For me and many others, school centered on following prescribed steps, memorizing a lot of facts, and getting the right answer on the test.
Failure to do these resulted in academic failure.
Unfortunately, this approach to education discourages trial and error—a process of understanding and embracing risk, adapting to change, and navigating around obstacles.
Trial and error involves the development of crucial skills and mindsets like critical thinking, curiosity, courage, confidence, self-efficacy, exploration, creativity, risk-taking, perspective-taking, problem-solving, reflection, patience, persistence, receiving and incorporating feedback, resilience, innovation, and more.
Failure to learn and practice these skills and mindsets makes it extraordinarily difficult to thrive in our personal and professional lives.
If nothing else, trial and error provides the chance to try (and do) in the first place, giving a learning opportunity that wouldn’t have existed otherwise and a push in the direction of flourishing.
So what if we re-centered academic success on the skills and mindsets that are essential to building a successful life?
