This month we talk with Dr. Elisabeth Tipton about the research support for growth mindset interventions, and the flaws in last month’s meta-analysis. Together we consider how growth mindset should be part of a more comprehensive approach to helping students improve. Later, we read how listening to music reduces our ability to use our working memory for academic tasks. Their laboratory study shows music has a cost, but we wonder whether the cost of background classroom distractions might be higher.