The Impact of a Growth Mindset

        I want to think that I consider myself as someone who primarily uses a growth mindset. Now, don't get me wrong, there are very many instances and situations where I find myself stuck in a fixed mindset, but I have tried to learn and recognize those thoughts and alter my thinking to become more open-minded. I don't think that I build up to resistance because if it weren't for failure, I wouldn't have the opportunity to grow and learn from my mistakes. For instance, in undergrad, I had set a goal to attend grad school as soon as possible, but unfortunately, my fixed mindset got in the way, and I put off attending grad school for a few years. I thought to myself, you'll never have the time, you won't be smart enough to get in, or you're fine where you are in your career.. just one fixed mindset thought after another. I think I was afraid of being considered a failure. After many discussions with my family and one of my mentors at work, they pushed me to apply and see what happens from there. I got accepted and started this journey back in October. I have enjoyed this challenge and have enjoyed learning so many new things and growing through the process. I immediately started finding myself thinking, "Why didn't I start sooner?" "Success is about being your best self, not about being better than others; failure is an opportunity, not a condemnation; effort is the key to success" (Dweck, 2016). I realized that my fixed mindset got in the way of achieving this important goal I have had for so long.

        One important goal related to technology integration in my career is that I work at a Title 1 school district with high poverty demographics. Our goal has been to implement that use of technology to equip our students with skills they will need in the future. Many of our students lack technology experience in general. Many students in our district have never had the opportunity to work independently on a device of some sort to explore all the things technology can offer. Within the last year, our district has implemented 1 to 1 devices for all of our students. This opportunity has significantly impacted our students' learning opportunities and has opened up so many doors for them to experience technology that they may have never had the opportunity to do. Implementing the integration of technology has been extremely beneficial for me as a teacher. It has allowed me to keep track of student growth and progress as we move through the various curriculum, making the information more accessible for not only me but for the students and parents as well. Through integrating new technology, I could immediately tell that students were more engaged and actively interested in what we were doing and were more eager to collaborate through various apps and tools online. The resources and impact of integrating technology have allowed for some much growth and more opportunities than I thought possible. With the current situation with COVID and the start of school quickly approaching, I am eager and hesitant as to what kind of decisions are going to be made, but through the integration of technology and various resources, I think we will be able to adequately serve all of our students the best way that we can.

        According to McClaskey (2020), "Universal Design for Learning is about providing instruction and educational opportunities to all types of learners to let them learn how to be successful in meeting their learning goals and expectations. is an educational framework based on research in the learning sciences, including cognitive neuroscience, that guides the development of flexible learning environments that can support the variability of learning." The UDL allows the learner to understand the what, how, and why of learning. By incorporating the recognition, strategic, and affective learning networks, students can have a deeper understanding of the material and ultimately facilitate their own learning. In my experience and personal opinion, when it comes to learning and pursuing life goals, I feel that the 'why' is the most important. There are moments when it's the 'what' or 'how' I'm doing, but for me, a lot of it boils down to the 'why'. The 'why' allows me to find the purpose and the passion behind what I'm doing. Why did I want to become a teacher? Why do I want to continue to be a lifelong learner? Why am I choosing to further my education and career? The 'why' allows me to reflect on deeper reasoning and understanding of what I am doing. Through the use of a growth mindset, I have altered my thinking to allow me to see all of the opportunities that could come from this continued learning, growth, and experience.

References

Dweck, C.S. (2016). The Mindsets and Inside the Mindsets. In Mindset: The New Psychology of Success. Ballantine.

McClaskey, K. (2020, July 16). UDL Lens of Access Engage and Express -. Make Learning Personal. https://kathleenmcclaskey.com/tag/udl-lens-of-access-engage-and-express/