Social and Emotional Learning
“The list of issues facing today’s educators and students is daunting. But genuinely effective schools – those that prepare students not only to pass tests at school but also to pass the tests of life – are finding that social-emotional competence and academic achievement are interwoven and that integrated, coordinated instruction in both areas maximizes students’ potential to succeed in school and throughout their lives.” – Zins and Elias, Social and Emotional Learning.
Social and Emotional Learning Defined New
Social and emotional learning (SEL) is the capacity to recognize and manage emotions, solve problems effectively, and establish positive relationships with others. These competencies are essential for all students and for the future workforce. SEL targets a combination of behaviors, cognitions, and emotions. As described by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), SEL is the process of acquiring and effectively applying the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to:
Similar to the way students learn all other academic skills, they must learn, practice, and apply SEL skills by engaging in positive activities in and out of the classroom. U.T. Elementary believes that SEL skills should be taught in the regular classroom as part of the core curriculum and reinforced through school-wide activities.
The Three-Tier Model in SEL
As a research-based demonstration school with a high needs urban population, teachers are trained in SEL curriculum methods. In an effort to take basic SEL programming a step further we have outlined a program which addresses the specific needs of each student through a 3-tier model for SEL. Tier 1 is a core SEL program, Tier 2 includes teacher consultation and pull-out group counseling for at-risk children, and Tier 3 involves behavior intervention plans, individualized counseling, and psychiatric consultation for students with significant emotional or behavioral difficulties.
SEL Team
The U.T. Elementary team consists of the school psychologist or counselor, the school social worker, classroom teacher representatives, administrators, UT faculty representative, as well as parent and community representatives. The school psychologist, school social worker meets with administration twice a month to review the school’s SEL Action Plan. This team meets quarterly to review this plan, to discuss implementation, and make recommendations. Members play an integral role in creating the necessary model program which promotes a positive school climate for students to truly succeed. The SEL team also works in conjunction with teachers implementing school-wide positive behavioral support.
SEL Curriculum
UT Elementary administration embraces a position that SEL should be integrated into the classroom every day and all day. The state of Illinois and the Anchorage Independent School District in Alaska have developed learning standards and goals targeting SEL skills as outlined by CASEL. The University of Texas Elementary School integrated these learning standards and goals targeting social and emotional learning skills for each grade level. Currently, UT Elementary School is working on performance descriptors, which build upon the standards and benchmarks. These descriptors will enable teachers to establish appropriate grade-specific, measurable performance expectations. It is important for teachers to be knowledgeable of developmental goals in each SEL area. Students not meeting these expectations are targeted under Tier II and Tier III interventions.
Classroom Implementation
Environment - UT Elementary teachers and staff have been trained in extending the SEL initiative through the physical structure of their classrooms’ environments. Each classroom has a variety of learning spaces, reinforcement of SEL skills through posters and displayed projects, display of classroom rules and expectations, a peacekeeper’s pledge, and peace tables or areas for peer mediation and conflict resolution. Teachers and staff have developed a common language to be used throughout the school in order to reinforce skills and expectations. SEL skills are reinforced by staff during morning assembly, during special area classes, on report cards under social and personal development grades, in the cafeteria and during recess.
Lesson Plans – Teachers are expected to directly teach the SEL curriculum standards weekly. These lessons are required to be documented in teacher lesson plans for a minimum of 40 minutes a week. Lesson plans should include lesson objective, procedures, and evaluation using the Second Step curriculum as the primary resource. Our SEL curriculum resource guide provides teachers with supplemental resources and teacher generated lessons plans in order to address the entire curriculum and five SEL skill areas.
Curriculum Resource - UTES reviewed meta-analysis research (CASEL, 2005) and selected the Second Step program as its primary curriculum resource for SEL and the Tier I Core Curriculum resource. It should be noted that there are many acceptable curriculum resources available. Second Step is an evidence- and classroom-based social-skills program for children 4 to 14 years-old that teaches socio-emotional skills aimed at reducing impulsive and aggressive behavior while increasing social competence. The program builds on cognitive behavioral intervention models integrated with social learning theory, empathy research, and social information-processing theories. Strategies in Second Step can be consistently used by the teacher for various situations occurring in the classroom. Supplemental curriculum resources are found in the SEL curriculum guide.
Peace Areas - The peacekeeping behaviors related to “solving problems with my words” are also reinforced through the classroom peace table and peer mediators. Teachers have steps to the peace table posted in their room and a space available for student interaction. This space can also be used for students needing an area to calm down.
Community Meetings - Teachers also hold classroom community meetings at least once a week. The purpose of these meeting is to foster a community feeling, create a climate that enhances learning, to teach and reinforce cooperative group skills, and to practice problem solving (Nelsen, Lott, & Glenn, 2000). If there are any new problems in the class or school, the teacher addresses the problem by allowing all students to share their thoughts and feelings about the problem. Then they can brainstorm solutions. At the close of the meeting the teacher can review any upcoming events or what they might discuss in the next meeting. If no serious problems occurred that week, the teacher can take the community meeting time to discuss an important topic, play an interactive game to build community, or partake in an activity to practice being a member in a community (e.g., listening, paying attention, contributing a skill).
School-wide Implementation
Morning Assembly - Every morning the students at UT Elementary meet as a large group to hear announcements, to say the national and state pledges of allegiances, and recite the UT Elementary Peacekeeper pledge. In addition to just saying the pledge, staff used several morning assemblies and classroom lessons to discuss the characteristics appearing in the pledge. Famous peacekeepers are also discussed as well as reviewing peacekeeping skills through quick games.
Peacekeepers Pledge and Peace Tickets - Staff provide examples of Peacekeeper characteristics and reward students who exhibit the actions of being helpful, truthful, kind, respectful, problem solving, or doing their best. Students immediately receive Peacekeeper stickers and a ticket that goes into a Friday drawing. At the Friday morning assembly, names and their peacekeeping actions are announced to the entire school and posted on a bulletin board. Special Area teachers, lunch room monitors, and interventionists support teachers by handing out peace tickets during other parts of the days and less structured areas (playground/lunchroom).
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Peer Mediation – UT Elementary School uses the “Peers Making Peace” program by PAX United. Through peer nominations, teacher nominations, or self nominations, students are selected to participate in the peer mediator program. Currently, two students from each classroom, grades 3-5, participate in ongoing training as a peer mediator. Students initially participate in 15 hours of training and then receive ongoing supervision. In addition to helping their peers with social problem solving, they teach mini-lessons on problem solving to the younger grades.
Discipline Referrals - Teachers and administrators reiterate peacekeeping strategies when dealing with interfering behaviors. Instead of just dispensing disconnected punishments for negative behaviors, school staff makes use of this time to lead the student(s) through a problem-solving dialogue. Additionally, should a student be visibly upset, the staff member can comment on the student’s appearance and inquire about the student’s current emotion. Then walk the student through appropriate strategies to calm down in order to discuss the problem. Some strategies include looking at a picture book, squeezing a ball, or taking deep breaths. It is also beneficial to review with the student what things he did correctly (e.g., stopped the behavior, came to principal’s office willingly). Finally, the staff member also tries to reiterate the characteristics of being a peacekeeper and assists the student in making a goal for the student such as respecting teachers.
Parent Involvement - Parents receive information about SEL skills through handouts, back-to-school night, parent forum meetings, and Second Step homework assignments. Parent training focusing on Second Step skills and parenting topics is also available every month.
Alignment to Positive Behavioral Support (PBS) According to CASEL
PBS evolved from the special education tradition as a method to address the emotional and behavioral needs of students who experience significant difficulties. PBS as an intervention model for individual students has evolved in recent years to address the broader student population and school environment. School-wide PBS focuses on establishing consistent expectations for behavior, positive approaches for teaching the requisite behaviors, and strategies for reinforcing the expectations. The targeted behaviors are determined by individual schools and form the basis of systematic “management strategies” (Lewis & Sugai, 1999). PBS and SEL programming both address the needs of all children; however, SEL has a slightly different focus, with an emphasis on emotions and development: developmentally appropriate, sequenced skill-building instruction provided in a caring school environment that promotes children’s positive development and success in school and life. SEL extends beyond the management and discipline emphasis of PBS to focus on the development of the whole child.
