Last month I had the privilege of attending the 2014 Deeper Learning conference at High Tech High in San Diego. The conference was a great opportunity to hear from and meet educators who are providing their students with schooling experiences that enable them to develop a broad range of competencies and produce great work. A particular highlight was a presentation by middle schoolers at Polaris Charter Academy in Chicago, who had completed a fantastic project on gun violence in that city. Their talk, to 400 educators, was truly inspiring.
I found one session particularly interesting. Camille Farrington of the University of Chicago, along with Carissa Romero of Stanford University, Ron Berger of Expeditionary Learning, and Eduardo Briseno of Mindset Works, led a session on academic mindsets. The workshop explored ways that teachers can structure classrooms to enhance students' motivation to work hard and succeed...