Route of Change
Growth mindset and route of change: a neuroeducational model for transforming behaviour and learning
Growth mindset, developed by Carol Dweck, has demonstrated that students’ beliefs about their capacity change how their brain responds to error, effort and challenges. When a student thinks “I am like this”, their brain interprets the obstacle as a limit.
When they think “I can improve”, they activate deeper and more sustained learning mechanisms.
This difference is not motivational: it is neurobiological.
The power of “not yet”
One of Dweck’s most well-known contributions is the idea of yet.
“I can’t… not yet.”
That word transforms error into a process, not a judgment.
It reduces anxiety, increases perseverance and promotes new neural connections.
In the classroom, changing language also changes the brain’s response.
The Route of Change (IMPAR): a tool for progress
For growth mindset to become concrete actions, a structured model is necessary.
The Route of Change—used in NeuroEduca environments—offers a clear and accessible path:
- Generate intention: Students need to visualize what they want to change.
- Identify real motivations: Change is not sustained without deep, personal and meaningful reasons.
- Plan with anticipation: Planning reduces frustration and prevents abandoning at the first obstacle.
- Small and achievable action: Significant transformations begin with subtle steps that generate dopaminergic reinforcement.
- Result and repetition: Analyze progress, adjust what is necessary and repeat until the new behaviour becomes a habit.
Why does it work?
IMPAR works because it accompanies the maturation of the frontal lobe, where executive functions such as planning, inhibition and decision-making develop.
The adolescent brain, especially, needs structure, clarity and modest successes that sustain motivation.
Applying IMPAR in the classroom
The Route of Change can be used to:
- Improve study habits.
- Reduce impulsivity.
- Improve coexistence.
- Sustain personal goals.
- or support academic difficulties.
The model converts intention into process, and process into habit.