16: OCR Development - Dweck & Willingham

Which type of mindset does Dweck suggests is linked to better progress?

• closed mindset

• fixed mindset

• growth mindset

• open mindset

Select all relevant features of someone with a FIXED mindset.

• I'm born being good or bad at something - ability is innate.

• If I fail, I will carry on and try harder

• If I fail, I will tell myself there's no point and give up

• I can improve the abilities I'm born with by trying hard

You can have different mindsets for different things - e.g. growth for football but fixed for maths - true or false?

• True

• False

Dweck says that children should be praised for...

Answer explanation

She suggests that children who are praised for achievement only think it's valuable to 'do well', or better than others. Children who are praised for effort understand the value of working hard, even if their attainment is lower than others.

Which key study lends support to Dweck's mindset theory?

Dweck's theory is reductionist.

If this is the P in a PET paragraph, click on the two boxes that represent the best E (explanation) and T (therefore).

• It's not really very useful.

• It only focuses on effort and ignores other factors such as the influence of parents and teachers.

• It can't explain all variations in learning.

• The evidence isn't very strong.

What does Daniel Willingham say are a myth and do not exist?

• Aliens

• Intelligence

• Learning styles

• Teaching styles

Answer explanation

It used to be suggested that everyone has a preferred learning style - e.g. everything should be learned visually if they are a visual learner. Willingham says this isn't true - how something is learned depends on what is being learned (e.g. can't learn to ride a bike visually)

What does Willingham suggest is more important for learning?

Answer explanation

Ensuring children understand what is being learned by linking it to existing knowledge or providing examples and analogies will result in deeper learning and make it more memorable.

Click on the valid criticisms of Willingham's learning theory.

• People do actually have learning styles.

• It only focuses on nurture and doesn't consider biological influences on learning.

• Some children have learning disabilities which mean they might need to be taught in specific ways.

• Some things don't need to have meaning attached - e.g. learning times tables

Dweck and Willingham's learning theories - nature or nurture?

• nature

• nurture