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16 Habits of Mind Nautical chart

HABITS OF MIND

(Available for download)

Arthur L. Costa, Ed. D.

Professor Emeritus,

California State Academy, Sacramento

By definition, a problem is any stimulus, question, job, phenomenon, or discrepancy, the caption for which is not immediately known. Thus, we are interested in focusing on student functioning under those challenging conditions that demand strategic reasoning, insightfulness, perseverance, creativity, and craftsmanship to resolve a complex problem. Not only are we interested in how many answers students know, but also in knowing how they behave when they DON’T know. Habits of Mind are performed in response to those questions and problems the answers to which are NOT immediately known. Nosotros are interested in observing how students produce cognition rather than how they only reproduce noesis. The critical attribute of intelligent human beings is not only having information, but also knowing how to act on information technology.

A “Habit of Listen” means having a disposition toward behaving intelligently when confronted with problems. When humans feel dichotomies, are confused by dilemmas, or come face to face with uncertainties–our most effective actions crave drawing along certain patterns of intellectual behavior. When nosotros depict upon these intellectual resource, the results that are produced are more powerful, of higher quality and of greater significance than if we fail to employ those intellectual behaviors.

Employing “Habits of Heed” requires a blended of many skills, attitudes, cues, by experiences and proclivities. It means that we value one pattern of thinking over some other and therefore it implies choice making about which blueprint should be employed at this time. It includes alertness to the contextual cues that signal this as an advisable fourth dimension and circumstance in which the employment of this pattern would be useful. Information technology requires a level of skillfulness to employ and carry through the behaviors effectively over time. Information technology suggests that as a result of each experience in which these behaviors were employed, the effects of their utilize are reflected upon, evaluated, modified and carried forth to hereafter applications.

HABITS OF MIND Nourish TO:

DESCRIBING HABITS OF Mind

What behaviors are indicative of the efficient, effective problem solver? Just what do human beings do when they deport intelligently? Research in effective thinking and intelligent behavior by Feuerstein (1980), Glatthorn and Baron (1985), Sternberg (1985), Perkins (1985), and Ennis (1985) indicates that at that place are some identifiable characteristics of effective thinkers. These are not necessarily scientists, artists, mathematicians or the wealthy who demonstrate these behaviors. These characteristics have been identified in successful mechanics, teachers, entrepreneurs, salespeople, and parents—people in all walks of life.

Following are descriptions and an elaboration of 16 attributes of what homo beings do when they behave intelligently. We choose to refer to them as Habits of Mind. They are the characteristics of what intelligent people do when they are confronted with problems, the resolution to which are not immediately apparent.

These behaviors are seldom performed in isolation. Rather, clusters of such behaviors are fatigued along and employed in various situations. When listening intently, for example, 1 employs flexibility, metacognition, precise language and maybe questioning.

Please do not think that there are simply sixteen ways in which humans brandish their intelligence. It should be understood that this list is non meant to exist complete. It should serve to initiate the collection of additional attributes. Although 16 Habits of Heed are described hither, y’all, your colleagues and your students will desire to continue the search for additional Habits of Heed past calculation to and elaborating on this list and the descriptions.

1. Persisting

Persistence is the twin sis of excellence.

One is a matter of quality; the other, a matter of time. ~Marabel Morgan, The Electric Woman

Efficacious people stick to a task until information technology is completed. They don’t give up hands. They are able to analyze a problem, to develop a organization, construction, or strategy to assail a problem. They utilise a range and take repertoire of alternative strategies for trouble solving. They collect evidence to indicate their problem-solving strategy is working, and if ane strategy doesn’t work, they know how to support and try some other. They recognize when a theory or idea must be rejected and another employed. They have systematic methods of analyzing a trouble which include knowing how to begin, knowing what steps must be performed, and what data demand to be generated or collected. Because they are able to sustain a trouble solving process over fourth dimension, they are comfortable with ambiguous situations.

Students oftentimes give up in despair when the answer to a problem is not immediately known. They sometimes crumple their papers and throw them away proverb, “I tin can’t practice this,” “It’s too hard,” or, they write downwardly any respond to get the task over with as speedily as possible. Some accept attention deficits; they take difficulty staying focused for any length of time, they are easily distracted, they lack the ability to analyze a trouble, to develop a system, structure, or strategy of problem set on. They may give up considering they take a limited repertoire of problem solving strategies. If their strategy doesn’t piece of work, they surrender because they take no alternatives.

2. Managing Impulsivity

“….goal directed self-imposed filibuster of gratification is perhaps the essence of emotional self-regulation: the ability to deny impulse in the service of a goal, whether it be building a business, solving an algebraic equation, or pursuing the Stanley cup. ~Daniel Goleman Emotional Intelligence (1995) p. 83

Effective problem solvers have a sense of deliberativeness: They recall before they act. They intentionally class a vision of a product, programme of action, goal or a destination before they begin. They strive to clarify and understand directions, develop a strategy for approaching a problem and withhold immediate value judgments nearly an thought before fully understanding it. Cogitating individuals consider alternatives and consequences of several possible directions prior to taking action. They decrease their demand for trial and error past gathering information, taking time to reflect on an answer before giving it, making sure they empathise directions, and listening to alternative points of view.

Often students blurt the first reply that comes to listen. Sometimes they shout out an respond, offset to piece of work without fully understanding the directions, lack an organized plan or strategy for budgeted a problem or make immediate value judgments about an idea—criticizing or praising information technology— before fully agreement information technology. They may have the kickoff suggestion given or operate on the first thought that comes to mind rather than considering alternatives and consequences of several possible directions.

iii. Listening To Others—With Understanding and Empathy

Listening is the beginning of understanding….. Wisdom is the reward for a lifetime of listening. Let the wise listen and add to their learning and permit the discerning get guidance –Proverbs ane:5

Highly effective people spend an inordinate amount of time and energy listening (Covey, 1989). Some psychologists believe that the ability to heed to another person, to empathize with, and to empathise their indicate of view is 1 of the highest forms of intelligent behavior. Being able to paraphrase another person’s ideas, detecting indicators (cues) of their feelings or emotional states in their oral and trunk language (empathy), accurately expressing another person’s concepts, emotions and problems—all are indications of listening behavior (Piaget chosen it “overcoming ego-centrism”). They are able to see through the diverse perspectives of others. They gently attend to another person demonstrating their understanding of and empathy for an idea or feeling past paraphrasing it accurately, building upon it, clarifying it, or giving an instance of it.

Senge and his colleagues (1994) propose that to listen fully means to pay close attention to what is being said beneath the words. You listen not merely to the “music”, but also to the essence of the person speaking. You listen not but for what someone knows, but also for what he or she is trying to represent. Ears operate at the speed of sound, which is far slower than the speed of light the optics take in. Generative listening is the fine art of developing deeper silences in yourself, and so y’all can dull your heed’south hearing to your ears’ natural speed, and hear beneath the words to their meaning.

We spend 55 percent of our lives listening yet it is 1 of the least taught skills in schools. Nosotros often say nosotros are listening just in actuality, we are rehearsing in our caput what nosotros are going to say next when our partner is finished. Some students ridicule, laugh at, or put downward other students’ ideas. They interrupt are unable to build upon, consider the merits of, or operate on some other person’s ideas. We desire our students to larn to devote their mental energies to another person and invest themselves in their partner’due south ideas.

We wish students to learn to hold in abeyance their own values, judgments, opinions, and prejudices in

order to listen to and entertain another person’south thoughts. This is a very complex skill requiring the power to monitor one’s own thoughts while, at the same time, attention to the partner’s words. This does not mean that nosotros can’t disagree with someone. A expert listener tries to empathize what the other person is maxim. In the end he may disagree sharply, merely because he disagrees, he wants to know exactly what information technology is he is disagreeing with.

iv. Thinking Flexibly

If you never change your mind, why accept one? ~Edward deBono

An astonishing discovery about the human brain is its plasticity–its ability to “rewire”, change and fifty-fifty repair itself to go smarter. Flexible people are the ones with the nearly control. They take the chapters to change their mind equally they receive additional information. They engage in multiple and simultaneous outcomes and activities, describe upon a repertoire of problem solving strategies and can exercise style flexibility, knowing when it is appropriate to be broad and global in their thinking and when a situation requires detailed precision. They create and seek novel approaches and take a well-developed sense of humor. They envision a range of consequences.

Flexible people can approach a problem from a new angle using a novel arroyo {deBono (1970) refers to this as lateral thinking.} They consider culling points of view or bargain with several sources of information simultaneously. Their minds are open to change based on additional information and information or reasoning, which contradicts their beliefs. Flexible people know that they have and can develop options and alternatives to consider. They understand mean-ends relationships being able to work within rules, criteria and regulations and they can predict the consequences of flouting them. They understand not only the immediate reactions but are besides able to perceive the bigger purposes that such constraints serve. Thus, flexibility of mind is essential for working with social variety, enabling an individual to recognize the wholeness and distinctness of other people’southward means of experiencing and making meaning.

Flexible thinkers are able to shift, at volition, through multiple perceptual positions. One perceptual orientation is what Jean Piaget called, egocentrism–perceiving from our own indicate of view. Past contrast, allocentrism is the position in which we perceive through another persons’ orientation. We operate from this 2d position when nosotros empathise with other’south feelings, predict how others are thinking, and conceptualize potential misunderstandings.

Another perceptual position is “macro-axial”. It is like to looking down from a balcony at ourselves and our interactions with others. This bird’southward-eye view is useful for discerning themes and patterns from assortments of information. It is intuitive, holistic and conceptual. Since nosotros frequently need to solve bug with incomplete information, nosotros need the capacity to perceive general patterns and jump across gaps of incomplete cognition or when some of the pieces are missing.

Yet another perceptual orientation is micro-centric–examining the individual and sometimes minute parts that make up the whole. This “worm’s-eye view”, without which scientific discipline, technology, and whatsoever complex enterprise could not function, involves logical belittling computation searching for causality in methodical steps. It requires attending to detail, precision, and orderly progressions.

Flexible thinkers display confidence in their intuition. They tolerate confusion and ambiguity up to a point, and are willing to let go of a problem trusting their subconscious to keep creative and productive work on it. Flexibility is the cradle of sense of humor, creativity and repertoire. While there are many possible perceptual positions–by, nowadays, hereafter, egoistic, allocentric, macro centric, visual, auditory, kinesthetic—the flexible listen is activated by knowing when to shift perceptual positions.

Some students take difficulty in considering culling points of view or dealing with more one nomenclature system simultaneously. THEIR way to solve a problem seems to be the ONLY manner. They perceive situations from a very ego-centered point of view: “My way or the highway!” Their listen is made upwardly; “Don’t confuse me with facts, that’s it.”

5. Thinking About our Thinking (Metacognition)

Occurring in the neocortex, metacognition is our ability to know what we know and what we don’t know. It is our ability to plan a strategy for producing what information is needed, to be conscious of our own steps and strategies during the act of trouble solving, and to reflect on and evaluate the productiveness of our own thinking. While “inner language,” thought to be a prerequisite, begins in most children around historic period five, metacognition is a central attribute of formal thought flowering nearly historic period 11.

Probably the major components of metacognition are developing a program of action, maintaining that plan in mind over a menstruum of time, then reflecting back on and evaluating the plan upon its completion. Planning a strategy before embarking on a grade of action assists united states of america in keeping track of the steps in the sequence of planned behavior at the witting awareness level for the elapsing of the activity. It facilitates making temporal and comparative judgments, assessing the readiness for more than or different activities, and monitoring our interpretations, perceptions, decisions and behaviors. An instance of this would exist what superior teachers practice daily: developing a teaching strategy for a lesson, keeping that strategy in mind throughout the instruction, then reflecting back upon the strategy to evaluate its effectiveness in producing the desired student outcomes.

Intelligent people plan for, reflect on, and evaluate the quality of their ain thinking skills and strategies. Metacognition means becoming increasingly aware of i’southward actions and the effect of those actions on others and on the surround; forming internal questions as one searches for information and significant, developing mental maps or plans of activeness, mentally rehearsing prior to operation, monitoring those plans as they are employed–being conscious of the demand for midcourse correction if the program is not meeting expectations, reflecting on the plan upon completion of the implementation for the purpose of cocky-evaluation, and editing mental pictures for improved performance.

Interestingly, non all humans achieve the level of formal operations (Chiabetta, 1976). And equally Alexander Luria, the Russian psychologist found, not all adults metacogitate (Whimbey, 1976). The about probable reason is that we do not have the time to reflect on our experiences. Students oftentimes do not accept the time to wonder why we are doing what we are doing. They seldom question themselves about their own learning strategies or evaluate the efficiency of their own performance. Some children virtually accept no idea of what they should do when they confront a problem and are often unable to explain their strategies of decision making (Sternberg and Wagner, 1982). When teachers ask, “How did you solve that problem; what strategies did you have in mind”? or, “Tell us what went on in your caput to come up up with that conclusion”. Students often answer by saying, “I don’t know, I merely did it.’

We want our students to perform well on complex cognitive tasks. A simple example of this might be drawn from a reading task. Information technology is a common experience while reading a passage to have our minds “wander” from the pages. We “see” the words merely no pregnant is existence produced. Suddenly we realize that we are non concentrating and that we’ve lost contact with the pregnant of the text. We “recover” by returning to the passage to detect our place, matching it with the last thought nosotros can remember, and, once having found it, reading on with connectedness. This inner awareness and the strategy of recovery are components of metacognition.

half dozen. Striving For Accuracy and Precision

Embodied in the stamina, grace and elegance of a ballerina or a shoemaker, is the want for craftsmanship, mastery, flawlessness and economy of energy to produce infrequent results. People who value accuracy, precision and craftsmanship take time to check over their products. They review the rules by which they are to abide; they review the models and visions they are to follow; and they review the criteria they are to utilise and confirm that their finish product matches the criteria exactly. To be craftsmanlike means knowing that one can continually perfect one’s arts and crafts by working to reach the highest possible standards, and pursue ongoing learning in club to bring a light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation like focus of energies to task accomplishment. These people take pride in their piece of work and have a desire for accuracy every bit they have time to check over their work. Adroitness includes exactness, precision, accuracy, correctness, faithfulness, and allegiance. For some people, adroitness requires continuous reworking. Mario Cuomo, a bang-up speechwriter and pol, once said that his speeches were never done—it was only a deadline that made him end working on them!

Some students may turn in sloppy, incomplete or uncorrected work. They are more anxious to get rid of the consignment than to check it over for accuracy and precision. They are willing to suffice with minimum endeavour rather than investing their maximum. They may be more interested in expedience rather than excellence.

7. Questioning and Posing Problems

One of the distinguishing characteristics between humans and other forms of life is our inclination, and ability to FIND problems to solve. Effective trouble solvers know how to enquire questions to fill in the gaps between what they know and what they don’t know. Effective questioners are inclined to ask a range of questions. For instance: requests for data to support others’ conclusions and assumptions—such questions every bit,

“What testify do yous accept…..?”

“How do you know that’south truthful?”

“How reliable is this data source?”

They pose questions about alternative points of view:

“From whose viewpoint are we seeing, reading of hearing?”

“From what angle, what perspective are we viewing this state of affairs?”

Students pose questions, which brand causal connections and relationships:

“How are these people (events) (situations) related to each other?”

“What produced this connection?”

They pose hypothetical problems characterized by “iffy”-blazon questions:

 “What practice y’all think would happen IF…..?”

“IF that is true, then what might happen if….?”

Inquirers recognize discrepancies and phenomena in their environment and probe into their causes: “Why do cats purr?” “How high can birds wing?” “Why does the pilus on my head abound and then fast, while the hair on my artillery and legs grows so slowly? “What would happen if we put the saltwater fish in a fresh h2o aquarium?” “What are some alternative solutions to international conflicts other than wars?”

Some students may exist unaware of the functions, classes, syntax or intentions in questions. They may not realize that questions vary in complexity, structure and purpose. They may pose simple questions intending to derive maximal results. When confronted with a discrepancy, they may lack an overall strategy of search and solution finding.

viii. Applying Past Noesis to New Situations

Intelligent human beings learn from feel. When confronted with a new and perplexing problem they volition often draw forth experience from their past. They can often be heard to say, “This reminds me of….” or “This is just like the time when I…” They explain what they are doing now in terms of analogies with or references to previous experiences. They call upon their store of knowledge and experience every bit sources of data to support, theories to explain, or processes to solve each new challenge. Furthermore, they are able to abstruse meaning from one experience, deport information technology along, and apply it in a new and novel situation.

As well often students begin each new task as if it were existence approached for the very beginning fourth dimension. Teachers are often dismayed when they invite students to recall how they solved a similar problem previously and students don’t recall. It’s as if they never heard of it before, even though they had the same type of problem just recently. It is as if each experience is encapsulated and has no human relationship to what has come up before or what comes afterwards. Their thinking is what psychologists refer to as an “episodic grasp of reality” (Feuerstein 1980). That is, each event in life is a separate and discrete upshot with no connections to what may have come up earlier or with no relation to what follows. Furthermore, their learning is so encapsulated that they seem unable to draw forth from one issue and apply information technology in some other context.

9. Thinking and Communicating with Clarity and Precision

Language refinement plays a critical role in enhancing a person’due south cognitive maps, and their power to think critically which is the knowledge base of operations for efficacious activity. Enriching the complexity and specificity of language simultaneously produces constructive thinking.

Language and thinking are closely entwined. Like either side of a money, they are inseparable. When you hear fuzzy language, it is a reflection of fuzzy thinking. Intelligent people strive to communicate accurately in both written and oral form taking care to utilise precise language, defining terms, using correct names and universal labels and analogies. They strive to avoid overgeneralizations, deletions and distortions. Instead they support their statements with explanations, comparisons, quantification, and show.

We sometimes hear students and other adults using vague and imprecise language. They draw objects or events with words similar weird, nice, or OK. They telephone call specific objects using such not-descriptive words as stuff, junk and things. They punctuate sentences with meaningless interjections similar ya know, er and uh. They utilise vague or general nouns and pronouns: “They told me to practice it”. “Everybody has one.” “Teachers don’t empathise me. They use not-specific verbs: “Allow’s do it.” and unqualified comparatives: “This soda is better; I like information technology more”.

x. Gathering Data through All Senses

The brain is the ultimate reductionist. It reduces the earth to its elementary parts: photons of low-cal, molecules of smell, audio waves, vibrations of touch–which send electrochemical signals to private brain cells that store information about lines, movements, colors, smells and other sensory inputs.

Intelligent people know that all data gets into the encephalon through the sensory pathways: gustatory, olfactory, tactile, kinesthetic, auditory, visual, Almost linguistic, cultural, and physical learning is derived from the surroundings by observing or taking in through the senses. To know a wine information technology must exist drunk; to know a role it must be acted; to know a game it must be played; to know a trip the light fantastic toe it must exist moved; to know a goal it must be envisioned. Those whose sensory pathways are open up, alert, and acute absorb more information from the environment than those whose pathways are withered, allowed, and oblivious to sensory stimuli.

Furthermore, nosotros are learning more than about the impact of arts and music on improved mental performance. Forming mental images is important in mathematics and engineering; listening to classical music seems to improve spatial reasoning.

Social scientists solve bug through scenarios and role-playing; scientists build models; engineers use cad-cam; mechanics acquire through hands-on experimentation; artists experiment with colors and textures. Musicians experiment by producing combinations of instrumental and vocal music.

Some students, even so, get through school and life oblivious to the textures, rhythms, patterns sounds and colors around them. Sometimes children are afraid to touch, go their hands “muddy” or feel some object might be “slimy” or “icky”. They operate within a narrow range of sensory problem solving strategies wanting just to “describe information technology but not illustrate or human activity it”, or “listen but not participate”.

11. Creating, Imagining, and Innovating

All human beings take the capacity to generate novel, original, clever or ingenious products, solutions, and techniques—if that chapters is adult. Artistic human beings try to conceive problem solutions differently, examining alternative possibilities from many angles. They tend to project themselves into different roles using analogies, starting with a vision and working astern, imagining they are the objects beingness considered. Creative people accept risks and ofttimes push the boundaries of their perceived limits (Perkins 1985). They are intrinsically rather than extrinsically motivated, working on the chore because of the aesthetic challenge rather than the material rewards. Creative people are open to criticism. They hold up their products for others to judge and seek feedback in an e’er-increasing effort to refine their technique. They are uneasy with the status quo. They constantly strive for greater fluency, elaboration, novelty, parsimony, simplicity, craftsmanship, perfection, beauty, harmony, and balance.

Students, notwithstanding, are oft heard saying, “I tin’t describe,” “I was never very adept at art,” “I can’t sing a note,” “I’m non creative”. Some people believe artistic humans are only born that manner; in their genes and chromosomes.

12. Responding with Wonderment and Awe

Describing the 200 all-time and brightest of the All The states Higher Academic Team identified by USA Today, Tracey Wong Briggs (1999) states, “They are creative thinkers who take a passion for what they do.” Efficacious people have not merely an “I Tin” attitude, only also an “I ENJOY” feeling. They seek problems to solve for themselves and to submit to others. They delight in making up problems to solve on their ain and request enigmas from others. They enjoy figuring things out past themselves, and keep to learn throughout their

lifetimes.

Some children and adults avert bug and are “turned off” to learning. They make such comments equally, “I was never good at these brain teasers,” or “Go ask your father; he’s the encephalon in this family unit. “It’s boring.” “When am I e’er going to use this stuff?” “Who cares?” “Lighten upwardly, instructor, thinking is hard work,” or “I don’t exercise thinking!” Many people never enrolled in another math class or other “hard” academic subjects after they didn’t have to in high school or college. Many people perceive thinking as hard piece of work and therefore recoil from situations, which demand “too much” of information technology.

We want our students, notwithstanding to be curious; to commune with the globe around them; to reflect on the changing formations of a cloud; experience charmed past the opening of a bud; sense the logical simplicity ofmathematical club. Students can find dazzler in a sunset, intrigue in the geometric of a spider spider web, and exhilaration at the iridescence of a hummingbird’s wings. They encounter the congruity and intricacies in the derivation of a mathematical formula, recognize the orderliness and craftsmanship of a chemical change, and commune with the serenity of a distant constellation. Nosotros want them feel compelled, enthusiastic and passionate most learning, inquiring and mastering.

thirteen. Taking Responsible Risks.