The dangers of fixed thinking for teachers and their students

By Gordon Cairns
Community contribution / February 23, 2017

Classroom teachers generally have three stages to their careers. There is the initial probationary stage where trying to juggle classroom management, subject knowledge, discipline and whole school commitments seems a daunting task.

Then, just as you think this period of frantically sprinting just to stand still will never end, it slowly begins ...

Casual Relief Teacher - $468 per day

Hume Anglican Grammar Mickleham VIC

Looking for flexibility? Passionate educators are sought to join our team in a supportive and professional environment at any of our campuses!

Teaching - Secondary / Jun 03, 2026

RE Teacher

Veritas South East London

Teaching - Early childhood / Jun 03, 2026

Geography Teacher

Veritas South East London

Teaching - Early childhood / Jun 03, 2026

By Gordon Cairns

Community

Gordon Cairns is an English teacher and education journalist in the UK.

Latest comments

Great initial initiative for young people with disabilities. Please consider using the free community resources avai...

— Andrew T on A Model For Schools: Gym Buddy Program Breaks Barriers For Young People With Disability

Top events

During quiet days, am I alone in sometimes thinking it would be good if the pupils' started acting up, nothing too serious- just a little to break the monotony.

— Gordon Cairns

This can have serious consequences for car drivers and airline pilots and is not ideal for educators either, as a daydreaming teacher can't be good for the active minds in front of us.

— Gordon Cairns

Opinion / Explicit instruction: what works, what doesn’t, and why it matters

Explicit instruction has become a familiar term in Australian education. But as the saying goes, familiarity can breed contempt.

School news / Empathy, inclusion and confidence: new game to change way kids learn about periods

Menstrual stigma remains a significant issue in Australia. Rooted in a culture of secrecy and poor education, it often leads to widespread embarrassment, “period poverty”, and a delay in seeking medical help for symptoms of conditions like endomet...

School news / Male entrepreneurs are capitalising on rising misogyny in Australian schools: study

A host of male entrepreneurs are essentially profiting off ‘resurgent masculinity’ in Australian schools and sidelining the authority of female teachers in the process, some researchers say.

School news / Parents push for expanded scrutiny at Tas jumping castle inquest

Families of children who died in a primary school jumping castle tragedy in Tasmania want teachers and the then-principal to give evidence at a looming inquest.

School news / ‘Leadership did nothing’: women teachers gaslit amid rising manosphere abuse

Too often the misogynistic language and behaviour fuelled by the manosphere that women teachers face in the classroom is downplayed by school leaders, unchallenged by male colleagues and framed as an isolated student behaviour issue, new research ...

School news / Better equipped: experts call for honest, empowering climate education

A host of concerned Australians have signed an open letter calling for honest, age-appropriate climate science education in schools, saying knowledge equips children to cope with the climate reality they are already experiencing.

Opinion / We don’t know how the social media ban will impact our kids: opinion

In December 2025, Australia banned young people under 16 from having social media accounts. France, Greece, Spain, Denmark, Malaysia, Norway, India, Egypt, Canada, Türkiye, and the United Kingdom are hot on their heels.

Community / A model for schools: Gym buddy program breaks barriers for young people with disability

Many young people enjoy going to the gym as a recreation and fitness activity. For young people with disability, accessing and participating in gym-based fitness can have some barriers which make enjoyment, skill development and improvements in fi...

Community / Here and now: Why surrendering to life’s flow restores our spirit

Recently I saw a huge pod of dolphins playing in the waves at my local beach. Not many things get people to get their faces out of their phones these days (yes, even at the beach!) but once the word started to get around, we were all mesmerised.

School news / Growing wellbeing literacy in early childhood ed through Noongar culture and arts

Noongar culture and arts can play a powerful role in strengthening young children’s capabilities to experience and communicate about their wellbeing, new research suggests.

The dangers of fixed thinking for teachers and their students

Comments

EducationID

Our services

Ad centre