Scott Braden
Just last week, I was collaborating with a certificated staff member and strategizing next steps for a particular academic intervention cohort. In the midst of the conversation she stated what she believed to be the most fundamental necessity in appropriating academic intervention day to day. She stated, “Positive mindsets are fundamental and imperative. We must employ them. We must create posters that the students will see each day; posters that convey the right words, the right script, the right message. We must never hold a grudge. We must convey that each and every day is a new day. Students need to know that their lack of performance and/or achievement will never prevent us from showing them a positive response or a growth mindset.”Eric Jensen, in his book, Poor Students, Richer Teaching, states that “brains can change.” He believes that according to brain research a positive mindset is the single most effective strategy at accelerating student achievement and creating emotional optimism than any other factor. In fact, Dr. Jensen says the research reveals that a positive mindset is not “sort of effective,” rather, “it’s ridiculously effective.”