By teaching students about the concept of growth mindset and ways to cultivate it, teachers can enhance students' academic progress. This article offers concrete ideas to help teachers foster the growth mindset explicitly among their students. The lesson is flexible and can be applied to all levels.

In this article, I suggest that providing opportunities for agency (student choice or control) in the early childhood classroom could enhance student learning. One important way that young children demonstrate agency is through expressing color preference. I encourage teachers to look for opportunities to give children choices and control in the…

Various motivational frameworks converge to suggest that highlighting the relevance of a learning activity yields benefits for students' learning and performance. Herein, we review a set of studies grounded in self-determination theory's distinction between intrinsic and extrinsic goals, which show that the beneficial effect of a learning…

Although physical activity may provide a means for adolescents to improve their physical appearance and subsequently lessen body-related concerns, the fear of being negatively evaluated by others can act as a barrier to physical activity. Moreover, environments where people are constantly looked at and evaluated--such as physical education…

While college art instructors strive to respond to the current generation of students, educational psychologists stress the importance of teachers' focusing on students' cognitive-affective makeup in addition to conveying course content. Attribution theory--and more specifically, student perceptions of control over academic outcomes--can serve to…

Teachers' informal discussions of learner motivation often emphasize the need to find ways to motivate learners, most usually through "fun" or "dynamic" activities. This paper starts from the assumption, however, that part of the work of the teacher is to avoid the "demotivation" of learners, and that there is a need to consider the overall…

Because you can't possibly know exactly what will motivate every student, it's vital to have a reliable blueprint and a set of strategies that are proven to work across a broad spectrum of students. That's why you need this book from a teacher and psychologist with over 30 years of experience. Drawing from recent research of the concepts of…

Noted educator Carol Ann Tomlinson shares the insights that shaped her thinking about informative assessment. Informative assessment goes beyond tests and the grade book. It means assessing students both formally and informally in multiple ways and giving frequent, productive feedback on student work. Informative assessment isn't separate from…

The "Contemporary Health Series" covers critical health and family life topics in a sequence of modules with two curricular divisions: "Into Adolescence" for middle school teachers and "Entering Adulthood" for high school teachers. This module uses eight activity-based lessons to help 9th through 12th graders make better life choices through…

Provides a teaching technique for improving instruction through awareness of the personality of the learner. (MD)

Describes two cases where an elementary school teacher's behavior influenced a student to either pursue or avoid math. Reviews the tenets of attribution theory, and theories regarding autonomous learning behaviors in relation to these cases. Discusses ways teachers can help students develop beneficial and useful attributions about mathematics…

The authors examine the relationship between students' locus of control and their evaluation of teaching in a traditional principles of economics course. Locus of control is a psychological construct that identifies an individual's beliefs about the degree of personal control that can be exercised over his or her environment. Students with an…

While the computer is commonly viewed as a tool for simplifying and enriching lives, many individuals react to this technology with feelings of anxiety, paranoia, and alienation. These reactions may have potentially serious career and educational consequences. Fear of computers reflects a generalized fear of current technology and is most…

This article describes an approach to student discipline which is based on getting students to take responsibility for their own behavior, rather than forcing obedience. Strategies are suggested which offer practical alternatives to less effective control-oriented methods. (IAH)

The "Contemporary Health Series" covers critical health and family life topics in a sequence of modules with two curricular divisions: "Into Adolescence" for middle school teachers and "Entering Adulthood" for high school teachers. This module presents a six-lesson curriculum for grades five through eight to provide students with the information…