Grit is a key factor in success, both in math and in life. It is the ability to persevere through challenges and setbacks. As a math teacher, you can help your students develop grit each day. As you help students understand the concept of grit, having a gritty mindset, and how to cultivate grit, they will be able to overcome obstacles faced during instruction, math discourse and math anxiety. Here are some strategies for building grit in math class:

A growth mindset is the belief that intelligence and abilities can be developed through hard work and dedication. Research has shown that teaching a growth mindset can help students develop grit, aka, “academic tenacity”. When students believe that they can improve their math skills through hard work, they are more likely to stick with it when the going gets tough.

One way to teach a growth mindset is to praise effort, not just achievement. For example, instead of saying "You're so smart," say "I can see how hard you worked on that problem." This helps students understand that effort is what leads to success. Further, allow students to take control of instructional delivery through sharing opinions during real problems. Allow students to lead moments of mathematical discourse, activities for math practice. Further, challenge them with various opportunities during class practice to strengthen student voice. This validates the findings of studies that have shown that students can grow from a fixed mindset to a growth mindset, which helps them to develop a math identity which results in mathematical achievement. A growth mindset is what will continue to help learners bounce back during moments of discouragement during learning and to remain confident that they’ve got what it takes to be successful in math.

Mathematical practice is essential for developing grit. When your math students have the opportunity to practice their math skills, they are developing the grit they need to persevere through challenges. Provide your students with plenty of opportunities to practice their math skills, both in class and at home. Allow students to express their work through use of whiteboards, manipulatives, and other tools that can help them elaborate on their thinking during conceptual understanding. Further, refer to the standards for mathematical practices as a roadmap to navigate through various parts that take place during their learning. For instance, as students are attending to precision, be intentional as you scaffold them through the problem. Ask questions to dig through their prior knowledge and keep them aligned to benchmarks discussed during the lesson. As you do this, continue to check for understanding and compliment students as they make strides during their persistence. 

Another way teachers can provide opportunities for practicing math is to use online math programs. Research has shown that online math programs can be effective for improving math skills. For example, a study by Rakes et al. (2010) found that students who used an online math program showed significant improvement in math skills compared to a control group. As you make use of math programs, make sure the program is one that provides rigor, speaks to multiple learning styles, and can really build students from procedural fluency to conceptual understanding while providing feedback for growth. 

Real-world examples can help your math students see the relevance of math in their lives. When students understand how math is used in the real world, they are more likely to develop the grit they need to persevere through challenges. Use real-world examples to help your students see the value of math and to motivate them to keep trying. As they build upon the relevance, this increases their engagement which impacts their grit levels in a positive way. Studies have shown that grit has had a significant and positive affect on student engagement and academic achievement. With the help of real world problems, students can have a sense of ownership and pride in their work as they prove that they are achieving in their math class. 

One way to use real-world examples is to incorporate math into everyday activities. For example, you could have students calculate the cost of groceries or the distance between two cities. This helps students see how math is used in their daily lives. Further, allow students to work on real-world math projects that require rubrics and assign roles to hold them accountable. This also exposes them to the reasons why they would need to learn particular math concepts in the classroom and how it is relevant for their lives. 

Healthy peer-to-peer collaboration can help students develop grit. When students work together, they can support each other through challenges and setbacks. Encourage collaboration in your math class by assigning group projects or having students work in pairs.

One way to encourage collaboration is to use cooperative learning strategies. For example, you could have students work in groups to solve a math problem. This helps students learn from each other and develop teamwork skills. Dr. Linda Kagan provides several collaborative strategies that help students remain organized while working together including round robin, turn and talk and more! Choose to invest in some of these collaborative strategies as you build a learning environment of adventure and exploration for your students. 

Feedback is essential for learning and growth. When you provide feedback to your math students, you are helping them develop the grit they need to persevere through challenges. Provide your students with constructive feedback that helps them understand what they are doing well and what they need to improve. In their article on the Power of Feedback, Dr. John Hattie and Dr. Helen Temperley (2007) speak on how teacher feedback helps contribute to student gains and achievement when implemented effectively. Students need to know that they are making progress, and they are looking to their teacher to give them affirmation and confirmation. 

One way to provide feedback is to use formative assessments. Formative assessments are assessments that are used to provide feedback to students during the learning process. For example, you could have students take an exit quiz after each math lesson to see how well they understand the material. Further, having various forms of assessment, i.e., giving an oral assessment, having students create math quiz or test questions, and project-based learning opportunities can help you truly understand where students are in their understanding of their learning. 

In conclusion, building grit in math class is essential for your students' success in your math class and in life. By teaching a growth mindset, providing opportunities for practice, using real-world examples, encouraging collaboration, and providing feedback, you can help your math students develop the grit they need to persevere through challenges. It’s never too late to build grit with students. As you implement these five strategies, and follow-up with students with fidelity, they will grow into independent thinkers that you can facilitate through a lesson towards great progress, leading to proficiency. Remind students to use great resilience in time as they navigate through math with success!

Rakes, G. C., Valentine, J. C., McGatha, M. B., & Ronau, R. N. (2010). Online mathematics homework increases student achievement. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 35(2), 123-130. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2010.01.005

Hattie, J., & Timperley, H. (2007). The Power of Feedback. Review of Educational Research, 77(1), 81–112. https://doi.org/10.3102/003465430298487