Fostering Confidence

A recent news item from National Geographic, "Evolution of Narcissism: Why We’re Overconfident, and Why It Works" has important implications for schools, educators and parents. Confidence is hardly a novel concept, particularly in education; many teachers are already aware of Bernard Weiner’s Attribution Theory. But, how many teachers make internalizing confidence explicit in their classrooms? And how many parents are aware of Attribution Theory, and discuss it at home?

Attribution Theory was one of the many psycho-educational models with which I became familiar in my early days in this profession. Yet, it is one of the few that has stuck with me and directly influences my choices in the classroom. Very, very rarely do I wish my students “luck” on a project or test, or any other endeavor, for that matter. Luck is not in their control, or mine. Why a hard working individual would ever credit their success with luck is beyond my comprehension, and students don’t meet and exceed standards based on luck either. Call me an optimist or a pragmatist; I believe one reaps what they sow. Because of this, I attempt to teach and model this belief for both my students, and my son.

To put it simply, if a student has prepared, practiced, asked questions, asked for more time, taken advantage of re-dos, and/or whatever else they need to do to make progress and learn, they eventually will. Though it may take some longer than others (hello, differentiation), students gain power in the process. They learn that they indeed have control over their learning and begin to internalize confidence. More confidence leads to greater intellectual risk taking, leads to more resilience, more success, and more recognition, which leads to more confidence... A classic reinforcing loop.


The bottom line is that research continues to prove that confidence breeds confidence. The more self-assurance we can help our students and children muster for themselves, the better off they will be.

Bald Eagle by Ryan McFarland @ flickr (CC-BY-2.0)