Dwecks Growth Mindset to Close the Achievement Gap

Dweck's Growth Mindset to Close the Achievement Gap Teachers often use words of praise to motivate their students. But saying â€Å"Great job!† or â€Å"You must be smart at this!† may not have the positive effect that teachers hope to communicate. Research shows that there are forms of praise that may reinforce a student’s belief that he or she is either â€Å"smart† or â€Å"dumb†. That belief in a fixed or static intelligence may prevent a student from trying or persisting at a task. A student may either think â€Å"If I am already smart, I don’t need to work hard,† or â€Å"If I am dumb, I won’t be able to learn.† So, how can teachers intentionally change the ways students think about their own intelligence? Teachers can encourage students, even low-performing, high-needs students, to engage and achieve by helping them to develop a growth mindset. Carol Dwecks Growth Mindset Research The concept of a growth mindset was first suggested by Carol Dweck, a  Lewis and Virginia Eaton Professor of Psychology at Stanford University. Her book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success  (2007) is based on her research with students that suggests that teachers can help develop what is called a growth mindset in order to improve student academic performance. In multiple studies, Dweck noticed the difference in a students performance when they believed that their intelligence was static versus students who believed that their intelligence could be developed. If students believed in a static intelligence, they exhibited such a strong desire to look smart that they tried to avoid challenges. They would give up easily, and they ignored helpful criticism. These students also tended not to expend efforts on tasks they saw as fruitless. Finally, these students felt threatened by the success of other students. In contrast, students who felt that intelligence can be developed exhibited a desire to embrace challenges and to demonstrate persistence. These students accepted helpful criticism and learned from advice. They also were inspired by the success of others. Praising Students Dwecks research saw teachers as agents of change in having students move from fixed to growth mindsets. She advocated that teachers work intentionally to move students from a belief that they are â€Å"smart† or â€Å"dumb† to being motivated instead to â€Å"work hard† and â€Å"show effort. As simple as it sounds, the way teachers praise students can be critical in helping students make this transition.   Before Dweck, for example, standard phrases of praise that teachers might use with their students would sound like, I told you that you were smart, or You are such a good student! With Dwecks research, teachers who want students to develop a growth mindset should praise student efforts using a variety of different phrases or questions. These are suggested phrases or questions that can allow students to feel accomplished at any point in a task or assignment: You kept working and concentratedHow did you do that?You studied and your improvement shows this!What do you plan to do next?Are you pleased with what you did? Teachers can contact parents to provide them information to support a students growth mindset. This communication (report cards, notes home, e-mail, etc.) can give parents a better understanding of the attitudes that students should have  as they develop a growth mindset. This information can alert a parent to a students curiosity, optimism, persistence, or social intelligence as it relates to academic performance. For example, teachers can update parents using statements such as: Student completed what she began Student tried very hard despite some initial failure Student stayed motivated, even when things didn’t go wellStudent approached new tasks with excitement and energyStudent asked questions that showed he or she had a desire to learn  Student adapted to changing social situations Growth Mindsets and the Achievement Gap Improving academic performance of high needs students is a common goal for schools and districts. The U.S. Department of Education defines high needs students as those who are at risk of educational failure or otherwise in need of special assistance and support. The criteria for high needs (any one or combination of the following) include students who: Are living in povertyAttend high-minority schools (as defined in the Race to the Top application)Are far below grade levelHave left school before receiving a regular high school diplomaAre at risk of not graduating with a diploma on timeAre homelessAre in foster careHave been incarceratedHave disabilitiesAre English learners High-needs students in a school or district are often placed in a demographic subgroup for purposes of comparing their academic performance with those of other students. Standardized tests used by states and districts can measure  the differences in the performance between a high needs subgroup within a school and the statewide average performance or a states highest achieving subgroups, especially in the subject areas of reading/language arts and mathematics. The standardized assessments required by each state are used to evaluate school and district performance. Any difference in the average score between student groups, such as regular education students and high needs students, measured by standardized assessments is used to identify what is called the achievement gap in a school or district. Comparing the data on student performance for regular education and subgroups allows schools and districts a way to determine if they are meeting the needs of all students. In meeting these needs, a targeted strategy of helping students to develop a growth mindset  may minimize the achievement gap. Growth Mindset in Secondary Schools Starting to develop a students growth mindset early in a students academic career, during pre-school, kindergarten, and the elementary school grades ​can have long-lasting effects. But using the growth mindset approach within the structure of secondary schools (grades 7-12) may be more complicated. Many secondary schools are structured in ways that may isolate students into different academic levels. For already high performing students, many middle and high schools may offer  pre-advanced placement, honors, and advanced placement (AP) courses. There may be international  baccalaureate (IB) courses or other early college credit experiences. These offerings may inadvertently contribute to what Dweck discovered in her research, that students have already adopted a fixed mindset - the belief that they are either â€Å"smart† and able to take high-level coursework or they are â€Å"dumb† and there is no way to change their academic path. There are also some secondary schools that may engage in tracking, a practice that intentionally separates students by academic ability. In tracking students may be separated in all subjects or in a few classes using classifications such as above average, normal, or below average. High needs students may fall disproportionately in the lower ability classes. To counter the effects of tracking, teachers can try employing growth mindset strategies to motivate all students, including high needs students, to take on challenges and persist in what may seem difficult tasks. Moving students from a belief in the limits of intelligence can counter the argument for tracking by increasing academic achievement for all students, including high needs subgroups.   Manipulating Ideas on Intelligence Teachers who encourage students to take academic risks may find themselves listening to students more as students express their frustrations and their successes in meeting academic challenges. Questions such as Tell me about it or Show me more and Let’s see what you did can be used to encourage students to see efforts as a path to achievement and also give them a sense of control.   Developing a growth mindset can happen at any grade level, as Dweck’s research has shown that student ideas about intelligence can be manipulated in schools by educators in order to have a positive impact on academic achievement.

The book called Brave New World Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The book called Brave New World - Essay Example The first chapter tends to introduce the responder to the society portrayed in Brave New World, as the Director tries to make the students familiar with Bokanovskification, an utterly scientific world; it immediately creates the impression that this highly scientific and sophisticated world is utterly oblivious to the natural considerations and the natural world. The hallmark of the society depicted in Brave New World is to give way to a human form that is starkly divested of its inner urges and yearnings and merely acts as an organic receptacle to the generalized social norms and practices. Thereby in Brave New World the intention of Aldous Huxley is to convey that considering the current direction in which the modern society is advancing, it will eventually distort and alter the human nature itself. Brave New World tends to offer a satirical vision of a future that is sans any flavor and happens to be innately sterile. In that context this science fiction novel happens to be anti-u topian or dystopian in its form and intent. The novel unravels a world that is not only starkly stultified by a marked lack of originality, but is also immensely oppressive in terms of the control that the authorities tend to exercise over the common people. Though the novel deals with a futuristic dystopia, yet it has marked links to the modern history in the sense that it resorts to a profuse usage of irony and paradox to bring out the bleak consequences of the scientific and technological development wrought by mankind in the last few decades. The theme of the novel is the impact of scientific development on mankind and the human interaction with nature that eventually gives way to a regimented world where the denizens are homogenized and categorized as five casts that are Alpha, Beta, Gamma, Delta and Epsilon, each cast fixed in its own set ways and incapable of any impromptu and impulsive inclinations and yearnings. This abominable strict social regimentation gets reflected in the feelings of Bernard, â€Å"The mockery made him feel an outsider; and feeling an outsider he behaved like one. †¦ A chromic fear of being slighted made him avoid his equals, made him stand, where his inferiors were concerned, self-consciously on his dignity (Huxley 65).† Brave New World presents a society that essentially accepts the incompatibility between a shallow and drab sense of happiness and the reality that the human beings are required to contend with on a daily basis by legalizing the consumption of a research drug that is ‘Soma’ that is used by the inhabitants of this futuristic world to escape the drabness and challenges marking the real world. In that sense it is indeed intriguing and disturbing to see that Mustapha Mond, the most intelligent and most accomplished benefactor of the world state regards the drug soma as an immaculate tool to assure social harmony and peace. His thoughts regarding soma become obvious in his conversation with Jo hn where he assures John that the world state will rescue him from the dire consequences of an interaction with reality by giving him doses of soma. The soma is shown to be having the power to induce a pacific state in the people inhabiting the world state at the cost of depriving them of their individuality and innate personality. It is the cherished and legalized panacea in the

Negotiations - Case Study Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Negotiations - Case Study - Essay Example Lack of management skills makes the firm not to be at par with advances in technology (Hastings, 2009). Technical support makes it possible for the business to be aware of modern technologies. With this can be able to understand the operations of the industry resulting to familiarity with clients. Therefore the industry can provide reliable services and appropriate solutions to the client problems. Lieutenant observed that the company suffered from insufficient training because of one stenographer who was in charge of five semi-skilled workers. This is due to ineffective management of the company. The firm is the only one producing the special machine but has very complex production processes that have made the employees to be resistant to new innovations (Vanden & Consulting, 2008). These employees basically resist new training because top managers have not been fully trained. Ineffective management also results in high expenses as a result of ignorance over security measures. Contingency are the allowances that help the management in addressing risks within the firm. The contingency allowance ensures that managers are able to account for all the errors and omissions made in the firm. Lieutenant Early should ensure that all the company operations and activities are performed perfectly. This calls for changes in the operations of the company (Hastings, 2009). This will reduce the amount of money paid as contingency allowance because there will be an improvement in the efficiency of organizational processes. The changes will also ensure that the organization is able to address risks accordingly. The entire unknown amount should be paid for in order to reduce the contingency allowance. This makes the payment to be in time hence reducing the accumulation amount. The Trustworthy equipment company should be principled enough to pay for all the known and unknown expenses. This eases the future budget of the firm making a similar contingence allowances (Steams,

Research about Cholera disease Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

About Cholera disease - Research Paper Example The toxin choleragen cause severe diarrhea by disrupting the function of the epithelium of the small intestine. The clinical features of the disease include severe diarrhea which results in loss of body fluids and salts. The persistent diarrhea results in severe dehydration and weakness. The method of diagnosis involves microscopic analysis of feces. The annual incidence of cholera accounts for about 5.5 million worldwide. The annual mortality worldwide is 120 000. The treatment for cholera involves Oral Rehydration Therapy which restores the osmotic balance of the blood and tissue fluids. The only way to prevent cholera infection is to have an access to uncontaminated food and water. (BARUA et al 209-214). Etiology: Cholera is an infectious disease of the small intestine. It is caused by ingesting contaminated food or water, which contains the pathogen Vibrio cholera which is a comma-shaped, motile, Gram negative bacterium. The bacterium produces an enterotoxin which causes rise wat er stools in the individual affected. It can lead to severe dehydration and eventually death if left untreated. The bacterium acts on the intestinal wall to interfere with the flow of sodium and chloride. This flow of the electrolytes causes a misbalance and hence watery diarrhea ensues. Well water, seafood, raw fruits and vegetables along with grains are the possible carriers of the bacterium. The methods of prevention are further highlighted below in the essay (Taylor et al 500-505 ; MayoClinic). Life Cycle: The organism V. cholera has two life cycles – one in the environment and one inside the human body. V. cholera are present in brackish coastal waters and are found attached to copepods (a type of crustacean), as well as chitin-containing shells of crabs, shrimps, and other shellfish. A rise in the temperature of the water creates a favorable environment for the bacterium. The cholera vibrio can also live inside algae, in a dormant state, for years. Sewage tends to encou rage the growth of algae because it contains nutrients. Thus these ‘algal blooms’ also result in the transmission of the disease (MayoClinic). The pathogen multiplies in the intestine, releasing a powerful toxin (CTX) which disrupts the flow of sodium and chloride ions. The disruption of sodium and chloride ions results in diarrhea which causes rapid loss of water, fluids and salts from the body (rice-water stool) (MayoClinic). There are two serogroups of the bacterium, O-group 1 and O-group 139, and it is their toxigenic strains which are known to cause cholera. V. cholera O1 has two biotypes – Classical and El Tor. Each biotype has two serotypes – Inaba and Ogawa. Individuals infected with El Tor, either do not show any symptoms of the disease, or develop only a mild illness. The classical serotype is now only restricted to Bangladesh and India (WHO; CDC). Contaminated standing water, seafood, raw fruits and vegetables and grains like rice and millet may harbor the bacterium especially in developing countries where there is poor sanitation and the provision of clean drinking water is a formidable challenge. The disease can also be spread by vectors like flies when moving from human feces to food. After being infected with the bacterium 25% of the people develop the disease. The rest remain ‘

Designing, implementing, and analyzing an alternative assessment Essay

Designing, implementing, and analyzing an alternative assessment - Essay Example Students' can contribute and share their learning experience in discussion board and homework submitting where individual attention is least possible. But, students differ from one to another in terms of their qualities and skills. Moreover, a single method of evaluation is no longer found successful and hence the need for alternative assessment was seriously felt. The need is further compounded in the present circumstances of varied subjects and multi-cultural class rooms. Many developments have been taken place in this regard to find an alternative assessment methodology that can overcome the discrepancies of traditional system. As a result, a new method was evolved, which became popular by virtue of its superiorities over other methods. This new method is known as Journal Based Method. This paper examines the methodology of journal based method in the context of secondary students. The paper tries to illustrate journal based assessment methodology for mathematics secondary 4 expre ss stream students on their understanding on speed-time graph after being taught by their teacher on the topic - Graphs and Graphs Applied to Kinematics. The scheme of journal based assessment methodology revolves around the preparation and submission of a journal in which students proves their understanding and mastery over a specific subject. ... Journal based methodology can be applied across all disciplines including mathematics. At this juncture, it is worthwhile to know what a journal is in the context of students' formative assessment. Journals are a written record of what students do in their classes and what they learn. Mr. Alvin White, a mathematics teacher of Harvey Mudd College opines out of his teaching experience that "A journal is a personal record of occurrences, experiences and reflections kept on a regular basis. In my mathematics classes students keep a journal of their mathematical experiences inside and outside of class. The purpose of journals is not to assign a grade for each entry but to help students find their own voices and to be reflective about the subject. Allowing more informal tentative writing into the classroom encourages students to think for themselves as opposed to only knowing second hand what others have thought before them" (White). In common, journal based assessment has become the most popular among teachers and students. In the words of Shavelson J.Richard, Stanford University, "student assessment according to this methodology involves two stages, namely at individual level and class room level. At the individual level, journals are considered a source of evidence bearing on student's performance over a course of instruction and at the class room level; journals are a source of evidence of opportunities students had to learn science" (Shavelson, 2001,9). In the context of mathematics, journal based assessment has much importance as seen in the various studies so far undertaken in various countries of the world. The science of mathematics is the most elegant among all other

How does McDonald's alter its marketing mix between countries a case Essay

How does McDonald's alter its marketing mix between countries a case study of UK and China - Essay Example erm – the performance of marketing strategies is usually depended on the resources available – funds, employees and technology (Luo et al., 2005, 50); however, it is also depended on the cultural and social characteristics and ethics of the targeted market. Through the decades it has been proved that no all firms are able to work internationally; in fact, only those firms that have been able to align their strategies with the ethics and the culture of the targeted market have managed to survive in the specific market – entering a foreign market is not the most difficult part of a relevant marketing scheme (Palich et al., 111999, 587). Another issue is the fact that firms that have been established in countries with totally different social ethics and traditions are less likely to understand – at least on time – the psychology and the needs of consumers in a market with particular culture and ethics (Nakata et al., 2001, 255). Organizational culture is proved at this case to have a decisive role in the ability of a firm to develop the strategies that will be effectively implemented in the targeted market (Armstrong et al., 2009, 34); in this context, marketing schemes that are going to be used for the promotion of p roducts/ services in a foreign market will be going to be successful only if they respond to the characteristics and the needs of local people (Hennig et al., 2002, 230); otherwise they will soon be led to a failure. Current paper focuses on the examination of the ways that McDonalds has altered its marketing mix in order to respond to the needs of two different markets: the British and the Chinese. The identification and the evaluation of the relevant policies is based on two different criteria: the views that have been published in the literature – in relation with the study’s main issue – and the views of consumers in the above two countries. In this context, a detailed literature review has been developed in regard to the structure

Designing, implementing, and analyzing an alternative assessment Essay

Designing, implementing, and analyzing an alternative assessment - Essay Example Students' can contribute and share their learning experience in discussion board and homework submitting where individual attention is least possible. But, students differ from one to another in terms of their qualities and skills. Moreover, a single method of evaluation is no longer found successful and hence the need for alternative assessment was seriously felt. The need is further compounded in the present circumstances of varied subjects and multi-cultural class rooms. Many developments have been taken place in this regard to find an alternative assessment methodology that can overcome the discrepancies of traditional system. As a result, a new method was evolved, which became popular by virtue of its superiorities over other methods. This new method is known as Journal Based Method. This paper examines the methodology of journal based method in the context of secondary students. The paper tries to illustrate journal based assessment methodology for mathematics secondary 4 expre ss stream students on their understanding on speed-time graph after being taught by their teacher on the topic - Graphs and Graphs Applied to Kinematics. The scheme of journal based assessment methodology revolves around the preparation and submission of a journal in which students proves their understanding and mastery over a specific subject. ... Journal based methodology can be applied across all disciplines including mathematics. At this juncture, it is worthwhile to know what a journal is in the context of students' formative assessment. Journals are a written record of what students do in their classes and what they learn. Mr. Alvin White, a mathematics teacher of Harvey Mudd College opines out of his teaching experience that "A journal is a personal record of occurrences, experiences and reflections kept on a regular basis. In my mathematics classes students keep a journal of their mathematical experiences inside and outside of class. The purpose of journals is not to assign a grade for each entry but to help students find their own voices and to be reflective about the subject. Allowing more informal tentative writing into the classroom encourages students to think for themselves as opposed to only knowing second hand what others have thought before them" (White). In common, journal based assessment has become the most popular among teachers and students. In the words of Shavelson J.Richard, Stanford University, "student assessment according to this methodology involves two stages, namely at individual level and class room level. At the individual level, journals are considered a source of evidence bearing on student's performance over a course of instruction and at the class room level; journals are a source of evidence of opportunities students had to learn science" (Shavelson, 2001,9). In the context of mathematics, journal based assessment has much importance as seen in the various studies so far undertaken in various countries of the world. The science of mathematics is the most elegant among all other