My students come to me as freshmen in high school and by then the large majority of them have decided they are not good at science and are even worse at math. Due to this fixed mindset, they are unwilling to try to figure things out for themselves. The result is that of learned helplessness. I have a large number of students that will ask for help through every step of a story problem or just flat out refuse to try because they are afraid to fail. This is an issue I struggle with all the time. How can I best help my students succeed in situations like these?
A.J. Juliani (2018) wrote, "We have the choice to allow for failure and provide support…or do it for them and make it easier on both of us." This statement really hit home for me. How many times have I "helped" a student complete a problem that they could have done on their own if they had put forth just a little effort? And why did I help them? ...because they wore me down and it became easier to just walk them through the answers than to watch them get upset.
"Letting our children 'figure it out' on their own is one of the most empowering ways to give them ownership of their lives and learning path." (Juliani, 2018). In order for students to be willing to figure things out for themselves we need to teach them that it is not just okay to fail, but it is encouraged. "You can't grow, advance, and move forward without repeatedly stumbling and falling on your face. If, as toddlers, we went in to the process of learning to walk with our adult mindset, we would still be crawling." (Burgess, 2012, p. 154).
Jessica Lahey (2015) wrote, "Year after year, my 'best' students -- the ones who are happiest and successful in their lives -- are the students who were allowed to fail, held responsible for missteps, and challenged to be the best people they could be in the face of their mistakes."
The best thing we can do, as teachers, is to give our students guidance and support them as they figure things out for themselves.
Resources:
Burgess, D. (2012). Teach like a PIRATE: Increase Student Engagement, Boost Your Creativity, and Transform Your Life as an Educator. San Diego, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting.
Burgess, D. (2012). Teach like a PIRATE: Increase Student Engagement, Boost Your Creativity, and Transform Your Life as an Educator. San Diego, CA: Dave Burgess Consulting.
Juliani, A. (2018, October 15). The Power of Letting Students Figure it Out. Retrieved June 6, 2019, from http://ajjuliani.com/the-power-of-letting-students-figure-it-out/
Lahey, J. (2015, March 08). Why Parents Need to Let Their Children Fail. Retrieved June 6, 2019, from https://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2013/01/why-parents-need-to-let-their-children-fail/272603/
I totally agree with the learned helplessness issue, especially if its re-enforced or enabled throughout development by the time an individual is in the workforce they are missing the tools to cope with change, leaning on the fly and a host of other successful competencies. I often hear "I can't" and my response is always "can't never could" and as you point out, there could be any number of reasons behind why a student defaults to helpless mode. As they say its all about the "journey" and maybe even more so when it comes to learning.
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