Mixed Feelings About the Growth Mindset

When watching the first video about Carol Dweck and the Growth Mindset, I initially agreed with everything she was saying. However, once I watched the second video, I became a bit skeptical. I think the idea of encouraging students to stop focusing on the "now" of whether or not they're meeting standards is a good thing, as she said. To have them focus on the "yet" and the progress they're making really does sound like something that would help student confidence as a whole. It was when Carol Dweck said "if something was easy, you already knew how to do it" and "we should have kids asking for harder work" that I began to have some slight doubts.

I feel like she knows, what she's talking about. I don't doubt that. But it seems a bit contradictory for her to propose the idea that all students are carrying a constant need of validation with them because of our current system, then to say that kids should ask for harder work. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like there's supposed to be some form of "goal" or "acceptance" by a certain point of progress. After a certain point of surpassing one's peers in a classroom setting, I feel there should be a sense of completion or fulfillment. A "you've done it!" or something. Not an "Ok. But do better now" expectancy. For me, if anything, that would just inflate my need for validation. After getting a bunch of A's on a report card I would want to know that I've met an acceptable goal, not feel like I'm still beside whoever else I've sped past.

The ideas proposed by Carol Dweck sounds great, sure. But I don't realistically see every student being able to conform into a certain dream mentality like she hopes for. I can believe that every student is capable of learning to accept that they've made a mistake and to be able to learn how to correct it and ultimately conquer whatever they're trying to learn. I don't however, believe that every student wants to aimlessly move forward without a goal in mind. Goals are a driving force. Depending on the student, the knowledge that the completion of one goal will only reward you with another goal to reach with no end in sight can be a bit draining. It's like playing a video game without a last level or final boss. To further this comparison, I'd say that the tutorial of this game would be determined by whatever point was "easy" and you "already knew how to do" as Carol Dweck said. That's fine to begin a student at a later point in the game than others. However, there needs to be some understanding of when the end of the game is. Otherwise I can see this becoming ridiculous if we keep pushing a first grader to the point thinking they have to learn calculus at their age.

To try to sum up my thoughts in a shorter way: The Growth Mindset is something we should indeed aim to achieve in schools everywhere, there just needs to be a reasonable goal somewhere along the line.