“Do you think Einstein was rich?” was the opening line of a conversation a Grade 5 student started with me one day.
I truly didn’t know. It also depends on how a 10-year-old defines “rich”.
So I asked her why she asked me this.
“Because he’s so smart and he could’ve gone on those game shows to answer trivia questions…and he would’ve gotten all of them right when he presses the buzzer”
And then she mimicked a game show participant who would excitedly slam her hand on the buzzer.
It was very interesting to realize that a 10-year-old recognizes some kind of correlation between intelligence and wealth.
Well, after all, that’s a socially constructed belief and this is not a ground-breaking idea.
Many studies in the past have shown a correlation between socioeconomic status (SES) and academic achievements. And of course, socioeconomic status plays a role in determining whether a student would enroll in post-secondary education. Recent research in 2012 has shown socioeconomic status modifies the heritability of children’s intelligence.
But rather than discussing research and the relationships between SES, intelligence, academic achievements, and wealth as an indicator of success in life, I want to talk about the education perspective of this conversation.
I wondered, why didn’t this 10-year-old ask me questions like:
Was Einstein rich because he worked really hard?
Do you think Einstein ever gave up on his studies?
Was Einstein really passionate about what he was studying?
Why was success not associated with hard work, perseverance, intrinsic motivation, and passion about a field of study? Why was success only associated with being “intelligent” and “rich”?
All of this reminded me of a Ted Talk about “grit”.
The research in the Ted Talk was about “what if success in life depends much more on the ability to learn quickly and easily?” From within the classroom to beyond the classroom settings, common characteristics among successful individuals were examined. The common trait emerged was not intelligence and talents, but it was grit, which was defined as persevering. Grit is having the stamina to “finish the marathon” and reach the finish line of success, whether it is winning the math contest or getting that promotion at work.
The Ted Talk ended with the message that we, as parents and educators, need to get “grittier” in teaching our young learners to have grit. So, how?
1) Compliment “hard work”, not “intelligence”
In my practice, I reward success by complimenting on students’ “hard work”, not “intelligence”. And by success, it could be as small as getting a math problem correct, to as large as, meeting expectations on a unit test. From teaching little learners to teaching my college math students, I stick with this strategy. Give encouragements by saying “Good job, you practiced and worked really well today” and not, “Good job, you are so smart”. Studies also show that when students encounter failure, they will tend to reflect on how hard they have worked towards their goal, rather than blaming their failure on “I am just not smart enough” or “I have no talents in this area”.
2) Don’t use rewards as incentives
Junk food, toys, new games, stickers, play time on their tablets, or whatever incentive or “bribe” it may be, these incentives might be more harmful than you can imagine. From an ASAP Science video about motivation, it was suggested that incentives can create a “distractive effect”. To encourage success, don’t forget to include fun. Those who complete a challenge for personal enjoyment tend to persevere more than those who are simply giving an external incentive to do so.
3) Obstacles are good
It’s okay to discuss hurdles with your students. Explain to them that there are going to be obstacles along the way and what these challenges may be. This is because imagining the success and envisioning the scenario of achieving the goal tricks your mind into thinking that the goal has already been achieved.
Written by Mandy Lam
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