Posts tagged as: growth mindset

We know it’s important to encourage our students to adopt a growth mindset towards their mathematical abilities. But when we draw a smiley face on a student’s paper or say “good job,” are we building a growth or a fixed mindset? These types of feedback are meant to encourage but they fail to give students…

An effective math coach possesses a multitude of skills, but the ability to ask purposeful, targeted questions is one of the most vital to the coaching process. As coaches, we want to allow teachers to reflect on their practice and on the impact they’re having on students, as well as to think about how they…

  “Math has always been difficult for me to understand. Word problems are the worst. Every time I see a word problem it scares me. I already know I won’t be able to solve it.” These are not the words of a student in elementary school or even high school. They were written by Kimberly,…

There’s a lot of talk these days about the importance of mathematical mindset and its impact on student learning. In About Teaching Mathematics, Fourth Edition, Marilyn Burns identifies six dispositions that are important for students to develop in the math classroom: Interest to figure out solutions to problems Willingness to persevere when solutions are not…

On the first day of my Mathematics Methods course for preservice teachers, I ask my students to solve the Dealing in Horses Problem from Marilyn Burns’ book About Teaching Mathematics, Fourth Edition: I ask my students to consider the problem individually for a few minutes and then discuss and solve the problem in table groups. I…

Recent research on mathematical mindsets is turning some long-standing beliefs about mathematics learning on their heads. These studies have important implications for classroom teachers and mathematics coaches. What do we want our students to know about mathematical mindsets? Here are three big ideas I recommend discussing, modeling, and cultivating in any mathematics learning setting: Everyone…