If the wrong kinds of praise lead kids down the path of entitlement, dependence, and fragility, maybe the right kinds of praise can lead them down the path of hard work and greater hardiness" (Dweck 137).
This was an Aha moment for me. I am rethinking my language of praise for everyone- my own children, my students, my friends, etc. The idea of praising effort and not ability is going to take some getting used to. I am so used to praising ability, and now I am making a conscious shift to praise effort. I think praising effort will help to unlock the growth mindset in my students that are afraid to fail and therefore do nothing. If they know I appreciate effort maybe they will start to take a risk in their fixed mindset and start to give more effort, and take a step toward the growth mindset. Some new phrases that I am going to start using:
I can tell you put forth a great deal of effort
Thank you for your effort and your willingness to share/ participate
I noticed how much effort you put into your work...
This was an Aha moment for me. I am rethinking my language of praise for everyone- my own children, my students, my friends, etc. The idea of praising effort and not ability is going to take some getting used to. I am so used to praising ability, and now I am making a conscious shift to praise effort. I think praising effort will help to unlock the growth mindset in my students that are afraid to fail and therefore do nothing. If they know I appreciate effort maybe they will start to take a risk in their fixed mindset and start to give more effort, and take a step toward the growth mindset. Some new phrases that I am going to start using:
I can tell you put forth a great deal of effort
Thank you for your effort and your willingness to share/ participate
I noticed how much effort you put into your work...