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My Career Coach

 I'm getting ready to do an SAT interview; this career guru has me practicing my spiel. 


"You talk too much," she says. "Most adults have taken the SAT. You do not need to remind them about the process of elimination."

She does get excited when she hears the term "growth mindset." This is a trendy topic in education. The idea is that anyone can get better at just about anything; improvement is a matter of practice. So, the notion that someone is inherently "bad" at writing is just toxic: Writerly skills are waiting to be cultivated, in each and every person.

Adults get very fizzy about the growth mindset, but I notice some cognitive dissonance. For example, my career coach quickly begins to talk about her own daughter, and her experience with SAT tutoring: "I hired two different experts, and yet the needle didn't really budge...." A parent I speak with says this: "The growth mindset is so inspiring. By the way, my own son is, emphatically, a math person....."

My confession: I have my doubts about the growth mindset. I'm reminded of the thing certain writers say about MFA programs. "You cannot teach talent, but, if some talent is already there, you can be productively enthusiastic; you can gently tend the garden and water some of the flowers...."

I am frustrated that I'm sort of homebound in New Jersey; e-tutoring, via Smartbook software, does not seem ideal. But I'll figure this out. It has been useful to pursue one project outside of child-rearing, for several weeks.
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