ABSTRACT
Students enrolled in the treatment cohort of the Promoting PLACE in Rural Schools project participated in two short interventions focused on promoting a growth mindset (one at the end of third grade and one again at the end of fourth grade). This chapter describes the development and implementation of the intervention. The intervention was in the form of a WebQuest, a web-based inquiry approach to providing students the opportunity to read and connect information from the Internet on a given topic (in this case, growth mindset). To develop the WebQuest, we identified age-appropriate online materials-written, visual, and film-on three topics relating to growth mindset. The first topic focused on how the brain works, with attention given to accurate scientific details such as the function of neurons. The second topic delved into the nature of intelligence; students learned how the brain reacts to learning something new, what the term neuroplasticity means, and how it is relevant to them as students. Finally, the third topic presented information on how to overcome stereotype threat, linking it back to the idea of neuroplasticity. The WebQuest was designed for students to explore all topics in small groups, with occasional pauses for whole-group discussions facilitated by members of the research team. A final culminating activity allowed students to synthesize everything they had learned and present it in a format of their choice to their peers.
