Hi everyone!
My name is Jessica Pires and I am a second-year MEDL student here at VIU. I am also a Middle School teacher in SD #63.
Attached is a short video explaining my project-driven thesis. Below you will find the link to my website (this is still a work in progress). My project is based on the research of growth mindset and competency-based learning. Essentially, I created a workbook for students that is rooted in the research behind a growth mindset and is a practical area for students to acknowledge, reflect and understand the core competencies. Along with this is a website that has teacher resources suggesting lesson plans for how this could be used in the classroom.
Thank you so much for viewing this! I hope you enjoy it!
LINK TO WEBSITE: https://sites.google.com/view/coregrowth/home
-Jessica Pires
**A special thank you to my supervisor Jim Ansell for all of your support**
Jessica I love the connection to core competencies and making them visible for students in an ongoing manner. Our research is totally along the same lines. I looked at what teachers know and need to know about student self-assessment and reflection. Your attention to options for students to share their learning in methods other than written output, made my heart happy. Excited to see this and things like it used to support student recognition of learning over time!
Hi Kelsey! Thanks so much for taking the time to look at my project. I took a peek at yours as well and I completely agree that our research is very much aligned. Your three minute thesis was excellent and engaging. I agree, teachers need support/tools in how to teach self assessment. They need to make sure that self assessment is accessible for an inclusive classroom (that was a key component that I wanted to make sure I met with my project)! I can think of a lot of teachers that would love Pro-D opportunities on this like you suggested.
Jessica, your website is extremely user-friendly. I really appreciate how you have created something that allows students to engage within the core competencies throughout the year. It often seems that the self-assessment at the end of the year has little meaning to the students. However, if they have been reflecting on their work, and developing a growth mindset, they may feel a deeper connection to their progress and a greater sense of pride. I also love how open-ended you made the questions in the workbook. It seems it would really allow them to express their understanding of the concept in a variety of ways if they choose.
Hi Cole!
Thanks for your feedback. It was really important to me to make sure that the website/resource was user friendly. I wanted to make sure the workbook worked for me and my students but was also something that could be easily adapted for other ages!
Hi Jessica, I love that you’ve combined Growth Mindset with Core Competencies. It almost seems that Core Competencies were created with it in mind! I found Carol Dweck hugely informative in helping me convince struggling students that they could succeed. Your workbook is straightforward, yet allows for creativity and flexibility. I especially like that you make room for multiple modes of demonstrating competencies. I think that is very helpful for engaging students. I also like that it goes with them through the years. I don’t think that the benefits of core competencies can necessarily be seen in the short term; they take time to develop.
Hi Colin, thanks for your feedback! I agree, I think the benefits of the core competencies really do take time and thus having the workbook follow you throughout the year or multiple years it will be more meaningful. A significant portion of my research revolves arounds Dweck’s findings. I also thought it was important to talk about the criticisms of Dwecks work which I found fascinating as well.
Hi Jessica. What a great topic!! I am a big believer in the importance of having a growth mindset. Being a person with a disability, having a growth mindset is very important and it is something that I have worked on since I was very young. I think that it is part of why I have achieved the things that I have. Your statement about how assessment should be for learning and that student involvement is important resonates with me. Promoting a Growth Mindset has been a topic of interest to me as well and I have created a presentation entitled “Assessment Techniques for Promoting a Growth Mindset” – if you’d like to view it, you can go to https://saanichschools-my.sharepoint.com/:p:/g/personal/alyon_saanichschools_ca/EXUNZjLNIKFBqxChkkrQaGsBYcHjnLwawHpCsnYWWd4yGA?e=Q2Ze1x and then choose “Slideshow” and “From Beginning” to hear the audio that goes with the presentation. Your creation of a growth mindset workbook and website is excellent and I love how you have linked it to creating and understanding the core competencies. I think that many students don’t really understand the purpose of the core competencies and this makes it more personal and reflective for them. I look forward to looking at your resources further. I appreciate how you incorporate all learning styles in your project. What are you planning on doing with your workbook and website once you are finished? It would be great if it were available to BC teachers as I think the content would be welcomed by many of them. Great job!
Hi Melissa!
So glad to hear your feedback and thank you for sharing that resource! It is super helpful, and informative. I agree, I think developing a growth mindset is crucial to all learners and can really positively impact their learning journey. That being said, I also think it is important that educators are informed of what a growth mindset actually is. I hear people say a lot “it just means try your best,” and they don’t understand that there is so much more to it than that. My plan when I am finished is to share out with my school, and then if there seems to be interest share out with the district. I also will make it available on the internet for people to view and adapt as they wish. I feel like the more I can share out the better! Thanks again!
Wow Jessica this is a very professional looking ‘work in progress!’. I am enjoying reading the feedback you are getting and I think you will find that you’ve created something that lots of teachers will find useful. Maybe create a spot on your website where people can contact you to share their experiences and feedback on your resource after they have tried it.
Hi Rachel!
Thanks for the feedback. I do hope others find it as useful as I have. It is has been incredibly helpful for me this year. Thank you for that idea, I think that is an excellent idea and will help make it a “living” resource.
Hi Jessica, I love seeing how far you have taken this spark of an idea over the past year! This is a resource that offers so much flexibility and support to both students and teachers. Congratulations on making your vision a reality! It would be wonderful to get an example of a student workbook up on the BC Curriculum website in the ‘illustrations’ section as it would really show the process of growth over time (vs a snapshot).
Hi Wendy!
Thanks so much for your feedback. It’s great to think where I was this time last year and how much has changed/developed along the way. I completely agree, seeing the whole package really tells a lot about the student and their learning journey versus simply a snapshot. Thanks for all your support throughout this process!
Hi Jessica! I think your workbook is fantastic (especially for being considered a work in progress)! You have done a great job in linking the core competencies in an easy to understand way for students. I love that you’ve made it available to customize. I would love to try this workbook with my high school dance classes. Goal setting is a huge part of what we do and I think they would find tremendous value in your workbook. Well done!!
Hi Robyn!
Thanks so much for your feedback. I think of it as a work in progress, like most things I create for students, as it is ever evolving and changing for year to year, class to class, grade to grade etc. I would love to share it with you and chat about using it (and how it could be adapted) with your high school dance classes. I think it could be super useful especially because I know you often have the same students for multiple years and seeing that growth over time would be awesome!
Jessica, I really like the way you have combined growth mindset and the core competencies so directly. I’ve been looking for better ways to organize my reflection/core competency work with my students, and I think your workbook is really well laid out. On that note, maybe its just my lack of technology skills, but I can’t figure out how to make a copy of the workbook so I can print it. I’d love to try and use it or make some adaptations for my local site/class.
Hi Jordan!
Thank you for your feedback! I’m glad you find this resource helpful. I will look at the share settings and adjust it. If for some reason you are still having trouble, I have added a contact page on my site so feel free to email me through there if you still need support!
Thanks!
Jess
Hi Jessica,
Thank you for sharing your resources on Growth Mindset. It is becoming such a big issue for children more and more every year. I would love to see more on primary intervention. Did you find anything in your research that might state that the sooner we intervene, the better the growth mindset changes will be throughout a child’s school career?
Thanks for sharing your work book!