Critical Research Questions the Impact of Both
Dear Colleagues,
One of my biggest
professional frustrations is when districts and schools say that they do not
have time for professional development or “new programs” . . . and then they
invest time, money, and staff development on popular “band-wagon” programs or
strategies that have no, minimal, or potentially negative effects on student or
staff outcomes.
Such is the case
with professional development and school training programs that invest (lose?)
instructional time on increasing students’ Mindfulness and Growth Mindsets,
respectively.
Indeed, while the
research in the former area is questionable at best, the Growth Mindset
research is largely sound—but it does/has not translated into functional or
practical approaches that change consistently students’ behavior or academic
outcomes.
Previously, I have
discussed the (NOT) quality of the Mindfulness “research,” and addressed its
“motherhood and apple pie” marketing, testimonials, and misplaced
popularity. In this Blog, I review this
research, and then discuss a new meta-analytic study on Growth Mindset that
every educator needs to understand.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Where Have We Been
on Mindfulness?
During the past few
years, I have devoted at least four Blogs to the Mindfulness “movement.”
In my February 13,
2016 Blog, I critically reviewed four research articles on Mindfulness that
were published in 2013.
And then, starting at
the beginning of November 2017, we published a three-part Blog Series focusing
on the implicit goal of most Mindfulness programs or approaches:
To help students to be more aware and in control of
their emotions, thoughts, and behavior.
During this Series,
we analyzed the research and practice of Mindfulness, concluding that—from an
objective, data-based perspective—the approach does not deliver on this
stated goal.
In order to focus
educators’ attention on the best, research-based processes that DO meet this
goal, we discussed how cognitive-behavioral strategies and interventions
have over 35 years of research supporting their social, emotional, and
behavioral efficacy with children, adolescents, and adults.
We then mused:
What would happen—relative to the goals
above—if schools invested the same time, training, and attention to cognitive-behavioral
strategies, with their longstanding record of student success. . . instead of a
passing fad that educators will recall in the future with a deep breath and a
roll of their collective eyes?
The research from
these four previous Blogs is summarized in this current Blog so that educators
who are using Mindfulness approaches in their schools can rethink their “return
on investment.”
For educators
considering these approaches, the recommendation is self-evident.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Growth Mindsets: Introduction and Context
Dr. Carol Dweck’s
Growth Mindset (Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, 2006) is based
on her long-standing and well-established research at Stanford University that
investigates how students’ cognitive self-beliefs and attributions affect their
motivation and achievement.
At its core, her
research asserts that students tend to achieve better when they have a
“mindset” where they regard their intelligence and achievement not as fixed
traits (that they either have or do not have), but as attributes that can be
improved through effort.
_ _ _ _ _
A new study
analyzing the cumulative effect size from over 229 research studies
investigating the impact of Growth Mindsets was just published (April 1, 2018)
in the Psychological Science Association Journal.
Reviewed in this
Blog message, the study reported a “very tiny” meta-analytic effect size (0.08)
across these studies involving over 365,000 students. Additional analyses correlating mindset
interventions with students’ academic achievement found that age, and the
length and type of intervention were not significant factors. In addition, very small effect sizes were
found for students who had failed a class, or were at-risk of dropping
out.
In an interview
after the publication of the study, one of its authors talked about how:
(M)edia bias plays a role in how people perceive the
effects of certain teaching strategies. She cited instances where reporters
contacted her to write about her research, only to retract when they learned
that the findings were not what they expected. From her perspective, research
showing small or null effects do not garner as much attention, in the form of
citations or media mentions, the same way more grandiose outcomes do. This
might be what happened with growth mindset studies.
“Studies that are especially exciting or shows
especially large effect often are the ones that are cited over and over again,
so even if you’re just reading the published literature you tend to get a sense
that these effects perhaps are very large,” says Macnamara. “Aggregating
synthesized data gets you a very different picture.”
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
Summary and
Recommendations
For districts,
schools, and administrators thinking about implementing a Mindfulness or Growth
Mindset program, please think twice.
For districts,
schools, and administrators who have already committed to and/or are implementing
a Mindfulness or Growth Mindset program, we understand the potential
frustration and cognitive dissonance of being told that the research simply
does not support these approaches.
We cannot change
the research.
We can only suggest
that if you are going to (eventually) have to discard an unsuccessful program .
. . or if the “positive” results that you are getting are not real, data-based,
or objectively determined. . . you might as well “bite the bullet” now.
Why would you go
through another school year (i.e., 2018-2019) doing something that will not
work, and that will need to be changed?
The Blog discusses
the research in more detail, and suggests “alternative” evidence-based and
field-tested solutions that can be implemented in a short period of time. . .
with a much higher return.
Please read the
entire Blog [CLICK HERE].
What do you think?
Best,
Howie
