous video feedback, “that’s what this is, more of a presentation and less of a plan, but it’s a good start.” My heart sank into my stomach. Where did I go wrong? Where was the disconnect in the content? Maybe the B wasn’t what I deserved, but thankful that received it.
I’m grateful for his feedback because now I can continuously reflect back and see how the growth mindset is helping me. It is the growth mindset that allowed me to accept his feedback and continue to work towards improving my plan, as opposed to the fixed mindset that could have just said “what does he know? It’s his fault I don’t know it that well.” It is the growth mindset that tells me to try and look at it in a different way, or explore other growth mindset plans and see how I can improve mine as opposed to just leaving mine the way it is, or criticizing the other plans I’ve seen and saying how can these be better than mine?
I’m still exploring the growth mindset and how I can use it to improve myself, isn’t that step one of Carol Dweck’s plan? Hear you’re self speak in the growth mindset? I believe so. As I’m hearing myself speak, I see how the plan can unfold and how I can use it to help better myself before I can start helping others. As I was reading the COVA book, (Dwayne Harapnuik, Tilisa Thibodeaux & Cynthia Cummings 2018) I was looking at the section about our why? Why am I in this program? Why do I want to learn? Why do I want to continue to grow? When I look back to my why back in week 1 in 5302, I know that my why is because I want to share experiences with people, I want to help them know that learning happens all the time, that it happens anywhere and everywhere not just in the school setting.
I’ve realized that the growth mindset isn’t as complicated as I thought it was, it’s actually quite simple. Step 1, learn to hear your fixed mindset voice. “I can’t do it, it’s too hard, I cannot learn anymore.” Step 2 Recognize that I have a choice, do I want to continue to feel like I cannot contribute anymore, or do I want to help myself and others? I choose the latter. Step 3 Talk back in the growth mindset, “mistakes help me learn, I’ll use another strategy, I can always improve, I’ll learn how to do this.” Step 4 take the growth mindset action plan, continue to hear my voice, continue to take on challenges, and continue to be responsible for my own learning. If I do these things consistently, then I’ll be successful in the Digital Learning and Leading program.
I need to continue to build on my confidence levels, to continue to get out of my comfort zone and speak up at school meetings, or even share what I’ve learned in these weekly teachings. I need to continue to practice the four steps repeatedly, and display these steps on campus and in my life. I need to keep learning, keep trying new things, failing and trying over and over again. If I can think and work outside the box, than I know I can be like people I’ve seen have success in the program like Nancy Watson or Rachelle Wooten. If they practiced the growth mindset, then I know I can and be successful. Who knows where this program will take me, but regardless, I will use the growth mindset plan to help me get there and be a digital leader in my community.
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