Implementing social and emotional learning--Where, when and how often?
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Module 2 (of 6) of the Learning to Get Along Course for teachers and school staff everywhere. This module focuses on the importance of inclusive, supportive learning environments and on ways of integrating social and emotional learning into and across the curriculum.
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Implementing social and emotional learning--Where, when and how often?
- 1. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Module 2 Implementing SEL – Where, when and how often? 1
- 2. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice “In brief, the environment consists of those conditions that promote or hinder, stimulate or inhibit, the characteristic activities of a human being.” −John Dewey (1859-1952) Philosopher and educational reformer 2
- 3. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Module 2 Objectives Upon completion of this module, you will be able to… Describe the main components of a safe and supportive learning environment. Reflect on what you can do to help make your school and classroom a safer and more inclusive place to learn. Propose the basic outline of a plan for integrating SEL into the curriculum. Brainstorm several SEL activities that would be appropriate for immediately integrating into your daily practice. 3 3
- 4. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Huda’s Story Huda’s story is fictional but is based real incidents that that take place every day in parts of the world affected by wars and natural disasters. As you listen, think about: How Huda feels on her first day of school How she copes with her new situation What the teacher does to make her feel welcome What her prospects are for the future 4 4
- 5. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice What is a ‘learning environment’? Physical conditions architecture, construction and learning space design access to clean water, food and bathrooms sound, air quality, light furnishings (desks, carpets, storage) Psychosocial conditions management structure student-teacher relationships classroom and school social climate 5 5
- 6. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Who shapes learning environments? Government Community ArchitectSchool leadership Teachers 6 6
- 7. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Where does social and emotional learning fit into the picture? Physical conditions Psychosocial conditions 7 7
- 8. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Where and how does SEL fit into a curriculum? Vertical integration throughout the progression of levels foundation level mid-level subject and skills focus higher level subject, skills and application focus Horizontal integration across learning areas as generic skills within subjects foundations mid level higher level 8 8
- 9. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Can SEL guarantee safe schools and happy students? Primary school in rural Yemen 9 9
- 10. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice What you can do Can SEL help in situations of emergency? Stay calm, don’t panic If possible, get help from an adult Listen carefully Follow directions 10
- 11. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Does integration of SEL into the curriculum help students with special needs? YES, helps to create inclusive school cultures BUT, does not replace individualized physical and instructional support for students with special needs 11 11
- 12. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Messages Matter Student-made wall poster welcomes new children to school in Oakland, California (USA) 12
- 13. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Examples of SEL strategies from around the world Context Location Strategy Objective Pre-school Japan Encouragement of 4- and 5- year-olds to help care for and settle disputes among younger children (toddlers). Early introduction to caring relationships, negotiation skills. Lower primary Madagascar Parent volunteers take turns walking children to school. Helps ensure safety while learning to recognize hazards and abide by traffic rules. Upper primary Nepal Establishment of schools as zones of peace (Government issued directive). Engages local communities in ensuring school safety. Secondary United States Creation of school ‘family’ advisory structure, mixing students of different ages in long term support groups. Provides a sense of belonging and support, develops positive mindsets. 13
- 14. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice The Takeaway 1. Learning environments are made up of combinations of physical and psychosocial components. 2. Integrating SEL into classroom actions at all levels helps to improve learning environments, but not by itself. Other factors are also important. 3. Creating safe and supportive learning environment must be undertaken with all contributing factors in mind, including potential threats that exist in the wider community. 4. SEL classroom based strategies contribute to a safe and inclusive learning environment by encouraging children to develop positive mindsets and behaviors that make everyone feel welcomed and valued. 14 14
- 15. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Self-Checkout 1. What are the two main groups of factors that make up a learning environment? o test scores and physical conditions o physical and psychosocial conditions o outbreaks of violence and substance abuse o community support and external resources 2. Huda’s story is an example of … o a supportive school climate o poor physical conditions o enhanced academic performance o subject based learning 15 15
- 16. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Self-Checkout (continued) 3. As students advance through the levels of a curriculum, it becomes even more important to… o arm teachers o concentrate more on preparing students for tests o teach discrete SEL skills when serious problems arise o integrate SEL activities into subject based lessons 4. Which of the following helps to ensure long-term sustainability of SEL? o creation of safe and welcoming learning environments o community involvement o integration of SEL into daily teaching and learning interactions o all of the above 16 16
- 17. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Self-Checkout (continued) 5. One inexpensive way to ensure sustainable SEL implementation in schools with limited resources is... o comprehensive curriculum reform o new architectural designs and construction o sharing of locally produced teacher resources o conducting active shooter drills 6. Does integration of SEL into the curriculum help students with special needs? o no, not at all o yes, to some extent o yes, SEL replaces individualized support o yes, it reduces the need for special equipment 17 17
- 18. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Think like a TEACHER Based on your experience, what do you feel are the main risks to children’s safety at your school? What are your recommendations to reduce these risks? Risks Recommendations 1. 2. 3. 1. 2. 3. . 18 18
- 19. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice What’s next? Now that you’ve had a close look at the important components of a healthy and supportive learning environment and how SEL can help improve them, the next step is to take you deeper into the ‘E’ of SEL. What is emotional awareness and how can it help people to take charge of their lives? In the story ‘A lesson for Mr. Monro, both a teacher and the students in his class become more aware of their emotions and how to channel them in a positive way into deeper understanding of the lesson. 19
- 20. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Self Checkout 1. physical and psychosocial conditions 2. a supportive school environment 3. integrate SEL activities into subject based lessons 4. all of the above 5. sharing of locally produced teacher resources 6. yes, to some extent 20
- 21. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice Learning to Get Along Module 2: Implementing SEL Content development Jean Bernard and Alysoun Johnston Commentary and and story narration Jean Bernard Michael Johnston Alysoun Johnston Eliot Johnston
- 22. Learning to Get Along How to Integrate Social and Emotional Learning into Your Teaching Practice For more information on how to customize LtGA to match your professional development needs, visit us at: www.spectaclelearningmedia.net …or write to us at spectaclelearningmedia@gmail.com
Editor's Notes
- Hello and welcome back to the Learning to Get Along course, module 2. Now that you have a good idea of what social and emotional learning is. together with the skill areas this type of learning seeks to develop in children and young people, it’s time to bring up of the practical issues teachers face in planning and implementing SEL in schools, classrooms and other places of learning. That is, the where, when and how often of implementing SEL in different educational settings.
- We start with the premise that social and emotional learning can only be accomplished in safe and supportive learning environments, and that implementation of SEL helps to improve certain aspects of these environments. The philosopher and educational reformer, John Dewey, put it this way (read from slide).
- Huda is nine years old but she has never been to school. Last year, she fled with her family from her home in Syria. For many nights, the bombing was so loud that Huda huddled with her brothers and sisters the middle of their small apartment, unable to sleep. They rarely left their home during the day, and sometimes they gathered underground in a shelter with their neighbors. Finally, her father called the family together and told them to pack their things. ‘It is time to go,’ he said sadly. Today is Huda’s first day at her new school in Lebanon. She must go to the afternoon session with 700 other Syrian children because there is no room for them in the morning shift. She does not mind, though. She is happy to be in a safe place and be able to learn to read and write like her older brother. Some students wearing special badges are waiting in front of the school to meet the new children. One of them takes Huda’s hand and leads her to her classroom. “Don’t worry, little sister,” she says. You are welcome here.” Inside the classroom, children are sitting in a large circle on mats on the floor with their teacher, Mrs. Nour. When she sees Huda, she smiles warmly and welcomes her into the circle. The walls of the classroom are covered with colourful pictures, charts and number games. In the corner, there is a huge bin filled with books. Mrs. Nour introduces Huda to the group, then asks each child to say her name and tell something about herself. Some of the children in the class are younger than Huda, and some are older. One of them is blind, and another is in a wheelchair. Huda notices that all of them have something nice to say. Mrs. Nour assigns one of the girls to be Huda’s special friend for the afternoon and to guide her through the classroom and school routines. She tells Huda that if she has any questions or problems, she should not be afraid to ask for help. Huda smiles shyly and whispers “thank you, teacher.” Her special friend then guides her to a table and shows her where to store her backpack. She sits down and picks up a pencil.
- Any place where learning happens is a learning environment, so might be a classroom, a laboratory, a shady space under a tree, or the kitchen table. Wherever it is, a learning environment is made up of both physical and psychosocial factors, each of which interacts with all of the others. Physical conditions, for example, include such things as architecture, construction, and learning space design, while psychosocial conditions are the elements of the learning environment that are created by, for example the school management structure, the quality of the relationships between teachers and students, and among all of the members of the learning community. The psychosocial aspects of a learning environment are sometimes called the classroom or school social climate. Because they are not always visible, many of these components are barely noticed until something goes seriously wrong, such as an increase in dropouts, outbreaks of violence, evidence of substance abuse, health problems and/or a serious dip in test scores.
- Learning environments are like living organisms that can and do change from day to day. Some components of these environments are natural, while others are created by people, most often by people that have a stake in the education system; these stakeholders include everyone from parents to bus drivers to guidance counselors and coaches to principals and politicians–all have important roles. In the implementation of social and emotional learning, however, it is teachers who create optimal conditions for SEL to occur, even though some aspects of creating the learning environment may be outside of their control. For example, teachers are, unfortunately, not often included in decisions about the architectural design of schools and classrooms, but can do a lot to make the interior of the teaching space supportive and welcoming.
- The answer is, rIght at the heart, in the place where the physical and psychosocial conditions of the environment intersect. But SEL does not occupy that space by itself. Learning of academic knowledge and skills and SEL are both strongly influenced by all components of a learning environment--by the way the learning space is shaped, what kind of visual aids and pictures hang on the walls, by the way teachers relate to their students, by the tone of voice a principal may use to speak with a parent. In a supportive and welcoming learning environment, SEL can be integrated into daily classroom and school interactions in ways that are both meaningful and sustained. This means that teachers, administrators, counselors, safety officers and lunchroom staff all need to be on board, using consistent approaches to dealing with students on a daily basis, and especially when problems arise.
- The simple answer is ‘everywhere’. As we pointed out in Module 1, it is already there, to a greater or lesser extent, but it is not usually visible or systematic. Instead, SEL competencies and skills often lie buried in the ‘hidden’ curriculum, where they can easily be overlooked and not taken very seriously, especially as students transition into middle and secondary levels. Until recently, there have not been many attempts to integrate SEL into official school curricula in a coordinated, sequenced and explicit way. SEL competencies consist of skills, knowledge, behaviors, values and attitudes that can be learned and strengthened over the course of schooling from the foundations of early childhood and early grades upward through the middle years, where the focus may shift more to individual subjects and skill areas, and on to higher levels of the curriculum, where the focus may shift again to real world applications. Embedding SEL skills from lower to higher levels is called vertical integration, but integration also happens across levels, or horizontally. This means building and reinforcing generic skills like focusing attention and resilience across learning areas and contextualizing skills such as teamwork, caring for others, and resolving conflicts as they apply to learning within subject areas like language arts, science, mathematics, social studies, and physical education.
- Of course not, but neither can any single course of action, and many factors that shape the learning environment are outside the control of teachers and parents. SEL cannot, for example, change the physical conditions of a school or prevent attacks in situations of armed conflict, or eliminate the threat of mass shootings by deranged individuals with guns. As with many aspects of the learning environment, school safety is determined by many contributing factors, both internal and external. Legislation, law enforcement, school architecture and security protocols all have an important role.
- Different rules apply in different situations, but it is safe to predict that certain SEL skills generally do enable students to act calmly and effectively in the event of accidents, natural disasters or other threats to students’ safely and well-being. For example, if children are able to self-manage their emotions, it is more likely they will be able to stay calm and communicate effectively in situations of emergency. The sample illustration here integrates SEL into a supplementary reading lesson for Ugandan primary school children by including simple instructions on what to do when a friend is injured. It is also important for children to build on core SEL skills by gaining specific knowledge of how to recognize warning signs and to act in the types of emergencies that are most likely to occur in their area, which is to say where the likelihood of certain types of natural disasters—earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunami, lightning strikes—and, sadly, how to prepare for and protect themselves and others in the event of terrorist attacks or mass shootings.
- Only partially, and not by itself. Yes, SEL does have a strong role in creating inclusive school cultures, and we will explore this topic in much more detail in Module 5. BUT, SEL does not and cannot replace individualized and specialized instructional support for students with special needs.
- As the saying goes, “the walls have ears”. Yes, the physical components seem to absorb the voices of the living beings within them. It is even more evident, though, that the walls (and what we put on them) are capable of sending strong messages, as are the shapes, colors and other interior features of learning spaces. The children who created this wall poster had a clear message in mind for new students. Messages of this kind may be fixed or temporary, as transmitted by electronic signs, loudspeaker announcements, bells and bulletin boards. What kinds of messages are transmitted by components of the learning environment at your school?
- As in Module 1, look over the list of examples of SEL strategies from around the world. Could any of these be adapted for use in your classroom, school and community? Add to the list with some of your own strategies with the same or similar objectives. If possible, share your ideas with colleagues and write them down in detail. Encourage others to try them out and report their observations. As the practice grows, you may want to design a simple method for collecting, filing and storing copies of SEL strategies by (1) level and (2) objective for easy access by all teachers.
- Self checkout answers: emotional awareness a supportive school climate integrate SEL into subject based lessons all of the above sharing of locally produced teacher resources Yes, to some extent