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Greenville City Schools
Math Mindset
Jennifer Statzer
Greenville Elementary Assistant Principal
The subject of mathematics, some love it, others, well let us just say
it was not one of their fondest memories of school. We hear it all of
the time. “I didn’t like math when I was in school.” or “I’m not a math
person.” The notion that an educational subject is something that you
can either do or not do has fixed the mindset of many teachers, parents
and students over the years. Jo Boaler, the author of Mathematical
Mindsets, states, “When students get the idea they cannot do math, they
often maintain a negative relationship with mathematics throughout the
rest of their lives.” However, new evidence of brain research tells us
that everyone, with the right teaching and messages, can be successful
in math. Therefore, no one is born knowing math, and no one is born
lacking the ability to learn math. We as educators are working to
create opportunities for this teaching and these messages in order for
students to become flexible thinkers that persevere and rise to meet
many challenges. This is all in an effort to create a growth mindset.
Fortunately, Ohio’s Learning standards have provided teachers with a
set of practices to help them foster this growth mindset. The Standards
for Mathematical Practice describe levels of mathematical know-how that
teachers seek to develop in their students. These practices include
such things as; making sense of problems and persevere in solving them,
construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others and
attending to precision. Jo Boaler states that students need to have
opportunities to struggle to solve a problem, to listen to each other
as different students offer ideas for solving, even making mistakes and
taking wrong turns are all crucial. “The students combine their own
thoughts and ideas with methods they know to solve a problem of the
type they will face in the world.”
Let us look at this through the 2018 Winter Olympics. We have all
watched as exceptional athletes from all over the world have gathered
in PyeonChang, South Korea to fulfill a lifelong dream of standing at
the top of the podium with a medal draped from their neck. The road to
the Olympics is no easy task. These athletes did not wake up six months
ago and decide they were going to be snowboarders, ice skaters, or
skiers. They have been training years to make this dream a reality.
Have they failed along the way? Absolutely. Have they encountered
challenges that seemed too large to surpass? For many, yes. So what do
Olympians, and mathematics have in common you ask? The answers, a
growth mindset, or the understanding that your brain can grow, adapt
and change; and a standard of practices that build them up for success.
No matter if, you are retraining your body to glide down a snow-covered
hill on skies after breaking your leg, or you are solving a math
problem that challenges you to apply multiple mathematical skills in
order to solve, the statement of “I can’t” becomes a statement of “I
will persevere.” This growth mindset is one that a student can apply
now and for the rest of their life, in math and beyond!
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