Through our Mindset in Education programme, we are creating a positive shift in pupils’ attitudes and attainment at school.
Attitudes
We surveyed 154 teachers, all of whom had taken part in one of our growth mindset professional learning programmes. When asked about pupil attitudes:
84% say pupils improved their understanding of mistakes being a learning opportunity
80% saw improvements in pupils showing persistence
83% saw improvements in pupils’ belief that effort is reflected in learning
Attainment
Although there can be many factors influencing attainment, schools within Dundee taking part in our Mindset Teams programme have demonstrated improved attainment.
Based on annual reported attainment data, all primary schools involved with Mindset Teams in Dundee (accounting for 67% of all primary schools in the city) reduced the attainment gap in each of the four Broad General Education attainment measures.
93% of primary schools have shown attainment improvements in writing from 2017-18 to 2018-19, while 87% have shown attainment improvements in both reading and numeracy.
In addition, 80% of the secondary schools involved with the PLP have recorded annual improvements from 2017-18 in the number of pupils gaining a minimum of level 4 or 5 in literacy and numeracy.
“Since starting to use growth mindset in Dundee teachers and families are telling us about children who once were shy or doubted themselves now coming forward and growing in confidence. We are hearing that when children struggle with their learning, they are thinking about what they need to do to get better.” Audrey May, Chief Education Officer, Dundee
Many of the schools we work with report an increased confidence in pupils, saying they become more engaged and enthusiastic in their learning:
“Mindset has made learning fun. Children are much more comfortable talking about how they learn and what dispositions they need to become successful learners. The teachers say you have to be resilient and persevere and they know what we are talking about, and it has now just become a way of life.” Jacqui McBurnie (Head Teacher), St Anthony’s Primary School, Johnstone, Renfrewshire
“The impact we have seen is that children are much more confident, they enjoy it and lead their own learning. They are open to sharing their mistakes and they are dying to tell you what they’ve done wrong, how they found out what they have done wrong and what they’re going to do to make it better.” Wendy Robinson, St Bernadette’s Primary School, Motherwell, North Lanarkshire
