Mindset and Teaching through a Pandemic
Craig Fullerton
Multiple International Award Winning Educator & Coach |Thought Leader I TEDx Speaker I Author I Empowering Aspiring Educational Leaders I NeuroEducation Master Neuroplastician I International Conductor & Musician PhDcand
Teachers, how are we doing right now? How are you thinking right now??What is your Mindset right now?
?“A man is literally what he thinks”. This might be a shocking statement, but everything is a state of mind “ Bruce Lee
The way we teach continues to be a challenge.
Teaching through the pandemic whilst working towards general curriculum goals has become the new normal.
The role of teachers is changing radically. “Schools and teachers will approach learning and teaching differently in a post-pandemic education system”.?What these messages are saying is “yes”, the mindsets of teachers and students are continuing to change as a result of our recent experiences.. ‘Mindset’ has a significant impact on learning and teaching. Terms such as Growth or Global Mindset explain there is an optimum state of learning. Teachers who believe that talents and skills can grow have a growth mindset
This approach to learning expands the mindset rather than causing a fixed perception.
Many teachers, students, parents and others in education agree with the ‘idea’ of growth mindset. But education may not support a student achieving a ‘growth mindset’.
Many people I meet have a mindset that is totally working against them. They know what they want, they’re constantly trying to pursue that goal, and commit to making a great effort to achieve it, but never succeed to reach it.
How do we find success by changing our mindset? What do you mean by mindset? Is it how we think, how we learn, how we make decisions, how we feel, why we do what we do?
As in the Bruce Lee quote, it is all those things “you are what you think.”
Take yourselves out of the classroom or the office for a bit and consider some common day-to-day beliefs that concern you. Spend some time daydreaming about this. Does it look like your new year’s resolution list? Are they beliefs like:
●??????It’s hard for me to lose weight.
●??????I’m not good with numbers.
●??????I’m not a natural athlete.
●??????I’m not creative.
●??????I’m a procrastinator.
●??????I’ll never be happy in my job.
●??????I’ll never be able to buy nice things.
What is something you notice about these belief statements??They all start with” I” or “me”.?‘Drum Roll please’…. ‘Aha moment’ is here…..Ok, all jokes aside. These beliefs will happen as ‘You are What You Think”. You live your life how you think your life. To change your life, to achieve what you want you need to change your mindset. You also need to change your ‘self-talk’ you unconsciously use in your daily tasks. This is called a ‘fixed mindset’ around these thoughts.
Those fixed mindsets will lead you to avoid experiences where you might feel like a failure. As a result, you don’t learn as much, you don’t try as hard (in those areas) and it’s harder to get better.
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What can you do about this?
Relax, there is not one single reason why we struggle to achieve our goals or to break bad habits. To excel we must find our passions or purpose. More often than not, the biggest challenge is between your ears. Yes, your MIND – your MINDSET.
Your mind is incredibly powerful. Depending how you use it can be your friend or your foe - a double-edged sword.
Remember we all have stories that we write in our game of life. What are the beliefs you believe you have about yourself? The way you talk to yourself can either be the limiting factor holding you back, or the key to blossoming in your life goals. You can change your mindset toward what you want to achieve rather than what you don’t want. That is, often in our use of language in how we talk to others, our self-talk, how we think about things is in an ‘away from motivation’ rather than a ‘toward motivation’.
Step 1- commit to trying just one activity
Step 2: Think about things you want to change. Do you feel you have a negative or an away-mindset?
Step 3:?Write what you don’t want, in words that motivate you away from what you want.
Step 4: Now create a statement that motivates you toward what you do want.
Example:
1.?????I am never able to afford to go on a holiday overseas. (away from motivation)
2.?????I am grateful and happy that I can confidently pay for my amazing holiday to Italy next April. (toward motivation).
Put this positive statement into your daily routine and you may be surprised what happens?
This is a very simple way that your mindset will alter your mood and your results. This is all by using ‘toward’ motivating and self-talk to move you closer toward achieving your goals. This is an example of a growth mindset.?
You see, the unconscious mind doesn’t decide for you what will happen. ‘It’ only processes what you feed it day after day – your thoughts, doubts, celebrations, happiness, success .. or not! You decide. You do, based on your self-talk.
Craig Fullerton
Teacher, Education Leader, Coach and Author
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2 年Completely agree with what you shared. Thanks for sharing.
Passionate IB Enthusiast | EdTech Coach | Multidisciplinary Educator | Neurodiverse Advocate
3 年Thanks for the comments, Craig! This year, my 4th graders connected "mindsets" (a la "fixed and growth mindsets) with "get ready, get SET, go," with "SET the table," and with "story SETtings" These have been particularly salient images personally. A set table is no respecter of delicious meals or atrocious ones. The set position of runner is no respecter of weather or mood. And the context of a story is fundamental to the story itself. They are all intentional additions to the "feature presentation" while simultaneously being inseparable from it. These days, I find myself relying on the rituals of facing each day with a smile behind my face mask, with an intentionally brisk stride, and a loosening of my shoulders becoming my morning ritual as I step on campus. It's no respecter of good days or bad days, of pandemics or parent emails. It's a good start to run the good race, to eat a great meal, or revel in a good story. You might even say it's a bit of reclaiming the humanity we sort of lost during these isolating times we live in.
IGCSE English Lecturer ? Student-Centric Teaching,Assessment and Feedback,Continuous Professional Development,Technology Inclusion in Education ? Proven track record in achieving exceptional student outcomes.
3 年This is a great article, makes perfect sense. As a teacher, I always look into ways I can improve myself and my students’ experience, be it in class or through HBL(home based learning) The pandemic has made it a bit tougher, I must agree, however, I believe that when the teacher is motivated the students will follow. Having said that, I do have students who need a lot more than just a motivated teacher. Finding online teaching platforms or assessments through games has helped my students enjoy the lessons. They came better prepared for the lessons because they knew they will also have fun, but they also understood that to be the best(to be first) required a bit of effort. For higher education students, group projects was a welcomed breeze of fresh air. Challenges are present in our daily lives, it’s what we do and how we manage them that counts and motivates us to continue our hard work!
International Business Executive, Educator and School Director
3 年MY CURRENT AND FUTURE MINDSET As a teacher I am feeling very optimistic right now. Seriously, we needed some one like Mother Nature to shake us up and tell us, Hey what are you doing? what are you doing to yourselves, others, the world?? Why are you neglecting, abusing or destroying mother nature, each other?? This is not the first time we have been challenged as a race (the human race). As recently as the 1950's families were fighting Polio and children were being crippled. What did we do then? We overcame! Teachers have changed the world and we can overcome again, Look at the Greatest Teacher a Jewish man born in Bethlehem. Look at Mother Teresa Ghandy John Kennedy Abraham Lincoln Marting Luther King Nelson Mandela They all had a mindset that "we can make the world a better place" I am sticking to the mindset that I can contribute greatly, I am willing to use 21st century skills by being Creative, by being a collaborator, being a communicator, being a teacher, being willing to solve difficult problems, being willing to pass these to our future generations. I am sticking to the mindset that this time we can also overcome human race challenges. My mind is made up
International Business Executive, Educator and School Director
3 年Very good comments from many forefront educators As a teacher I am feeling very optimistic right now. Seriously, we needed some one like Mother Nature to shake us up and tell us, Hey what are you doing? what are you doing to yourselves, others, the world?? This is not the first time we have been challenged as a race (the human race). As recently as the 1950's families were fighting Polio and children were being crippled. What did we do then? We overcame! Teachers have changed the world and we can overcome again, Look at the Greatest Teacher a Jewish man born in Bethlehem. Look at Mother Teresa Ghandy Marting Luther King Nelson Mandela They all had a mindset that "we can make the world a better place" I am sticking to the mindset that I can contribute greatly, I am willing to use 21st century skills by being Creative, by being a collaborator, being a communicator, being a teacher, being willing to solve difficult problems, being willing to pass these to our future generations. I am sticking to the mindset that this time we can also overcome human race challenges. My mind is made up