GIFTS: Using Storybooks and Storytelling to Prompt Discussion and Reflection of Growth Mindset

Stephany Coffman-Wolph; Kimberlyn Gray; Abigail Clark

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Conference: 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition
Location: Portland, Oregon
Publication Date: June 23, 2024
Start Date: June 23, 2024
End Date: July 12, 2024
Conference Session: First-Year Programs Division GIFTS: Great Ideas For Teaching Students
Tagged Division: First-Year Programs Division (FYP)
Permanent URL: https://peer.asee.org/47507

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Paper Authors

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Stephany Coffman-Wolph Ohio Northern University

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Dr. Stephany Coffman-Wolph is an Assistant Professor at Ohio Northern University in the Department of Electrical, Computer Engineering, and Computer Science (ECCS). Previously, she worked at The University of Texas at Austin and West Virginia University Institute of Technology (WVU Tech). She is actively involved in community outreach with a goal of increasing the number of women in STEM and creating effective methods for introducing young children to CS concepts and topics. Dr. Coffman-Wolph’s research interests include: Artificial Intelligence, Fuzzy Logic, Software Engineering, STEM Education, and Diversity and Inclusion within STEM.

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Kimberlyn Gray West Virginia University Institute of Technology

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Dr. Kimberlyn Gray is an Associate Professor at West Virginia University Institute of Technology in the department of Chemical Engineering. She coordinated STEM outreach for the Leonard C. Nelson College of Engineering and Sciences.

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Abigail Clark Ohio Northern University orcid.org/0000-0002-2214-2160

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Abigail Clark is an assistant professor of mechanical engineering at Ohio Northern University. She holds a PhD in Engineering Education from The Ohio State University. She also holds degrees in Mechanical Engineering from Ohio State and Ohio Northern University. Prior to her time at OSU, she worked at Battelle Memorial Institute in Columbus, Ohio. Her research interests include pre-college engineering education, informal engineering education, and identity development.

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Abstract

This GIFTS paper describes an effort to engage first-year engineering students in thinking and analyzing their Personal Grit through a Reflective and Story-based approach.

Almost every “orientation” course covers the basics of advising and essential student success strategies, starts fundamental community building, and works on a career plan. Student success is often tied to grit, which includes a growth mindset and an ability to learn from failure. Orientation courses are essential foundational experiences for first-year retention and success, but it is difficult to cultivate a classroom environment where students feel safe sharing ideas and struggles.

In an effort to foster a classroom environment where students felt comfortable talking about and reflecting on the challenging subject of grit, a new lecture format was introduced in the fall of 2023. The lecture began with the reading (or video) of a children’s book on growth mindset selected by the instructor. The book reading was followed up by a series of activities to discuss the growth mindset. It culminated in creating a short story to complete a pre-written, randomly provided scenario. Activity 1 is for the students to reflect on their experiences with struggles related to the story read by the instructor. In activity 2, the students get into groups, are provided a short scenario, and determine a good strategy to approach the problem that fits a growth mindset. (Example scenario: Jakob noticed that his professor assigns regular math homework and requires the students to submit it. However, the grade is simply for trying and not doing the problems correctly. Therefore, Jakob decides that he is not going to waste time trying to do the homework correctly anymore). Activity 3 continues the group work by asking the students to finish the story with a happy ending, utilizing growth mindset.

This lesson was implemented at two engineering and applied science colleges, both small and in a rural location, which have historically required students to enroll in an “orientation” section. However, XXX University splits the students by major and has “engineering orientation,” while YYY University has more mixtures of students, including STEM-adjacent students enrolled in their orientation sections. Additionally, one university has only an hour timeslot, while the other has an hour and 45 minutes. XXX University is a private institution, and YYY is public, but both serve a high first-generation population.

The activity was completed at both institutions by mid-semester (approximately week 7) of the fall semester. After all the instructors had completed the lecture, the faculty reflected on their initial reactions to the assignment, how they modified it to fit their classroom and teaching style as well as made recommendations for improvements in future iterations. This GIFTS paper will detail the research regarding the benefits of using storybooks with older students, the details (and individual modifications) of the activities done in the orientation courses and the scenarios for storytelling, plans for future assessment of the classroom exercise, and the conclusions drawn from the faculty reflections.

Citation
Format

Coffman-Wolph, S., & Gray, K., & Clark, A. (2024, June), GIFTS: Using Storybooks and Storytelling to Prompt Discussion and Reflection of Growth Mindset Paper presented at 2024 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Portland, Oregon. https://peer.asee.org/47507

TY - CPAPER
AB - This GIFTS paper describes an effort to engage first-year engineering students in thinking and analyzing their Personal Grit through a Reflective and Story-based approach.

Almost every “orientation” course covers the basics of advising and essential student success strategies, starts fundamental community building, and works on a career plan. Student success is often tied to grit, which includes a growth mindset and an ability to learn from failure. Orientation courses are essential foundational experiences for first-year retention and success, but it is difficult to cultivate a classroom environment where students feel safe sharing ideas and struggles.

In an effort to foster a classroom environment where students felt comfortable talking about and reflecting on the challenging subject of grit, a new lecture format was introduced in the fall of 2023. The lecture began with the reading (or video) of a children’s book on growth mindset selected by the instructor. The book reading was followed up by a series of activities to discuss the growth mindset. It culminated in creating a short story to complete a pre-written, randomly provided scenario. Activity 1 is for the students to reflect on their experiences with struggles related to the story read by the instructor. In activity 2, the students get into groups, are provided a short scenario, and determine a good strategy to approach the problem that fits a growth mindset. (Example scenario: Jakob noticed that his professor assigns regular math homework and requires the students to submit it. However, the grade is simply for trying and not doing the problems correctly. Therefore, Jakob decides that he is not going to waste time trying to do the homework correctly anymore). Activity 3 continues the group work by asking the students to finish the story with a happy ending, utilizing growth mindset.

This lesson was implemented at two engineering and applied science colleges, both small and in a rural location, which have historically required students to enroll in an “orientation” section. However, XXX University splits the students by major and has “engineering orientation,” while YYY University has more mixtures of students, including STEM-adjacent students enrolled in their orientation sections. Additionally, one university has only an hour timeslot, while the other has an hour and 45 minutes. XXX University is a private institution, and YYY is public, but both serve a high first-generation population.

The activity was completed at both institutions by mid-semester (approximately week 7) of the fall semester. After all the instructors had completed the lecture, the faculty reflected on their initial reactions to the assignment, how they modified it to fit their classroom and teaching style as well as made recommendations for improvements in future iterations. This GIFTS paper will detail the research regarding the benefits of using storybooks with older students, the details (and individual modifications) of the activities done in the orientation courses and the scenarios for storytelling, plans for future assessment of the classroom exercise, and the conclusions drawn from the faculty reflections.
AU - Stephany Coffman-Wolph
AU - Kimberlyn Gray
AU - Abigail Clark
CY - Portland, Oregon
DA - 2024/06/23
PB - ASEE Conferences
TI - GIFTS: Using Storybooks and Storytelling to Prompt Discussion and Reflection of Growth Mindset
UR - https://peer.asee.org/47507
ER -