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Week 4

Two major topics we covered this week in classes were Growth vs Fixed mindsets and cheating/plagiarism. We had separate discussions about each but the two topics are actually related very closely. Let's divulge.

First, lets break apart the difference between a fixed mindset and a growth mindset. A fixed mindset is the belief that one is born with a certain capacity of knowledge for a skill like academics or sports and do not have much motivation to achieve more than what they think can be achieved. Growth mindsets on the other hand is the belief that knowledge is limitless. It's more about focusing on the process to achieve your goals and in turn, expanding your knowledge of skills by fully understanding the process. The "neuroplasticity" video explains the science behind how your brain creates new neurological pathways to store and process skills, which is pretty neat. The "Introduction to a Growth Mindset" video goes more in depth about the reasoning behind growth mindsets and explains the usefulness of altering your brain to change its approach to new things. I fell that I am a very open-minded individual and have a mostly growth mindset approach, however, English/Writing classes are not my forte. I have come to terms that I am not a very accomplished writer (how very fixed mindset of me, I know) but at the same time, I neglect to put in more effort to become better. English/Writing skills are the ones that I know I have a very fixed mindset about. Oh well!

In the world of academia, cheating and plagiarism are like the deadly sins, unforgivable curses, guides to the 8th level of hell (fraud).



 Let's be real, we have all cheated. I mean, those poly-atomic ions weren't just gonna march into my brain by themselves the night before the quiz. It's a a part of human nature to succumb to our desires every now and then. Just try not to be chronic about it. Thank you for coming to my TED Talk.

But seriously, cheating all the time only limits your capabilities and by just finding answers, you won't be able to replicate the process and become ill-skilled in your career. Also, cheating ties into the fixed mindset approach because you are not focusing on building the neurological pathway in your brain to understanding the process. Instead, you focus only on the end result, which in short-term may be effective, but could bite later. Plagiarism is a sub-level of cheating. Copying someone else work does not benefit you in the long term. The education system is so determined to produce positive, eager, and knowledgeable people, that the consequences for cheating are severe. The individuals that understand the process and use a growth mindset to improve, are the collective population that progresses our society forward.


Resources:
Neuroplasticity video - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ELpfYCZa87g&feature=youtu.be
Intro to Growth Mindset - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75GFzikmRY0&feature=youtu.be
We all cheat - http://business.time.com/2012/06/18/why-almost-all-of-us-cheat-and-steal/

Comments

  1. Will EvelynSeptember 11, 2019 at 9:21 PM

    Nice.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Rachel WordenSeptember 12, 2019 at 9:38 AM

    I like that you tied in cheating to the fixed mindset. I think that a lot of people who cheat believe that they sort of have to since they'll simply "never be good" at a certain subject and that's their excuse. Of course that's not the case and skills can always be improved, but people sometimes use their fixed mindsets to justify their cheating.

    ReplyDelete

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