Week 7: Growth Mindset

(A growth mindset meme made by Laura Gibbs and Magistra Susan)

This week I tried the Growth Mindset Writing Challenge. I normally write from the perspective of a less focused on character, this week I decided to write it as a story told by a character. I saw that some students were writing stories within stories and I wanted to challenge myself to see if I could do that too. I think it went pretty well. I would probably change some formatting stuff and expand on character details, but overall i'm really happy with my first try. I will probably keep up with this style for a few more storytelling posts.

Growth Mindset: Week 3

(Growth mindset meme created by Laura Gibbs, photo by Robert Lowe)

This semester, my hardest class is my capstone. It's not that it is really hard work, it is just time consuming and tedious. We have to build a campaign all in 16 weeks. Luckily, my professor staggers due dates and that makes it much easier to handle. Despite this, my biggest challenge this semester is focusing on time management.

I am trying really hard to not fall really behind in classes. This semester is so busy that I do not think that I have time to procrastinate, which is good, but I need to learn to do assignments as much in advance as possible. I am trying really hard to not focus on the grade either. Learning new information is my focus this semester. I want to maintain my GPA, but I know that it is silly to get an A without actually knowing the information.

I am using my capstone schedule to build my homework schedule for all of my classes. I am trying to take it day by day and not freak out about assignments due months ahead. So, here is to maintaining a good work ethic for my classes and learning along the way!

Growth Mindset

(Cat meme by Laura Gibbs found on the Growth Mindset Memes Blog.)

I wasn't sure what to expect after seeing the title of this assignment. I had never heard of the growth mindset or Carol Dweck, so I was a bit nervous. After watching Carol Dweck's TED Talk "The Power of Believing That You Can Improve," I am quite happy that I watched her videos. I am a firm believer in looking at the glass as half full rather than half empty. Having a positive, encouraging culture around education can only strengthen the experiences one has. Everyone learns differently and I think it is important to focus on getting everyone to understand a concept rather than focusing on how they got there.

I've always found that most things come easily to me. I really haven't had to put too much effort into things and would still be able to get by. I've changed that up the past few semesters by picking classes with professors that I knew would be challenging and I would actually have to work hard for a good grade. Due to this change, I have become a better student. I try not to improve based on the grade that  I am going to get (though it is an important factor), but I try to improve so I can become better at what I am trying to do. The desire to truly understand what I am learning has become a top priority to me with my classes.

To enhance the rest of my educational experience, I will be using some of the growth mindset challenges throughout the semester.