At Living Faith, we often talk about Growth Mindset and recently I came across a video I haven’t watched for quite a few years. The video is called, ‘The Importance of Struggle’ and it is an awesome short clip that children (and adults) can watch and relate to. The video can be found at this link and I would highly recommend all families view this with their children, perhaps as a short
holiday project.

The key message in the video is that we can learn a lot from our struggles. In fact, when we are really struggling with something, we have the wonderful opportunity for rich learning to be undertaken. At Living Faith, we encourage our students to have a growth mindset and to see that mistakes can be a good thing and that they are an important part of our learning process.

In the video, we are introduced to Dr Jo Boaler who is a Professor of Mathematics Education at Stanford University and the faculty director of Youcubed. Youcubed is an awesome website with great resources (mostly mathematics) that educators worldwide can tap into.

In summary, Dr Boaler explains that research tells us that people who achieve the most:

● Are not born with a special brain. People who achieve the most are always pushing to the edge of their understanding; making mistakes, correcting them, making more mistakes.
● Are not people who get things correct all the time. They struggle!
● Set high standards for themselves.
● When they get stuck, they don’t give up… instead they try a different approach and keep going.

In a school setting, cultivating a growth mindset is of paramount importance as it lays the foundation for a culture of continuous learning, resilience and personal development. A growth mindset fosters the belief that intelligence and abilities can be developed through dedication, effort and perseverance. By embracing this mindset, students are empowered to see challenges as
opportunities for growth rather than obstacles to overcome. They become more resilient in the face of setbacks, understanding that failure is not a reflection of their abilities but rather a natural part of the learning process. Furthermore, a growth mindset encourages students to embrace feedback, seek out new challenges and persist in the face of difficulty, ultimately leading to greater
academic achievement and personal success. In fostering a growth mindset within our school community, we equip our students with the mindset and skills necessary to thrive in an ever-changing world.

As we break for the mid-year holidays and prepare for Semester 2, my hope is that all our students at Living Faith have many opportunities to struggle and learn new things throughout the second half of the school year.

Peace
Andrew Kelly
Principal