Last year I spoke at over a dozen conferences, and at most of them I got to talk about incorporating growth mindsets in math.

The rough outline was

• Definition of the fixed mindset and the growth mindset
• Differences between the two mindsets in various scenarios
• Strategies for making students aware of the growth mindset and how it can help math students, including specific activities
• Messages that we send students
• Summary of the benefits of the growth mindset

The topic was in high demand since so many colleges are developing co-requisite support classes in an effort to increase the number of students passing a college level math class and moving on to graduate. While we have focused on what topics need to be covered in such a course, we also must consider the student skills that students will not be developing during 1-3 semesters of developmental math. I believe that having a growth mindset will increase a student’s chances of being successful in this new system.

The instructor is an important factor for helping students to develop a growth mindset with respect to mathematics. Probably the most important factor. The messages we send our students can help or hurt students, and we must choose wisely and be consistent. We can model the growth mindset by showing our own commitment to learning, and how we handle our own mistakes and setbacks. We can lead classroom discussions that show how learning math is similar to other things our students have learned.

One of my goals this semester is to discuss these ideas, and help develop strategies to nudge our students towards having a growth mindset in mathematics. Maybe #MindsetMonday???

In the meantime, check out my presentation slides, relevant video/book links, and even a recording of one of my webinars on the Mindset page on my website: Mindsets Page

If you have questions or comments about mindsets in mathematics, leave a comment or reach out to me on Twitter at @georgewoodbury.