Exploring the mindset and resilience of student teachers

Abstract

Previous research has shown that a growth mindset can alter the way we think and learn. With teachers’ retention being a problem in the United Kingdom, this article presents the findings of a study examining student teachers’ mindset and resilience. The participants included student teachers across seven different Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE) subjects (n = 118), who completed a mindset and resilient questionnaire during their PGCE year, with follow-up interviews with their PGCE course leaders. The student teachers’ mindset and resilience are explored in relationship to their achievement on the course, their gender and the subject area. There was no difference in mean resilient scores for teaching grades, but student teachers who received a ‘satisfactory’ teaching grade were more likely to have a more fixed mindset than those who received a ‘good’ grade.