Growth Mindsets, Positive and Precise Language, and Poetry

At our most recent Professional Development Day, we enjoyed a powerful session with Peggy Chappell, a licensed clinical social worker and former Country School administrator with more than 30 years of experience as a clinician, educator, and coach. The conversation came at the optimal time in the academic year, with teachers and students back from the long winter break.

Peggy spoke about the power of words to encourage appropriate behavior and to inspire students to rise to academic, artistic, and athletic challenges. Peggy spoke of “adopting a growth mindset,” in which the words we use and the attitude we assume encourage all of us –– both students and educators –– to make ourselves vulnerable enough to stretch, explore, and accomplish more than we otherwise would.

As those familiar with the work of Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck will know, a growth mindset is the opposite of a fixed mindset. The latter is based on the notion that qualities such as intelligence and talent are fixed traits and that those fixed traits alone will determine success. Conversely, in the growth mindset model, people believe that a person’s abilities –– and ultimately what they are capable of accomplishing –– can be developed through dedication and hard work; intelligence and talents are simply starting points.

In the days following Peggy's presentation, with faculty members and administrators continuing to discuss her wisdom in the hallways, classrooms, and over meals, I have been turning her message over in my mind. The power of positive language and adopting a growth mindset can be hugely influential in the life of a young person. Peggy's message has made me think even more about the power of words and the need to use words precisely in a world that is changing so quickly and is so full of ambiguity.

With visions of the 60th Anniversary MacLane Poetry Recitation fresh in my mind, I am also reminded of the way words can be used to evoke an emotion, an idea, an ideal, a moment in history, and other voices. As John Burt, Country School class of 1971 and one of the judges at our MacLane Recitation finals, said, poetry, and specifically the way language is used and delivered when reciting poetry, can “transcend time.” As he so poignantly and gratefully said after the recitation, for him, the MacLane finalists did just that (for more, visit: http://www.thecountryschool.org/cf_news/view.cfm?newsID=945). 

As a school that educates students for as many as 11 years, we strongly advocate and follow a growth mindset. We thrill in watching a timid student grow in confidence over the years, a tentative science student join the Robotics Club, a tentative writer submit works to the Eureka literary magazine. And when students discover a challenge that elevates them  –– and in the process elevates us as well  –– it can take our breath away. 

That is what happened on February 12 when, for a little over an hour and a half, 25 students shared their deep understanding of and appreciation for the words of poets. We heard precise language, we saw positive mindsets in action, we witnessed poetry embodied, and time stood still. Below is one example. Listen to Phineas S., a 6th Grader, as he recites “Wilderness” by Carl Sandburg, a performance that earned him the gold medal.

Thank you to all of the students who participated in the MacLane Recitation for elevating our minds and our spirits. And thank you, as well, to Peggy Chappell, LCSW, for inspiring so much conversation and thinking about the language we use.

For more about Peggy, visit www.peggychappellconsulting.com. For more about the MacLane Poetry Recitation, The Country School's oldest tradition, visit http://www.thecountryschool.org/signature-programs/public-speaking/maclane-poetry-recitation.