INTRODUCTION
Education in the Philippines has been changed rapidly, issues and trends in education have also been changed. The rapid advancement poses a significant challenge to all teachers to keep up with the fast-societal development rhythmically, most especially in the third world and developing country like our country. The acquisition and enhancement of skills and knowledge are very essential to meet the high demands of highly competitive and scientifically-inclined society.
It is not an exaggeration that a great teacher changes not only the improvement of the students but also a student’s life. And one of the most important basic beliefs that a teacher carries about herself has to do with how she views intelligence, talent and personality to cope up with our ever-changing educational society specifically in the educational system that we have. Modern psychology knows about belief systems, someone’s abilities, potential and behavior that can foretell success. The remarkable work of Stanford psychologist Carol Dweck about her insightful Mindset: The New Psychology of Success discussed about an inquiry into the power of beliefs, both conscious and unconscious, and how changing even the simplest of them can have profound impact on nearly every aspect of human’s life.
Mindset can predict one’s success in life. It’s an internal voice that keeps a person down or lifts him up. A “fixed mindset” assumes that our character, intelligence, and creative ability are static givens which we can’t change in any meaningful way, and success is the affirmation of that inherent intelligence, an assessment of how those givens measure up against an equally fixed standard; striving for success and avoiding failure at all costs become a way of maintaining the sense of being smart or skilled. A “growth mindset,” on the other hand, thrives on challenge and sees failure not as evidence of unintelligence but as a heartening springboard for growth and for stretching our existing abilities. Out of these two mindsets, which we manifest from a very early age, springs a great deal of our behavior, our relationship with success and failure in both professional and personal contexts, and ultimately our capacity for happiness.
According to Fernandez (2015) mindset shapes the mental world, determines the scope of a person’s goals and ultimately sets him on a path of growth and fulfilment—or one stagnation. Dweck (as cited in Popova 2014) found out that the basic beliefs we hold on ourselves have to do with how we view and inhabit what we consider to be our personality. It can determine whether you become the person you want to be and whether you accomplish the things you value. Even though the academe is filled with high performing teachers who boast their IQ and stellar accomplishments, there are still some low-performing and stagnant, while others continue to achieve.
Consequently, the Department of Education continues to strategize to heighten education and envision the 21st Quality Education for all; that despite the programs, trainings, for educators, and the current trend in education focuses on research and innovation. This must have been the response to the dismal performance of the Philippines according to the report showing that the country is slipping behind Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Vietnam in the field of Science and Math, ranking 112th out of 138 economies and 7th among nine Southeast Asian nations in the field of education, science and technology and innovation (NCC, 2011).
In addition, the result of international assessment studies like the Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) and national assessment like the National Achievement Test (NAT) are not quite good.
With the intention of focusing through academic lens for educator and to determine what mindset they have and to establish a strategy for a better quality of teaching. This study is an investigation of the mindset of High School Science teachers in Jesus Is Lord Colleges Foundation, Inc.: A Basis for a Proposed Intervention Program
The main aim of the study is to find out the apparent mindset of high school Science teachers. Specifically, this study sought to answer the following questions: (1) To determine the mindset of the respondents in terms of intelligence (2) To determine the mindset of the respondents in terms of talent. (3) To determine the relationship of mindset of intelligence and talent (4) To provide an intervention programs on the mindset of the Science teachers that would help them improve their performance.
The hypothesis of the study is tested at 0.05 significance level:
“There is no significant relationship between mindset of intelligence and talent of the respondents.”
It is very essential to know the mindset of Science teachers to help the school devise a program to equip teachers with necessary skills, knowledge and values needed for effective and quality teaching.