My cooperating teacher uses a growth mindset in different ways. First, she admits when she makes an error or mistake so that the students see that she’s not perfect. Also, she met with each of her students within the timeframe of a week during their silent sustained reading. I was able to listen in on the conversations she had about their independent reading. She was positive but still stressed that reading outside of class was required. She gave suggestions of materials they could read, and it was telling that she seemed to know what each of their interests was and she suggested readings that fit with them so that they could have success and still enjoy themselves.
The teacher designs her lessons that require student participation. She asks questions often and she calls on students who haven’t participate yet. She never criticizes the students for an incorrect answer, but instead takes what they say and redirects them back on track and somehow does that in a way that doesn’t embarrass them or make them feel stupid. I didn’t see specific instructions for building mutual respect. But I noticed that she models it. In one period, the students were all supposed to be gathering a list of sources for a paper the class was working on and one girl was turned toward a boy behind her. The teacher was out in the hall conducting interviews, but somehow, she knew that trouble was brewing. She stepped in the doorway and called the girl out in the hall (this was out of turn). You could tell the girl figured out pretty quickly why she was being called out to the hall. The teacher didn’t actually say anything about her talking to her friend but instead asked her how her reading was coming and then the teacher added some suggestions for her readings. There was no “why are you disrupting people around you” or “why weren’t you working on your research.” The call to the hall out of turn was enough. I also saw that the students who were whispering to their neighbors got their name called and then the teacher would say something about them not paying attention, but she did it in a funny way that didn’t embarrass them but instead made them laugh. She didn’t have further trouble after doing this. It seemed that the students didn’t want to take advantage because they liked her. This motivation is both intrinsic an extrinsic as stated by Deci's theory. The students expend an effort because they like the teacher—that is extrinsic motivation. But then there is intrinsic motivation in the classes too. The teacher expects the students to get their research done without prodding and reminders, and she’s pretty successful about it.
In fact, the students in her classes seemed to be getting plenty of support and motivation. It’s difficult to see where she could improve. One thing I didn’t see is small group work. Perhaps the class could have some small groups working together. This can build community as well as teaching content. Maslow stresses that a student’s sense of belonging is important; this concept is so important that it is also part of the Self-Determinate Theory. I can see a place for building a sense of belonging in my mini-lesson. And to do this, I think it’s a great time for a jigsaw. I could give each group something separate to read together and prepare to tell the rest of the class about it in less than three minutes. This can help build community by having the students work in a small group with people they normally don’t work with. And the motivation comes by showing that you don’t need to know everything about everything. There are things you can teach others and there are things you can learn from others.
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