A key concept which shapes the ethos of MPL is growth mindsets based on the work of Carol Dweck.  Rather than simply praising success we praise effort, determination, persistence and hard work.

 

We believe that the best thing to do is teach our children to love challenges, be intrigued by mistakes, enjoy effort, and just keep on learning. For those children who find some tasks or activities easy we make sure we offer them more challenging opportunities.  Our children recognise that effort, persistence and good teaching will help them to improve.

 

This approach links with how we mark work and give feedback.  We mark giving prompts for improvement or development so that learning for all children is seen as a way to grow. If children have fixed mindsets they find it hard to cope with failure.  At MPL we teach our children to see mistakes and failure as positive, which makes for an energetic and inclusive culture.  It also has a really positive effect on our ethos and on how children approach learning and see the importance of supporting each other.  We encourage our children to strive to improve their personal best rather than seeing coming top as the goal.

 

Carol Dweck stated: "In a fixed mindset students believe their basic abilities, their intelligence, their talents, are just fixed traits.  They have a certain amount and that's that, and their goal becomes to look smart all the time and never look dumb.  In a growth mindset students understand that their talents and abilities can be developed through effort, good teaching and persistence.  They don't necessarily think everyone's the same or anyone can be Einstein, but they believe everyone can get smarter if they work at it."