Effects of a Self-Worth Approach to Classroom Management

In individual students:

• students who had previously exhibited a fixed-mindset were able to quickly incorporate the principles of a growth mindset
• students treated difficult challenges as puzzles to solve, rather than as walls impossible to climb
• students who had been unhappy with being in school changed their attitudes to have a positive affect

As a collective body:

• students who had been fighting were able to get along in a collegial manner
• students supported one another, using growth mindset language (“Mistakes are okay, that’s how you learn.”)
• students were all receptive of working with one another
• students respected one another’s personal needs

For the teacher:

• it became very easy to delegate in the classroom, and to depend on students to support one another’s educational goals
• it was very easy to communicate learning outcomes to students, and to find creative, student-led ways to reach those outcomes
• assessment became a fluid process as students were excited to reach their outcomes, and wanted to do so corporately