exploring the correlation between teachers' mindset and judgment accuracy to reveal the cues

223 Pages·2015·5.1 MB·English

EXPLORING THE CORRELATION BETWEEN TEACHERS’ MINDSET
AND JUDGMENT ACCURACY TO REVEAL
THE CUES BEHIND TEACHERS’ EXPECTATIONS

by
M. Brady Webb

A dissertation
submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Doctor of Education in Curriculum and Instruction
Boise State University

May 2015
© 2015
M. Brady Webb
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
BOISE STATE UNIVERSITY GRADUATE COLLEGE

DEFENSE COMMITTEE AND FINAL READING APPROVALS

of the dissertation submitted by

M. Brady Webb

Dissertation Title: Exploring the Correlation Between Teachers’ Mindset and
Judgment Accuracy to Reveal the Cues Behind Teachers’
Expectations

Date of Final Oral Examination: 28 April 2015

The following individuals read and discussed the dissertation submitted by student M.
Brady Webb, and they evaluated her presentation and response to questions during the
final oral examination. They found that the student passed the final oral examination.

Jonathan Brendefur, Ph.D. Chair, Supervisory Committee

Keith W. Thiede, Ph.D. Member, Supervisory Committee

Michele Carney, Ph.D. Member, Supervisory Committee

Jennifer L. Snow, Ph.D. Member, Supervisory Committee

The final reading approval of the dissertation was granted by Jonathan Brendefur, Ph.D.,
Chair of the Supervisory Committee. The dissertation was approved for the Graduate
College by John R. Pelton, Ph.D., Dean of the Graduate College.
DEDICATION
I dedicate this to my husband for your unwavering support, encouragement,
positive attitude, and patience. You are the epitome of a growth mindset. I also dedicate
this to my children, Mae and Gus, who are the ultimate reason behind why I love being in
education and why education should be the best it can be.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would like to thank the amazing people who guided and influenced me along the
way to making this doctoral goal a reality. I would not be writing this page without you.
To my committee members, I sincerely appreciate your invaluable contributions
to and feedback on my dissertation. Your different perspectives contributed to a much
richer dissertation, as well as conversations! Dr. Brendefur, thank you. As my advisor
and chair, you knew how and when to push me, and you added so much depth to my
knowledge as a student and educator. Your help revising and improving my work
allowed me to see things I otherwise would not have. It was you who suggested pursuing
certain lines of inquiry that resulted in the greatest breakthroughs in my understanding.
Your overall part in my doctoral journey is enormous. It’s no wonder I came to this
program after taking MTI with you and Dr. Carney! It has all come full circle. Thank
you. Dr. Thiede, thank you for being on the other end of the phone a few years ago when
I first inquired about Boise State’s doctoral program. Little did I know that when my
children were carrying on in the background and you commented “wow, you have a lot
going on. Come get your doctorate!” that I would be writing this now! You helped me
see quantitatively amidst my more qualitative-oriented mainframe, by bringing these two
worlds together and culminating in this dissertation. Dr. Snow, you have always been a
role model and source of inspiration because of your commitment to excellence in the
classroom, and your advocacy of doctoral students. Your passion for qualitative work is
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contagious, and I channeled you when I excitedly and tirelessly dove into my interview
transcripts that lie at the heart of this dissertation. Dr. Carney, you have always been the
voice of reason and taught me the importance of knowing one’s strengths. Your questions
and wise insight give me a richer understanding of the topic at hand. Thank you for
always being there for support and clarification. You ask the best questions!
I would also like to express my sincerest gratitude for the other Boise State
professors (in addition to my committee members I had as professors!) that I learned
from and with. You made my doctoral experience richer and of higher quality. Being in
your classes truly shaped me and this dissertation. Thank you Dr. Johnson, Dr. Peralta,
Dr. Dismuke, Dr. Rodriguez, and vicariously Dr. Gabbard! And to Dr. Stewart, I will
forever be in awe of your patience and kindness. My doctoral career was drastically
improved because of working with you. You embody collaboration, respect, mentoring,
and professionalism. I sincerely thank you.
I’ve heard it said that the doctoral program doesn’t have a cohort, per say. But to
that I say you’re wrong because my cohort was with me every step of the way. Angie,
your brilliance, humor, and consistency kept me above water; and you pulled me out
when I fell through the ice! Thank you so much. To Lenny, Petya, Liesl, Kelli, Belma,
Scott, and Ann—our meetings, emails, texts, and bursts of inspiration will forever be the
anchor points. To Tatia, Mike, Brad, Jan, I thank you for your friendships, sharp wit,
creative minds, and inspiring conversations. So to my cohort, I say I am forever grateful
for you.
Most of all I want to thank my family. You have altered and sacrificed so much
for me. Thank you for your bottomless patience, support, flexibility, and belief in me
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throughout this entire doctoral journey and dissertation endeavor. The copious hours
spent away from you culminate here in this dissertation. Making you proud kept (and will
always keep) me going. Mae and Gus, thank you for being so brave and understanding
during this journey. I hope seeing your mom on her doctoral path serves as a positive role
model rather than a reason for therapy! Craig, you kept our team strong and our children
so grounded. You truly did every thing to make this happen. Thank you for being
SuperDad! Without you, I don’t know how I would have finished my doctorate, let alone
stay upright and forge ahead. Thank you so much for being my compass. You are
everything to me.
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ABSTRACT
Teaching is about constantly evaluating one’s students to best situate them for
learning and future progress. Based on such evaluations, the academic expectations
teachers hold for their students influence their instructional practice and are mediators of
student achievement. Forming accurate expectations of students’ ability and accurate
predictions of performance is instrumental to effectively improving instruction and
advancing student learning. Therefore, when teachers form inaccurate expectations of
student academic performance, students can suffer academically and personally. When
teachers’ judgments of student learning are based on accurate information reflecting
students and their learning, students can benefit academically and personally. Yet, little
research exists that specifically examines teachers’ mindsets, and its influence on the
cues teachers use to judge student learning. The research questions for this study are: Is
there a relationship between a teacher’s judgment accuracy and mindset? What are the
cues that fixed and growth mindset teachers use to make their judgment of students’
learning and academic performance? Does the teacher’s mindset influence this cue-
usage? The purpose of this study is two-fold: the first quantitative study examines the
correlation between teachers’ mindset (growth or fixed) and their ability to accurately
judge students’ academic performance; the second qualitative study explores the cues that
teachers with a fixed or a growth mindset use to judge their students’ learning and
academic performance. The accuracy (or inaccuracy) of teachers’ judgment may shed
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light on connections between teachers’ mindset and expectations, and how well teachers
actually know their students, leading to practical implications in teacher education,
teaching, and teacher-student interactions.

Keywords: teacher expectations, growth mindset, fixed mindset, judgment accuracy
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
DEDICATION ......................................................................................................................... iv
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ...................................................................................................... v
ABSTRACT ........................................................................................................................... viii
LIST OF TABLES ................................................................................................................. xvi
LIST OF FIGURES .............................................................................................................. xvii
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO THE STUDY ................................................................ 1
Background of the Problem .......................................................................................... 1
Problem Statement ........................................................................................................ 4
Purpose of the Study ..................................................................................................... 5
Research Questions ....................................................................................................... 6
Nature of the Study ....................................................................................................... 7
Theoretical Framework ................................................................................................. 9
Expectancy Effect Theory ............................................................................... 10
Expectancy Mediation Theory ........................................................................ 12
Expectancy Confirmation Theory ................................................................... 15
Implicit Theories ............................................................................................. 17
Definition of Terms..................................................................................................... 17
Assumptions and Limitations ..................................................................................... 18
Significance of the Study ............................................................................................ 19
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