photo credits: Toshihiro Gamo
I had never heard about the growth mindset before this course, but I am glad I have now! Upon watching Carol Dweck's TED Talk I realized that I have had the bad habit of having a "fixed mindset" in some of the subjects I don't enjoy, math in particular. If I don't understand a math problem, I am quick to become frustrated because I feel like it is impossible for my mind to comprehend, when in reality, it is a challenge that I am capable of conquering with some effort and help from tutors and teachers.
This is what Carol Dweck mentioned in her video about how some students have the mindset that knowledge and intelligence is fixed and you have what you have and cannot expand upon it. I definitely feel this way with math, but with other subjects, I think I have a growth mindset. I love to learn about parts of history that I did not know about before or to think about historic events in a new way. I love podcasts and have been listening to a lot over this winter break that are teaching me new things about history! I will link them at the bottom of this post.
As I have mentioned in a previous post, I am interested in teaching English as a second language, so I think the growth mindset of "not yet" while be extremely important and beneficial! During my tutor training for the Spanish class I observe, we were taught that at one point or another, students will feel like they have hit a wall in their language skills. Once this happens, some stop attending class, while others will persevere to climb that wall. This is the fixed mindset vs. growth mindset in action. As a tutor, it is my job to help students develop a growth mindset and climb that wall.
Throughout this semester, I want to take the growth mindset to the students I tutor, as well as strengthen it within myself. Between being my last semester of college and preparing to get my TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language) certification, it will be a busy time where without doubt I will question my knowledge and skills. This time though, instead of hitting a wall, I can look at the situation or problem at hand as a chance to grow and learn more.
Podcast Recommendations:
The Assassination
photo credits: BBC
Uncivil
photo credits: Gimlet
Oh, I am so glad if I am the person who got to introduce you to Carol Dweck, Blake! She has so much to offer both learners and teachers, and in your work teaching English, you will be able to see if her ideas can help you on the teaching side too. And thanks for the podcasts also; I am really curious about the Bhutto one. There is so much great India- and Pakistan-related material that you can find through the BBC. Soundcloud is a platform that a lot of people use for podcasting; maybe you will want to play with some Soundcloud options in your class project; you can create your own podcast if you want! Podcasting with Soundcloud (I don't do podcasting myself, but I did use Soundcloud for the audio recordings I made for the public domain epics that you'll see in class coming up!)
ReplyDeleteThat sounds really interesting. I would love to do that! I actually got a chance to do that in my social media class, for my advertising degree. I love when my two majors, which are far from alike, blend together and I am able to use skills from one disciple to enhance my learning in the other.
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