My experience with the Growth Mindset

(The word mindset made out of Scrabble tiles. 

Photo by Steve Davis) 

The first time I heard about the Growth Mindset was at the beginning of this week in my general chemistry class. However, I had no idea who the originator of this theory was. After watching the video by Dr. Carol Dweck, I have thought about what was being said and really thought about myself growing up. 

Growing up my parents pushed me to be my best. They pushed me to get the perfect A's everyone wanted their kid to have, so I guess in a sense I was in a fixed mindset as far as what my parents expected out of me. With that being said, my parents also taught the valuable lesson that nothing would ever be given to me that I had to push myself to achieve my own personal goals. I feel as though over time my parents stopped pushing me and it became my own personal mission to do my best in all aspects of life for my own good. I think the transition from my parents' expectations to my own personal expectations happened in third grade when I took my first state test. Although I had changed my mindset from my parents' expectation to my own, I feel as though I was still locked into a fixed mindset by outside factors. 

I do not blame my parents for my fixed mindset because their standards for me had disappeared at such a young age. I believe I had a fixed mindset because I was told that if I did not get straight A's, I would not get into college, I would have settle for working at a minimum wage job or going to a junior college. I was also told that if I do not get all A's, I would not get any scholarships because there are other people out there that are doing better than me who will get those scholarships. If I do not get 4.0 GPA in college, I will never be accepted into a medical school. I think society as a whole has destroyed the mindset of all children from a young age all the way through the higher education system. Everyone is told from a young age that there is one correct way to live life and if that direct path is not followed then just consider that person a failure.

Since arriving at university, I would say my fixed mindset has slowly developed into a growth mindset. I have realized that I am not perfect, and I will not always get straight A's. I have realized that learning the material and trying my best, instead of idolizing a number is more beneficial. I have discovered if I put in the effort, I will get the results. I have finally taken a step back and realized that the one B I got will not ruin my future as a med-student. I have realized I need to take that experience and learn from the mistakes I made while learning the material, taking notes, and when deciding what studying methods I used. 

I am not an expert on this topic, but I do personally believe that Dr. Carol Dweck studies and future studies are one step closer to creating a more positive learning environment for students of all ages.