Question #5 – Does Your Board Believe in Growth?

Rick Maloney

(49 Questions to Ask Your Board)

I remember often being praised for my intelligence rather than my efforts, and slowly but surely, I developed an aversion to difficult challenges. Most surprisingly, this extended beyond academic and even athletic challenges to emotional challenges. This was my greatest learning disability – this tendency to see performance as a reflection of character and, if I could not accomplish something right away, to avoid that task or treat it with contempt.1

In relating the above story from one of her students, Carol Dweck illustrates a sharp distinction between the positive effects of a growth mindset and the debilitating effects of a fixed mindset: “The fixed mindset makes you concerned with how you’ll be judged; the growth mindset makes you concerned with improving.” This mindset applies to children as they learn and grow. It applies as well to adults, including school system staff and the board itself, all of whom influence student learning.

Scenario: Bill, a board member from a small school district, had never attended the annual state school board conference. He read an online article about research into the growth mindset vs. fixed mindset and its application to classroom learning. He pestered the superintendent about training that was offered regionally, thinking teachers should receive this kind of training at a regional workshop. The superintendent responded by arranging training for staff members, but also persuaded board members to join in attending the workshop. Bill realized there are lessons for the board about the growth mindset, and indicated a new interest in board learning. Like students, boards can improve their own performance through belief in their potential and individual effort.

Late is of course better than never for Bill. A growth mindset assumes the board is on a journey of continuous learning and growing in capacity. A fixed mindset assumes the board already has what it takes to succeed. Without the benefit of a growth mindset a board is likely to remain perpetually underprepared. Most important, a board with a growth mindset believes student capacity (intelligence) can grow through individual effort, and that effective teaching inspires such effort.

Knowing that belief in growth leads to success for students, the board publicly adopts a statement of that belief and aligns its actions with the belief. Continuously checking to ensure its actions reflect a growth mindset, the board replaces gotcha accountability (an evaluation system shaped by a blame and shame culture) with formative and systems-oriented accountability that focuses on future success rather than past failure. How does the board show its belief in growth? It adopts a vision with high expectations for student outcomes, and confidence in the district’s ability to produce those outcomes. It provides policy direction and resources that both demand and support professional development.

The effective board believes all students can learn – and acts on that belief. It believes that good teaching makes a difference and that the staff can grow in their teaching. This belief, when applied to board work in its meetings, is evident to all, and is reflected in the beliefs of staff, community members, parents, and most important of all, students themselves. The board sets high expectations for school success and acts on the belief that schools can achieve better results. It believes in the potential for growth by administrators, and that all district leaders, including the superintendent and school board, can make a difference through their efforts toward the bottom line of student outcomes. Further, the effective board knows the value of staff development in increasing leadership, managerial, and instructional capacity. It provides opportunities and resources for professional development toward that end. It requires regular monitoring of performance to guide improvement. The board provides for its own professional development. It conducts frequent self-assessments to identify areas for growth and guide both board and board member improvement. The board learns as a team. It is sufficiently knowledgeable of research to judge the effectiveness of staff work through the student outcomes that are achieved.

NOTE: The opinions expressed in these blog entries are informed by references cited herein, and the experiences of the author. Your comments are welcome additions to the conversation.

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NEXT: Question #6 – Does Your Board Have the Work Ethic Needed for Growth?