Reflection on Growth and Fixed Mindset

By: Jezreel G. Cabagunay

The two-day webinar of GMRC focuses on the Mindset Characteristics which are the Fixed Mindset and
the Growth Mindset. What I learned in this session is that there are two facets in GMRC Model, the
Internal Mode and the External Mode.

As an educator, having a growth mindset means believing that you can learn anything if you are
sufficiently motivated. It means putting an effort despite the risk of failure. And most importantly, it
means knowing that making mistakes doesn’t mean that you’ve failed — it means that you have the
opportunity to grow. In the world of the fixed mindset, perfection is crucial, and it must be instantaneous.

Your potential for development is not limited by your effort. Rather, it is unleashed by effort. By choosing
to develop a growth mindset, you are choosing to opt for growth rather than fear of failure. If you believe
that you have the capacity for growth, then your “failures” will simply show you a new path to success.

The fixed mindset is fed by our constant need for validation. The problem with this way of thinking is that
it prevents you from truly trying to succeed. On the other hand, in the world of the growth mindset, it is
almost inconceivable to want something badly, to think you have a chance to achieve it, and then do
nothing about it. When it happens, then it could be heartbreaking, not comforting

When you have that fixed mindset, constantly seeking validation and trying to prove yourself over and
over by always being “the best,” you can’t really go anywhere. You’ll always be stuck in that vicious cycle
of caring more about a narrow vision of success than learning to let yourself grow and expand, and when
that inevitable failure comes, it will be devastating.

Students who have a fixed mindset tend to study by simply trying to memorize everything, without
actually trying to understand. If they do poorly on an exam, they conclude that the subject is just not for
them and that they don’t have the capacity to understand the material.

Students with a growth mindset take charge of their own learning and look for themes and underlying
principles across lectures. They study to learn, not just to ace the test. As a result, they achieve higher
grades.

Students with the growth mindset embrace challenges rather than shrink from them, because a challenge
has the potential to further growth, whereas in the fixed mindset, a challenge simply exposes
weaknesses. Finally, students with the growth mindset request feedback in order to improve, accept help
from others, and most importantly, persist in the face of setbacks.

Developing a growth mindset is not easy, especially if you have spent a long time stuck in the fixed
mindset. I am in the third year of teaching Values Education as a subject and I still find myself falling into
the trap of the fixed mindset. To sum up everything, I would like us to always Remind ourselves how far
we have come. Remind ourselves of your own success. Remind ourselves that we have only just begun
our journey. Learn to forgive ourselves and remember that it is impossible to grow without failure.