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Growth Mindset

The Lea is a school that embraces and promotes a Growth Mindset. 

Growth mindset is a theory introduced by Dr Carol Dweck which is centred around the belief that intelligence and learning can be developed and improved. If someone has a growth mindset, they have a positive attitude towards learning and their ability to progress and achieve. 

Pupils who possess a growth mindset are said to be able to rise to challenges and learn from the mistakes they make, rather than feeling distressed and defeated if they are unable to do or understand something.

As professionals we know that pupils who have a positive attitude towards their learning will make good progress and be successful. Consequently, instilling all our pupils with ‘growth mindsets’ has become a key element of the school’s approach to teaching & learning and embedded in our learning ethos. We encourage all our pupils to challenge themselves, embrace their mistakes as part of the learning process, value the importance of effort, respond carefully to feedback and take inspiration from others. We believe that this will help them to achieve, not only with us, but also in their future education and later as adults.

We do this by:

  • Ensuring all staff approach lessons with the belief that the children in their class can improve their performance, by setting challenging tasks.
  • Sharing the neuroscience behind growth mindset with children and giving them examples and opportunities to explore these in Growth Mindsert Week which takes place annually usually as part of the return to school after the Summer holiday when children start in their new Year Groups.
  • Giving praise for children’s effort levels and how they approach tasks, rather than which encourages children to remain positive and continue to put effort in.
  • Teaching multiple strategies for tackling problems and working out answers. If students have a variety of approaches to try, they should have a greater sense of resilience and be able to grapple with challenges for longer.

Watch this short clip to learn more: