'If parents want to give their child a gift, the best thing they can do is teach their children to love challenges, be intrigued by mistakes, enjoy effort and keep on learning’ - Carol Dweck, Professor of Psychology, Stanford University
You may already be familiar with the work of Stanford professor (and all round brain guru) Carol Dweck, who coined the term ‘growth mindset’.
What is a growth mindset?
A belief that you can develop your skills and talents through hard work, the right strategies, and guidance from others.
American psychologist Professor Carol Dweck’s studies show that those who believe that if they put in work, they can develop skills and talents and tend to achieve more than those who feel their abilities are innate and fixed. Those with a growth mindset see opportunities instead of obstacles, choosing to challenge themselves to learn more rather than sticking in their comfort zone.
The way Carol sees it - in many cases, the difference between a child who thrives and a child who struggles, is their mindset.
Why? Dweck’s (and others) findings suggest that:
🔥Students will learn more, faster and more thoroughly with a growth mindset.
🔥Kids who understand that, as they push to the edge of their comfort zone, their brains can form new, stronger neural connections attain significantly improved academic achievement in a wide range of age groups, particularly among disadvantaged students.
🔥Growth Mindset traits help kids cope better with transition, self-regulation, grit and pro-social behaviours.
🔥Mental health benefits: those with a growth mindset have been found to be less aggressive, with higher self-esteem and fewer symptoms associated with depression and anxiety.
At EDURINO, nurturing a growth mindset in developing minds is the heart of our approach to learning. Children playing on EDURINO do so in a safe learning environment where it's ok to make a mistake, in fact, we encourage and celebrate trial and error. You’ll often hear characters feeding back during gameplay, ‘Great try!’ or ‘That’s not quite right, yet’. Feedback focusses on effort and process as opposed to ‘right or wrong’ answers.
We test each learning world weekly with groups of children at nurseries and schools throughout the world. Teachers continuously feed back that their students take more risks with their learning while playing on EDURINO, attempting challenging activities and tricky problems, more than they would in a more traditional school lesson.
Game-based learning helps remove the fear of making a mistake that many children struggle to overcome in a classroom setting.
How can I help my child develop a growth mindset?
Use the word, ‘yet’.
It’s a small but powerful word. When kids adopt a mindset where they include “yet” into how they view their abilities, some very big, positive changes can happen!
“I can’t solve that math problem…yet.”
“I haven’t scored any soccer goals…yet.”
That’s the way a child with a growth mindset thinks.
Praising the Process
Focus on praising your child for the effort they put into a task, not just the outcome.
Instead of, ‘Well done for scoring a goal!’; try,“I’m so proud of how hard you worked during that game.” or “That match seemed difficult but you really stuck with it!” are some examples of how to praise the process.
This gives your child a sense of accomplishment about their perseverance.
You are your child’s most important role model
Lead by example. Be open with your child about mistakes you make and how you’ve learned from them. Let your child see you do new or challenging things – like exercising, cooking a new recipe, and fixing things around the house.
Maintain a positive attitude and demonstrate the learning process (like watching a how-to video, reading instructions, or practicing). That way, your child will be more likely to engage in the same behaviors when he or she is faced with a challenge.
