Building a growth mindset is a valuable personal development tool that can help students thrive in various aspects of life, including academics, relationships, personal goals, and career paths. A growth mindset is the belief that skills and intelligence can be developed through dedication, effort, and learning. Working toward a growth mindset can also aid students in building resilience, motivation, and a positive mental outlook. In this article, we provide strategies for how adults can help students develop a growth mindset.
Strategies
Growth mindsets help individuals overcome the fear of making mistakes or not being “good enough,” aiding in a more positive attitude toward continuous improvement and personal development. Ultimately, a growth mindset is the cornerstone of lifelong learning, enabling individuals to thrive in an increasingly dynamic and rapidly evolving society.
Adults play a critical role in helping children build a growth mindset not only in their academic abilities but also in their overall personal development. Specific strategies can be incorporated by teachers and parents to help students obtain a growth mindset. For example, explaining the importance of what they are learning and pointing out how the material connects to their lives, future goals, and real-world applications all work towards building a growth mindset. Other effective methodologies include building confidence, modeling successes, encouraging positive affirmations, and developing accountability – which are each explained in more detail below.
Elevating Confidence
Building an innate self of self-worth in students is an ongoing process that requires patience and consistency. Regular encouragement and positive reinforcement can boost their self-esteem. For example, start by complimenting students with things such as “You are a hard worker,” “I like your artwork,” and “You’re a great student.”
Additionally, promoting student effort rather than talent can help students develop more confidence and interest in their classwork. Adults can genuinely acknowledge and praise student efforts, even if they don’t always succeed. They can also offer feedback on student work promptly and constructively by focusing on the process and effort they put in, not just the final results. According to Athlos Academics, the more praise a student receives for their actions rather than the outcomes, the more they will develop a growth mindset.
Modeling Success
Modeling success for students involves creating an environment and providing guidance that helps them achieve their academic and personal goals. Adults can do this by sharing their own struggles that lead to success, setting high expectations, and creating a positive learning environment.
By demonstrating the value of setbacks, students can better understand that failure is often a stepping stone to success. Also, showing students that struggle is a normal part of the process can help them build resilience, perseverance, and a positive attitude toward learning. Adults should also encourage students to set reasonably high standards for themself and help them find inspiration to attain them. Creating a positive learning environment is essential and can be created by incorporating opportunities for student talents to shine, building meaningful relationships with students, and using a variety of teaching strategies to meet the needs of individual learning styles. The right learning environment can increase student engagement, motivation, and a love for learning.
Encouraging Positive Affirmations
Positive Affirmations can be a valuable tool in helping students build a growth mindset. A growth mindset is the belief that abilities and intelligence can be developed through effort, learning, and persistence. Thus, developing a growth mindset in students is dependent on a positive attitude. Adults should encourage students to use statements such as “I am talented,” “I will learn __,” and “I am confident.” By incorporating positive affirmations in their daily life, students will be much more likely to eliminate negative self-talk and promote self-belief.
Furthermore, affirmations often require students to reflect on their values, strengths, and areas for improvement. This reflection deepens their self-awareness and encourages them to take responsibility for their development. To effectively use positive affirmations to build a growth mindset, students should choose affirmations that resonate with them and are relevant to their goals. Regular repetition and practice are vital to ingraining these positive beliefs into students’ thinking patterns.
Accountability
Adults should encourage students to assess their current performance. Ask students to regularly reflect on their “glows and grows” in a particular subject or skill and create an actionable plan to strengthen their glows and improve their growth. This makes the improvement process less daunting and provides a clear path to improvement.
Additionally, progress plans reinforce the idea that improvement is possible through effort and learning, thereby holding students accountable for their development. This accountability encourages them to take their goals seriously, view feedback as opportunities to learn, and persist through challenges rather than give up. When students are held accountable, they are less likely to become defensive or place blame on others when things go wrong. Instead, they seek to understand their role in the situation and take the required steps to improve.
Resources
There are a variety of resources available to provide students with information, tools, and support to understand and develop a growth mindset. Students may benefit from incorporating resources such as textbooks, websites, tutoring, and mentoring. Some of the most educational resources for students to utilize for building a growth mindset include Mindset Works, Edutopia, and PositivePsychology.
Furthermore, parents, teachers, and tutors can also be valuable resources for learning how to develop a growth mindset. As a student, asking a parent or teacher for help when needed and requesting constructive feedback can help with learning how to build a growth mindset. Also, engaging in class discussions and participating in group activities can aid in learning from others. Reaching out to a tutor for help can also be beneficial for students who are looking to improve not only in academics but also in learning and life skills.
Conclusion
Building a growth mindset in students provides them with a multitude of benefits that will enhance their entire learning journey. By incorporating daily strategies to develop a growth mindset, students will benefit from increased self-confidence, motivation, and resilience. Taking the time to build a growth mindset also helps create a positive outlook on academics and life situations. Adults can help children develop a growth mindset by uplifting confidence, modeling success, encouraging them to practice positive affirmations, and having them hold themselves accountable.
A growth mindset requires plenty of dedication and long-term commitment to implementing specific strategies. We can help! At WorldWise Tutoring, we offer individualized tutoring and mentoring with expert coaches who help guide students to develop life and learning skills, like a growth mindset. Our goal is to empower our students with the personalized tools to succeed so that they no longer “need” a tutor. Hire a tutor today!
Written by Dylan Kirkpatrick
