Do the numbers matter? Or is it the process?

My students took the Grit Survey (Growth Mindset Survey) as they usually due every Friday.  The survey asks them many questions about their weekly goals, how often they referred to these goals during the week, what areas these goals were created, and if they achieved their goals.  This week the number of students who achieved their goals dropped.

At first, I am disappointed. But should I be disappointed?

There is much to be read into this data from these weekly surveys.   But let's get back to the REAL meaning of teaching grit and growth mindset.  The point of teaching growth mindset is to have kids think about their goals, understand that if they failed, that they DO NOT allow obstacles to deter their progress.

So, when the number of kids say they did not achieve their goal, should this be interpreted as a negative?  Likewise, if the number of students who achieved their goal, should this be interpreted as a positive?  I am not so sure.

One of the questions I ask my students is how often they think about their goals outside of my class.  17.2 percent of my students do not think about their goals outside of my class.  What if this number decreases?  What if only 10 percent of my students do not think about their goals outside of my class?Would this translate into a higher number of students might achieve their goals?

Results from the latest Growth Mindset survey.  What if the number of students who did not think about their goals dropped to 10 percent?

Isn't it more important for students to think about their goals more outside of class than how many of the students achieved their goals?  To be fair, 29.9 percent of my kids think about their weekly goals outside of my class 5 or more times.  Is this a good number? Should this number be higher?

Now, should I focus on the number of time my kids think about their goals outside of my class?

Boy!  Who knew teaching growth mindset would be SO difficult. :)

Please join me in this process of teaching growth mindset. Leave a comment!

More Grit Reflections...

Friday in Mr. Moran's classroom means another opportunity for students to reflect about their goals and grit.

First item:  On occasion I show students motivational videos about grit, setting and achieving goals, and perseverance.  Sometimes these videos will have little impact upon them since they claim they have seen the same video in some other class.  And for middle school students, it's all about seeing something new...  But this last week I showed them a video about grit which none had watched before.  It was very moving video!  Here is the link to the video if you would like to share it with your students: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qX9FSZJu448.

Second item:  There was a jump in the numbers.  Last time I posted on my blog, I showed a drop in the number of students who achieved their goals (only 45.8%).  But this week, the number of students who achieved their goal climbed to 60.3%!!!

IMPORTANT QUESTION:
Why did this number increase? What happened this week that was different?  If I can replicate this, I can continue this increase.  But here are some ideas for the increase:

A)  Baseball and track started this week at our school.  So for those students involved in these activities, it might be they set some very concrete goals for themselves.  The survey showed that of the students who set extracurricular activity goals, 100% set goals in the area of sports.  In the past survey results were split between sports, drama, and band.  Not this week, my students stated it was all about sports.

B) It is nearing the end of our schools marking period.  So, students might have been working for a while to improve their grades and their hard work is now paying off.  Therefore, they have achieved their goals in academic areas.

C) Finally, this week I've explained to my students why I asked them to do certain things.  I explained why it is important to write down their goals.  Why it is important to share their goals with another person.  Why it is important to have place their goals in a place where they can "see" them everyday. Because they understand the purpose, might they have more buy-in?

WHAT ARE THEY THINKING?
Finally, I added one more question to the survey this week.  I asked my students how often they think about their goals outside of class.  There data was insightful!

21.8% Never think of their goals except when I ask about them in class.
28.2% Think about their goals 1 - 2 times outside of class
25.6% Think about their goals 3 - 4 times outside of class
24.4% Think about their goals 5 or more times outside of class.

These numbers are loaded with ideas and questions for myself.  But, the first question I have is, how can I get the 21.8% kids to reflect upon their goals more?  These are the kids who don't understand the importance of grit and setting goals.

So this week, there is more to ponder...