Developing a Growth-Mindset That Will Foster Grit

One of the current buzzwords in Education is grit, in particular, how to teach students the non-cognitive personality trait that allows them to persevere and be resilient so they do not give up on long-term goals.  Paul Tough, author ofHow Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character, defines grit as “a passionate commitment to a single mission and an unswerving dedication to achieve that mission.” According to University of Pennsylvania psychologist, Angela Lee Duckworth, who received a large MacArthur genius grant to pursue her grit research, “grit is passion and perseverance for very long term goals. Grit is having stamina. Grit is sticking with your future, day in and day out…and working really hard to make that future a reality. Grit is living life like it is a marathon, not a sprint.”

The problem with emphasizing grit is that we have an educational system that focuses on grades and standardized tests and in that system failure is bad, very bad.  Whereas in a system that would account for grit, failure would be a learning experience, not the end of the world.  Another problem with grit is that without some sort of contextualized feedback, persevering can feel like you are just banging your head against the wall and not getting anywhere.  Try, try, try…however, no forward movement, if the things you keep working hard at are not productive and do not include some metacognition and outside feedback.  A final problem with grit is that we do not know how to teach it in a systematized or structured manner in the classroom. 

Perhaps instead we should focus on mindset.  This is something that psychologists do know more about and do know how it can be fostered.  Carol Dwerk, a Stanford University psychologist, wrote Mindset: The New Psychology of Success and what she found through her research is that people with a growth- mindset have more motivation to learn and are more successful than those with a fixed-mindset. 

To achieve a growth-mindset, Dwerk identifies four steps on her website, mindsetonline.com:

Step1. Learn to hear your fixed mindset “voice.”

As you approach a challenge, that voice might say to you “Are you sure you can do it? Maybe you don’t have the talent.” “What if you fail—you’ll be a failure” “People will laugh at you for thinking you had talent.” “If you don’t try, you can protect yourself and keep your dignity.”

As you hit a setback, the voice might say, “This would have been a snap if you really had talent.” “You see, I told you it was a risk. Now you’ve gone and shown the world how limited you are.” “ It’s not too late to back out, make excuses, and try to regain your dignity.”

As you face criticism, you might hear yourself say, “It’s not my fault. It was something or someone else’s fault.” You might feel yourself getting angry at the person who is giving you feedback. “Who do they think they are? I’ll put them in their place.” The other person might be giving you specific, constructive feedback, but you might be hearing them say “I’m really disappointed in you. I thought you were capable but now I see you’re not.”

Step 2. Recognize that you have a choice.

How you interpret challenges, setbacks, and criticism is your choice. You can interpret them in a fixed mindset as signs that your fixed talents or abilities are lacking. Or you can interpret them in a growth mindset as signs that you need to ramp up your strategies and effort, stretch yourself, and expand your abilities. It’s up to you.

So as you face challenges, setbacks, and criticism, listen to the fixed mindset voice and…

Step 3. Talk back to it with a growth mindset voice.

As you approach a challenge:

THE FIXED-MINDSET says “Are you sure you can do it? Maybe you don’t have the talent.”

THE GROWTH-MINDSET answers, “I’m not sure I can do it now, but I think I can learn to with time and effort.”

FIXED MINDSET: “What if you fail—you’ll be a failure”

GROWTH MINDSET: “Most successful people had failures along the way.”

FIXED MINDSET: “If you don’t try, you can protect yourself and keep your dignity.”

GROWTH MINDSET: “If I don’t try, I automatically fail. Where’s the dignity in that?”

As you hit a setback:

FIXED MINDSET: “This would have been a snap if you really had talent.”

GROWTH MINDSET: “That is so wrong. Basketball wasn’t easy for Michael Jordan and science wasn’t easy for Thomas Edison. They had a passion and put in tons of effort.

As you face criticism:

FIXED MINDSET: “It’s not my fault. It was something or someone else’s fault.”

GROWTH MINDSET: “If I don’t take responsibility, I can’t fix it. Let me listen—however painful it is– and learn whatever I can.”

Then…

Step 4. Take the growth mindset action.

Over time, which voice you heed becomes pretty much your choice. Whether you

• take on the challenge wholeheartedly,
• learn from your setbacks and try again
• hear the criticism and act on it is now in your hands.

Practice hearing both voices, and practice acting on the growth mindset. See how you can make it work for you. 

Obviously, these steps will not be easy; however, they will be worth it in the end.  You will cultivate a belief that intelligence is developed and this will lead to a desire to learn and improve.  You will embrace challenges, persist in the face of setbacks, see effort and hard work as a path to mastery, learn from criticism, and find lessons and inspiration in the success of others. All of which will improve your learning and ensure your academic success.

Sources:

Dwerk, C.S. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. New York: Random House, 2006. Print.

Dwerk, Carol. Mindset. Carol Dwerk, 2006-2010. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.

Duckworth, Angela Lee. “The key to success? Grit.” TED Talks Education, April 2013. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.

Smith, Tovia. “Can Focus on ‘Grit’ Work in School Cultures that Reward Grades?”  Mind/Shift. KQED Inc.17 Mar. 2014. Web. 18 Mar. 2014.

Tough, Paul. How Children Succeed: Grit, Curiosity, and the Hidden Power of Character.  New York: Mariner Books, 2013. Print