Abstract:

The concept of mindset has been popularized by the work of Psychologist, Dr. Carol Dweck, and examines how students and people in general think about their ability and intelligence and how these thoughts affect their performance. Mindset purports that people’s beliefs about their abilities lend to two main types of mindsets, fixed and growth. Fixed mindset promotes the belief that intelligence, talents and abilities are innate and biologically determined. People are born with certain intelligence and ability and can do nothing about it. Growth mindset considers ability and intelligence to be influenced by one’s social environment and can be changed with diligent work and determination. Most of Dr. Dweck’s research and work have been conducted in elementary through high schools. However, the concept of mindset is now widely used in higher education and businesses. In higher education it is considered a high impact practice that promotes students’ performance, retention, and graduation. This paper explores the concept of growth mindset and how higher education faculty can use its strategies to enhance the performance of students and prepare them for the world of work.

Keywords:

Mindset, Growth Mindset, teaching strategies.