Strategy/Project Name:
Boost Mindset
Momentum Area:
Mindset
Strategy/Project Description:
- Continue and Expand Scaled Mindset Boost Workshops
- Continue and refocus Mindset FLC
Summary of Activities:
- We’re very proud of the level of participation in our virtual workshops. We placed all of the students into a D2L course with the materials. ~20% have completed one workshop, and 5% have completed two of the workshops. We did not advertise. Next Fall we plan to do a full email campaign and release a larger series of workshops.
- We have a dedicated group of faculty working on Mindset as well as interest from more. We hope to start getting rotating groups of faculty moving in and out of the FLC. We hope this will help decrease burnout.
Activity Status:
Evaluation/Assessment plan:
Evaluation Plan and measures:
- We did a campus wide release Spring 2023. Approximately 20% of the students have completed the mindset workshop as of April 1 with no advertising.
Baseline measure
- Participation is our main indicator, but we will also look at other factors like graduation/GPA rates compared to those who do not participate.
- Participation
Goal or targets
- To maintain this level of participation per semester. With a focus on new students participating .
- Continued participation in mindset, with faculty rotating in and out of the FLC
Time period/duration
- Ongoing
- Ongoing
Progress and Adjustments:
- Using the work done by faculty during 2021-2022, the STEM Grant team created a hybrid model Faculty Development/Learning Community Model. The model was presented at the USG Teaching & Learning 2022 Conference (Dye & Scheeser) and piloted in AY 2022-2023. The model retains the “mindset lunches” in-person meetings paired with a D2L-based classroom with resources, focused discussions, and a place to save collected data and reflections. Faculty can hop in when they have the available time to get support, share ideas, and contribute to the larger data collections looking at the dosage impact on student success (working with USG Student Success/Jonathan Hull; we have the raw data and are working on the analysis).
- 2022-2023 continued our work to include mindset in the classroom and provide further training to interested faculty. See Appendix Table I, “Mindset FLC Faculty Participation, AY 2018-2022.” Faculty participation has tripled since AY 2018-2019.
- In Spring of 2022, we launched our D2L-based Virtual Workshop Mindset series. Every student enrolled in a course at SGSC was enrolled in the D2L shell. Students earn certificates through the D2L award feature, which they can then provide to any faculty who offer incentives. Faculty across all three of our instructional sites and online offered incentives to their students to participate in the workshops. Over 500 students have participated in at least one workshop. We are also expanding our offerings. Fall 2023 has seen the addition of a workshop on motivation. Spring 2024 we hope to roll out workshops on managing procrastination, using textbooks, and note-taking. Appendix Table J shows all the workshops and the number of student participants for each semester from fall 2020 through spring 2023. Beginning spring 2022 student participation has steadily risen post-COVID pandemic.
- During AY21-22, the sixteen faculty participating in the Mindset FLC (10 Fall, 16 Spring) encouraged their students to complete the Grow Your Brain! Virtual Workshop. DFWI rates of those students who chose to participate were significantly lower than those who did not. Results varied by faculty member(see Appendix Table K) and provide useful comparative data.
- GPA data for AY 2022-2023 BOOST Mindset workshops shows that participants consistently had higher average GPAs: 3.22 versus 2.56, fall 2022; 2.90 versus 2.71, spring 2023.
Grow Your Brain! Virtual Workshop
The Grow Your Brain! Virtual Workshop includes a video that takes the students through the basics of the neuroscience of learning. After watching the video, the participants are then asked to reflect on what they learned and what they would say to a friend about what they learned.
These quotes from the Grow Your Brain! Virtual Workshop capture the essence of the responses, highlighting the themes of personal growth, the dynamic nature of intelligence, and the importance of not giving up in the face of challenges.
- "It is good to know that everything won't be so easy for me and I can learn how to study, oh, and going blank as I call it is something other normal people do. I don't have to feel slow when I do poorly or can't figure something out."
- "The video was very helpful in communicating information about ways I could improve my intelligence. Intelligence is not fixed, it is a growing process. A person should not feel discouraged if they do not know something. Eventually, with enough practice and determination, a person can do whatever they put their mind to."
- "It really helps understand how we can access more of what we’re capable of! Very helpful!"
Plan for the Year Ahead:
- During the current academic year, we are continuing to collect and evaluate data on student and faculty participation, attitudes/opinions about the program, and effects on student achievement (GPAs, DFW rates, retention, and academic progression); to expand numbers and types of “BOOST” mindset workshops; and to establish realistic baseline data for assessment of the initiative.
- The main challenges are expanding faculty participation in a time of increased workloads, reducing staff due to budget reductions, and encouraging students to participate in-person or virtually. SGSC could also use assistance with tracking participating students’ performance, retention, and graduation rates, as well as determining the impact of multiple exposures to mindset interventions.
- 2023-2024 has seen the spin-off of a new FLC created by two of our Mindset FLC members. The “Finding Solutions” FLC is focused on communication, TiLT, and mindset.
Primary Contact:
Dr. Katy Dye, Assistant Professor of Biology
