According to a research report on “A study of the context supporting positive learning behaviors and growth mindset among high scoring students” (2023) by Assistant Professor Dr. Passanan Assavarak, et al., which received research funding from the Equitable Education Fund (EEF), the overall framework that supports positive behavior among academically resilient students comes from the environment around children, such as the classroom, teachers, parents, and important people in their lives who influence their learning, perspectives, and lifestyles, including their future aspirations.
There are 24 academically resilient kids (i.e., students in the Equitable Education Fund (EEF) program who perform well in the 2021 PISA for Schools exam with good scores in at least one topic) and 24 additional peers based on research data collected from a sample of students.
The kids were given the assignment to write essays on their own, using the theme “Fears, Dreams, and Hopes in Life,” to describe their experiences in a narrative diary format. The opinions and identities of the group of students and classmates are strongly reflected in it. The conditions resulting from social and economic situations are connected.
It’s really interesting to write an essay like this when a growth mindset is allowed to guide young kids’ thoughts and dreams about who they want to be in the future. There are circumstances in their lives that can assist them achieve these goals, despite their fears that they will be unattainable. In the current social and economic climate,
“dreams are like a driving force for me to have effort, determination, and patience to make my dreams come true.”
All of these kids want to have “good lives,” be “stable,” and concentrate on their future jobs. It is the propagation of social ideals, such as pride in one’s parents, a flawless life, and happy families, among others.
In addition to writing essays, the study required 44 children to draw pictures to tell stories with highly engaging content. The research team will select them to conduct another interview. The interest of these paintings reflects the progressive thoughts and growth mindset of academically resilient students due to contemporary social and political changes.
For example, the political ideology of creating a new society can be a part of social development. One student had a dream of being a transgender teacher teaching the Thai language with reasons:
“Want to change the mindset of Thai society that teachers must have a gender that matches their birth gender and that teachers must conduct themselves carefully in speech and dress.”
As this was going on, two other academically strong students and a classmate discussed how they felt about society in general and the concepts of “inequality” and “social disparity” in the context of the economy, including things like living conditions and status-based and income-based indicators that lead to inequality.
“I want every child to have equal opportunities in every aspect,”
the speaker declared. They also brought up the topic of “gender inequality” that results from the experiences of this particular group of kids. Because they identify as LGBTQ+, their male peers frequently mistreat them.
“My male friends in my class don’t like the third gender,” remarked a child who identified as gender nonconforming. When I consider workplace injustice, I ponder the fact that when we seek jobs, actual men and women are accepted before LGBTQ individuals like us.”
This drawing and coloring exercise exposed the attitudes and feelings these academically resilient adolescents have about the society they live in. These attitudes and feelings are a result of their surroundings, which also contribute to their learning and development. In particular, the problems with inequality and social disparities they saw. A large number of these, like gender and economic inequality, are something they have personally experienced. They put it together to say that they wanted to contribute to the societal change they wanted to see.
Though they share worries, fears, and goals with their peers, academically resilient students are motivated by a growth attitude that will help them achieve better things in the future.
credit :
- รายงานการวิจัยเรื่อง ‘การศึกษาบริบทที่เกื้อหนุนต่อพฤติกรรมเชิงบวกในการเรียนและการมีกรอบแนวคิดแบบเติบโต (Growth Mindset) ของกลุ่มนักเรียนช้างเผือก’ (2566) โดย ผศ.ดร.ภาสนันทน์ อัศวรักษ์ และคณะ
