02 May 2016
In 1978, Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck made an important discovery: children who believed their intelligence could grow did better in school, and better in life. She called this basic belief about intelligence "mindset." What she found was that students generally hold one of two very different beliefs about intelligence. Some students have what she calls a "fixed mindset" - the belief that intelligence is a fixed trait that doesn't change much. So, like eye color - these students believe you're born with a certain amount of it and there's not much you can do to change it. Other students have a very different belief about intelligence - a growth mindset. They see it more like a muscle that grows with effort.
As part of the School Strategic Plan, teachers and students will be exploring how a growth mindset can help with learning and how to go about developing more of a growth mindset.
You can help your child with this process by watching the video with them and discussing the questions from the school newsletter for that week. Try adopting some of the language and strategies along the way to help your child fulfil their potential.