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THROW BACK
PHOTO: Children Sitting at their Desks in a Classroom, Teachers at the Rear of
the Room (Image source: www.allposters.com)
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Synopsis
Non-cognitive factors such as grit, growth
mindset, self-control, optimism, resiliency, adaptability, conscientiousness,
self-efficacy, hope, and others are all showing to be crucial predictors of
success in numerous life domains...Is it possible to directly teach and foster
these factors?
As
I recently wrote in a previous column titled Let’s Start Teaching the Skills that Matter Most, there is a
growing awareness of the importance of what are being called non-cognitive
skills to numerous successful life outcomes. This is the set of skills
which falls outside of the traditional definitions of intelligence and are not
measured on standardized tests, yet research is making it very clear these
skills matter tremendously in all of our lives. Whether it be in academics, the
workplace, or any other venture dependent on exceptional human performance,
non-cognitive factors such as grit, growth mindset, self-control, optimism,
resiliency, adaptability, conscientiousness, self-efficacy, hope, and others
are all showing to be crucial predictors of success in numerous life domains.
In
fact, during the time spent writing this article, two new studies were just
published showing the importance of these skills. In one study of our
nation’s students, Damon Jones and his colleagues found that students’
non-cognitive skills measured in kindergarten could predict positive outcomes
in adulthood related to education, employment, criminality, substance use, and
mental health, even when controlling for students’ cognitive ability, home
environment, and behavior as rated by the students’ mothers and teachers.
Likewise, in a study titled Marshmallows and Votes: Childhood Non-cognitive Skill Development and Adult Political Participation, Duke University’s John Holbein discovered that those
students who had developed higher levels of non-cognitive skills were more
likely to engage in political voting as adults. In the article, Holbein
noted, “Those who have developed the ability to persevere towards long term
goals; to recognize the thoughts and emotions of others; and to regulate their
own thoughts, emotions, and behavior are much more likely to participate than
those who do not.” (Holbein, 2015, p. 34). Just as these studies have illustrated,
other research in psychology, education, and economics all suggest
non-cognitive skills are vitally important, and may, in fact, be even more
important than cognitive ability to our long term success.
After
presenting the growing body of evidence illustrating the importance of these
factors, the next question invariably arises: Can you teach these skills? Indeed, these skills are not new,
and we all know that it helps to have motivation, self-discipline, and
resiliency. From ancient marvels like Plato to modern day success stories
like Bill Gates, these skills have been crucial elements of success in the
human endeavor throughout all of history. Likewise, students have
developed these non-cognitive skills within schools since the first schoolhouse
doors opened. Until now, though, students have only implicitly acquired
these skills. They have not, however, had the opportunity to specifically
target and foster them through explicit instruction. In other words,
these non-cognitive skills have only been caught
by students – not taught to
them. In completing daily assignments and turning in homework, for
instance, students acquire self-discipline. By participating in
extracurricular activities such as sports, students also develop
resiliency. Through indirect means, then, we have been developing these
non-cognitive skills. Might it be possible, though, to make these
non-cognitive skills part of the explicit curriculum where we specifically
target and develop these vital characteristics in all kids? Is it
possible to directly teach and foster factors like grit, hope, resiliency,
self-motivation, and other key skills for success?
There
is mounting evidence the answer is yes. Foremost, there is a growing body
of research suggesting non-cognitive skills are not set in stone – they are not
innate characteristics incapable of being altered but can instead be
cultivated. Based on his research in economics, Nobel Prize Laureate,
James Heckman, argues non-cognitive skills are malleable and further suggests
there are proven and effective ways to build these factors. In examining
the effects these skills have on labor market outcomes, he advocates the
earlier we begin fostering these skills in students, the better. Although
it is likely best to begin building these skills at an early age, University of
Chicago researcher Tim Kautz and his colleagues describe in a recent report
titled Fostering and Measuring Skills: Improving Cognitive and Non-cognitiveSkills to Promote Lifetime Success how non-cognitive skills are even more
malleable than cognitive skills in adolescence.
Beyond
the world of academia, over three years ago in my role as a high school
teacher, I began to see if I could actually develop these skills in a real high
school classroom. Using my background in both psychology and education
and what I knew about non-cognitive skills, I developed a program in my school
called Intrinsic Leadership Development, in which I attempted to specifically
foster non-cognitive skills in students. Truth be told, when I first started
the program, I had no idea if it would work – whether you could actually
enhance students’ non-cognitive skills by teaching what these skills were and
then doing activities to build them. To measure whether the program was
effective in building students’ non-cognitive skills, I utilized a
pre/post-test design, where I provided students an instrument that measures
various key non-cognitive skills at the start and conclusion of the program.
I also gave the same instrument to a group of students that did not participate
in the program at the same times as those doing the program.
At
the end of the first year of the program, I was somewhat surprised to find that
it worked - whereas the group of students that did not complete the program
showed no changes in their non-cognitive scores, students in the Intrinsic
Leadership Development program actually improved their non-cognitive
scores. Cautiously optimistic about these outcomes, I then tried it again
with another group of students the following year – and had the same
results. Those in the program improved, whereas those not in the program
showed no change. In the third year, we once again obtained the same
results. Since starting the program three years ago, 97% of students in
the program have reported that Intrinsic Leadership Development has been
successful in helping them become a better student. As a result of this
early success, we have now experienced a 78% growth rate in student
participation since first creating the program three years ago. A year
after going through the program, for instance, one student wrote me letter and
said, “The Intrinsic Leadership Development program transformed my
mindset. I work harder than ever before. I think outside the box
and question everything. I know my strengths and weaknesses, and I can
better handle myself when the little voice in my head says I can’t do
something. All the times I thought of giving up, I referred back to your
program and was able to keep going. I cannot thank you enough!”
Indeed, as an educator, it has been so rewarding to witness how the program has
made a positive impact on my students’ lives.
In
seeing how the program has helped my own students, it has now become my goal to
assist many more students in developing these non-cognitive skills that
research tells us are so important for lifetime success. To help me do
this, I have created the Intrinsic Institute - a research, coaching, and
consulting firm which is working to unite the world’s leading thinkers in
psychology and education to continue efforts to ensure that more students have
the opportunity to develop this incredibly important set of skills. To
accomplish this, we provide coaching services to work one-on-one with students,
curriculum for schools to foster non-cognitive skills, as well as training for
educators to develop awareness of these key drivers of success. It is our
mission to ignite greatness by helping others recognize the importance of these
non-cognitive skills and by equipping educators with the knowledge and
skillsets to foster this overshadowed set of skills that predict success.
As
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. once said, “Intelligence plus character – that is
the goal of true education.” As an educator and developer of human potential, I
can only imagine what it would be like if we spent more time explicitly
building the non-cognitive skills of our students. By utilizing what we
have learned from the latest research in psychology and education and then
having the adequate time and resources needed to target these skills in real
American classrooms, the benefits to our students could be extraordinary.
Beyond simply improving academic performance and test scores, I grow more and
more confident that fostering these non-cognitive skills could have a
tremendous long term effect on our students’ futures. By helping our
students become more self-motivated, disciplined, and resilient, we may just be
able to unlock a whole new level of potential – and performance.
© 2015,
Intrinsic Institute, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Originally published in The
Creativity Post
Dr. Brian Davidson
Column: Igniting Greatness
Brian Davidson is the founder and president of
the Intrinsic Institute, a research, coaching, and consulting firm discovering
and building the best in individuals and organizations. The Intrinsic Institute
specializes in the measurement, training, and development of non-cognitive
skills, the intangible “it” factors such as self-motivation, grit, and
resiliency driving greatness. With a mission to ignite the greatness within,
the Intrinsic Institute partners with individuals, educational institutions,
and businesses to build the non-cognitive skills that drive exceptional human
performance.
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