“I want to make a difference.” Activism, Engagement, and Well-Roundedness in a Growth Mindset Learner.
Almost every day, after the final bell rings and signals the transition between academics and athletics, I walk through the back door of Upper School building at Gilman School and find Peter Levine[1], a junior, standing with a sea of people around him. At least four inches taller than his peers, hips cocked, mussed blonde hair, and shoulder bag falling down his arm as he talks with his hands, Peter is easily recognizable from a distance. In the few moments when the boys at Gilman can be just boys—not students and not athletes, but just boys—Peter’s interactions with Gilman boys and the girls from the neighboring girls’ schools seem effortlessly comfortable. He seems to always have time for others, including adults at Gilman, which is a unique quality about Peter. “Do you know everyone?” I asked one day as we walked across one of the bridges from his class at one of the girls’ schools. He had said hi to or waved at almost everyone who had walked past us. I was only half joking, but he smiled and let out a bit of a giggle, perhaps a bit uncomfortable with that question. Finally, he replied: “I mean, yeah, I guess. At least, I know who everyone is. I like people.” Most teachers would agree with that—he is warm, inviting, and genuine with everyone. Faculty with whom he is particularly close have earned the affectionate title “teacher-friend” from Peter, suggesting what he has already said about himself: that he gets along better with adults. If Gilman was to use one student as an example of the quintessential “Gilman boy” who embodies the mission statement of “creating a diverse community to educate boys in mind, body, and spirit…” (www.gilman.edu/about/mission-values/statement), Peter would be at the top of the list. His passion for foreign languages and theater is rivalled by his passion in leading the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) and running on the cross country team and he does everything with determination and skill. The bottom line is that Peter wants to make a difference in everything he does. Faculty at Gilman marvel—Peter is academically strong, socially capable, and has a powerful drive for extracurricular activities—but the marvel is not without the recognition that he is somehow wise beyond is 16 years. Peter’s maturity through difficult experiences has encouraged a growth mindset (Dweck, 2010), which has extended to his academics and extracurricular pursuits and is solidified through an achieved identity (Nakkula and Toshalis, 2006) rooted in his membership in the LGBTQ+ community, as well as being a “Thirteen Year Man” at Gilman—a boy who started at Gilman in either kindergarten or Pre-First[2] and continues at Gilman until high school graduation. Peter is comfortable and proud of who he is, which, according to him, is one key component to his successes at Gilman. “I auditioned for a spot at one of Baltimore’s prestigious performing arts schools when I was in 8th grade. I thought I wanted to be an actor at that point, but when I got in, I immediately knew I was going to stay at Gilman,” Peter explained to me in my office one day in October. He was eating popcorn and “doing” some of his homework. “How did you make that decision? Was it your parents’ decision?” I asked. “No, it was mine. I just felt like I would be limited if I went there. At Gilman I could get a quality academic education and still be involved in athletics and the arts. And now I know that I definitely do not want to be an actor,” he replied, laughing a little at the last part of his answer. What he wants to pursue now is foreign language, which he is doing to a greater extent than many of his classmates. Taking both French IV and Spanish IV, Peter excels in communicating in two foreign languages, outpacing his classmates in comprehension, expression, and composition. When I asked him why he thinks he does so well in foreign language classes, he simply said “I like them! They’re fun for me!” He has internalized his learning of foreign languages and taken ownership of those classes as key components in the future of his education and life trajectory as he can see it now (Toshalis and Nakkula, 2012). Peter’s enjoyment of foreign languages suggests a higher engagement in those classes, which is demonstrated by lively conversations, frequent questions, and great investment in his performance on graded material (Toshalis and Nakkula, 2012). He is sometimes so enthusiastic in class that he has had teachers make him sit on his hands in order to allow his classmates an opportunity to participate. His motivation to do well comes from the genuine engagement that he experiences when he enters his French or Spanish classrooms—while he began learning French in the Middle School, he chose to begin learning Spanish in 9th grade when he realized that he might come to the end of the journey in French. “I didn’t want to stop learning a language just because I had hit the highest French level at Gilman,” he explained. “And when I started in Spanish I, I already knew how to learn a language, so it made the process more enjoyable for me than I think it was for some of my classmates.” This assertion of ease that he already knew “how to learn a language” suggests high scaffolding for the material at hand (Brown et. al, 2014), which probably allowed him to more quickly and completely understand the new material. This apparent ease with which Peter acquires foreign languages has inevitably led to higher expectations for himself. He is invested in foreign language classes, which seems to translate into an expectation of reward for input of hard work. “I’m thoroughly disappointed with anything less than a 90 in a language class,” he explained. Math and science are different, though. For Peter, where an 87 in a French or Spanish class is something to lament, an 87 in his Biology class calls for a celebration. He’s adjusted his expectations based on the subject matter of the class, which is a conscious decision on his part. He’s begun to specialize and focus his energy and attention on the subjects that he wants to study in college, of which the sciences are not. Peter has begun to make a conscious decision to focus his energy on the subjects which he enjoys and understands as components of his future education. More careful attention, then, is paid to his Spanish and French classes, Peter admits. “I mean, I want to study languages in college, so I need the grades for it.” His attitude towards grades is typical of Gilman students—there is great emphasis put on getting into top-tier colleges and Peter is no exception with his top choice of Yale. Specialization and focus is common at the school and students are able to take electives of their choice after fulfilling all of their required curriculum courses. He invests much of his time and energy into the subjects and courses that he believes that will contribute most to his future education and, ultimately, his career. He is results driven, although he is also keenly aware that obsessing over grades is not what learning is supposed to be about. Overall, grades are an important source of feedback for Peter (Hattie and Timperley, 2007). He understands grades as a measure of his competency in a class, so when he receives a 92 in his Spanish IV class, but an 89 in his French IV, there is confusion and disappointment because he has been studying French longer, so it makes little sense to him to receive a lower grade in a course in which he has a greater breadth of knowledge. Unlike foreign languages, the sciences are not on his radar past fulfilling graduation requirements at Gilman. “Freshman physics was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. Write that down,” he half-joked during one of our interviews. “I cried every night, like, heaving sobs. I felt so stupid.” The joking tone was gone and he fell serious. He spoke about science and math with a sense of resignation in his voice. “It was really hard and I had a lot of difficulty with it,” he continued. He then explained that each year in the Upper School, he has always been placed in the Honors section of his science classes, but never the Honors section of his math classes. “You’d think that if I was in a regular section of math, that I’d also be in a regular section of science, but apparently that’s not how it works here. It doesn’t make much sense to me,” he mused. The mismatch of his math and physics placement, as well as the frustration that he voiced, suggests that Peter’s experience in physics was outside of the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) for his math skills level (Nakkula and Toshalis, 2006). Because physics is applied math, Peter felt that his math education had not readily prepared him for taking on the Honor level physics class in which he was placed. Despite there being compelling evidence that supports using confusion in the classroom to solidify a deeper learning of the material (Kolowich, 2014), it seems evident that Peter’s confusion level was too high for it to be productive. Instead of contributing to his learning, the confusing caused large amounts of stress to his academic load. His experience in freshman physics seems to have clouded his attitude towards his subsequent science classes, in which he has continued to have difficulty, if perhaps due to lack of effort or investment in the classes themselves. Peter is a self-professed “humanities person,” and has openly discussed the budgeting of his time away from classes that he does not feel are suited to his strength. “I know that I could be doing better in Biology,” he explained. “I just don’t really feel like exerting effort late into the night when I could be getting enough sleep.” This attitude towards improvement suggests the recognition of a growth mindset without the application of it. Peter recognizes that his enjoyment and perceived innate abilities in the humanities over the sciences has an effect on the amount of effort that he gives in each class, but he has also, as stated before, begun to specialize. Taking stock of what he perceives as important to college admission and for his own well-being, he admits to choosing sleep over completing the reading for Biology. Therefore, his attitude towards the sciences can also be considered a fixed mindset because he has labelled himself as not a “science person” (Dweck, 2007). This fixed mindset could be contributed to the stressors of freshman physics, but can also be considered a conscious decision on Peter’s part due to his interests and understanding of his future academic career. Dweck’s categorization of either growth or fixed does not seem to account for students like Peter, who make conscious decisions to place themselves in one of the two categories. Peter’s education extends outside of the classroom and into his leadership roles with the Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) at Gilman. Peter came out as gay in 9th grade after coming to terms with his sexuality over his time in the Middle School. “I came out and I was like ‘okay, this is what I’m going to do, so I better do it well,’” he explained to me. “I came out and immediately took on a leadership role. The President of the GSA at the time had a meltdown, so the Vice President, who was a junior, and I staged a coup. We went to the [administrator in charge of affinity groups] and said ‘we’re the GSA leaders now’.” This event was, for Peter, a formative moment in his Upper School career. Not only was he an “out” gay kid at an all-boys school, but he immediately became a GSA leader at an all-boys school. He was out and he was in the spotlight. His immediate assumption of a leadership role after coming out as gay suggests that Peter moved fairly quickly though the later stages of sexual identity formation that Cass, Troiden, and Coleman present (Nakkula and Toshalis, 2006). Within a year of coming out—Stage 5—Peter was in a relationship with another out boy at Gilman and leading the affinity group with other LGBTQ+ students and their allies—Stage 6 (Nakkula and Toshalis, 2006). Being a “gay kid” at Gilman has fundamentally defined Peter’s experience to date, but his experience is different than it might have been 10 or 15 years ago. “I’ve never been thrown into a locker; I’ve never been called a ‘faggot’ by any of my classmates. Are there microaggressions that occur every day? Sure, but I feel safer in school than the first out students at Gilman 10 years ago.” He feels safe at school, which allows him to learn to the best of his ability (Carey, 2014). He credits his involvement in the GSA as a crucial factor in his feeling of safety at Gilman, which Nakkula and Toshalis support through their investigation of GSAs and similarly structured affinity groups. “When the school principal sends a clear message verbally and through active participation, gay-straight alliances are more likely to become empowered to be more public with their activities and more diverse in their representation.” (Nakkula and Toshalis, 2006) While Gilman has a vibrant GSA with over 30 active members, Peter concedes that the GSA has a stereotypical appearance. “We tend to be a more effeminate group, which I worry deters gay students who don’t fit into that mold from joining into our conversations. I want to change that,” he confessed. His solution to changing the School’s attitude towards the LGBTQ+ community was a program called the Day of Dialogue, which consisted of a day of LGBTQ+ themed classroom discussions Peter’s activism and dedication to making a difference is something that, while not unique to students at Gilman, is an evident, driving force behind much of what he does. When he is not leading the GSA in difficult discussions about gender and sexuality inequalities, intersectionality, and being allies, he mentors a student in the Middle School. “I want to make sure that I can make a difference in the lives of younger boys at Gilman. I had a mentor and I want to do what he did for me for another boy,” he explained. “I want to help him love this school as much as I do.” This statement is at the heart of everything—Peter loves Gilman and loves learning. His passion for people, learning, and making a difference has had a tremendous impact on the way that he is perceived by his peers and the faculty at Gilman. He is a ravenous learner and a dedicated member of the Gilman community and someone that adds a great deal to the vibrant community at Gilman. Peter’s passion has inspired me to find the passion in each of my students to enhance their learning. Helping my students to find their passion will help to foster growth mindsets and encourage genuine curiosity and deeper exploration into the subject matter. To foster passion in my students must also include encouragement from me to further explore and ask questions during class time and afterwards if they still have questions. If my students’ passions do not lie within the field of my class, I hope to try to incorporate their passions into my class as much as I can to maintain their attention and engagement in the subject material. I also need to be more aware of when my students are too confused to deeply learn the material. Confusion has been proven to be helpful in learning, but if the confusion extends outside of the ZPD for that student, there will not be valuable or deep learning that takes place. (Nakkula and Toshalis, 2006) Peter’s experience with physics his freshman year left a lasting scar on his attitude towards his abilities in the sciences. While growth minded in the subjects that he enjoys, he appears to have a more fixed mindset when it comes to sciences due to his past experiences, which is something to be very conscious of in my own class and with my own students. Past negative experiences with the class which I teach can become perpetuated trends if I do not address the past stress and make an effort to change the trend. I have the responsibility as an educator to make sure that my students feel cared for, supported, and believed in and taking the time to learn about the educational history of my students will ensure that I can do everything I can to do those things. Most importantly, I want to encourage my students to find a cause or extracurricular activity that they feel passionate about and cultivate it. Peter’s well-roundedness in extracurricular activities contributes deeply to his learning outside of the classroom, which I believe is a valuable part to the school experience. Helping my students to find a sport, art, or club that they feel strongly about is something that I have resolved to do through my interactions with Peter. Bibliography: Brown, P. C., H. L. Roediger, III, and M. A. McDaniel. (2014). Make It Stick: The Science of Successful Learning. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Carey, B. (2014). How We Learn: The Surprising Truth About When, Where, and Why it Happens. New York, NY: Random House. Dweck, C.S. (2010). Mindsets and Equitable Education. Principle Leadership, Jan. 2010, 26- 29. Gilman School – Mission Statement, accessed October 26, 2017. http://www.gilman.edu/about/mission-values/statement. Hattie, J. and Timperley, H. (2007). The Power of Feedback. Review of Educational Research, 77 (1), 81-112. Interviews with Peter Levine on October 15, 19, and 24, 2017. Kolowich, S. (2014). Confuse Students To Help Them Learn. The Chronicle of Higher Education, Oct. 2015, 1-7. Nakkula, M.J. and E. Toshalis. (2006). Understanding Youth: Adolescent Devleopment for Educators. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Toshalis, E. and M.J. Nakkula. (2012). Motivation, Engagement, and Student Voice. Students at the Center: Teaching and Learning in the Era of Common Core, Apr. 2012, 1-42. [1] Student’s name has been changed to protect his privacy. [2] Pre-First—or Prep One—is a unique grade level at Gilman that is situated between kindergarten and first grade and is an option for boys entering the school that have already completed kindergarten elsewhere. It is not necessary for boys who entered Gilman in kindergarten to also take a year in Pre-First before moving to first grade.
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