building enduring resilience: social- emotional, character ......new jersey social studies standards...
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Building Enduring Resilience: Social-Emotional, Character, and Climate
DimensionsMaurice J. Elias, Ph.D.
Dept. of Psychology, Rutgers University
Director, Rutgers Social-Emotional and Character Development Lab(www.secdlab.org) @SECDLab
Co-Director, The Academy for Social-Emotional Learning in Schools (SELinSchools.org) @SELinSchools
www.edutopia.org/profile/maurice-j-elias
Center for Great Expectations 3rd Annual Trauma at the Core ConferenceThe College of New Jersey, Ewing, NJ
December 6, 2019
What Are We Preparing Our Children For: The Context of Resilience
www.youtube.com/watch?v=QpEFjWbXog0&t=10s
One constant will be the importance of caring interpersonal relationships, civil
discourse, and a commitment to democratic citizenship and
the skills to enact it.
We cannot learn without caring relationships.
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/17/opinion/learning-emotion-education.html
True academic and life success integrates the intellectual, emotional, and social facets of learning. These are inextricably interconnected.
The Foundation of Resilience:Climate, Character, and SEL Competencies
Positive, Character-Building
School Climate
Explicit Instruction
in SEL Skills + +
Habits of mind and patterns of thinking
that include curiosity, explaining
their reasoning, feedback process, asking questions, and defining and solving problems,
and striving to communicate
clearly and proudly.Reference: Aspen SEAD Commission Best Practice Guidelines
LifeSuccess
Self‐awareness
Social awareness
Relationshipskills
Responsible decision making
Self‐management
Form positiverelationships, work
in teams, deal effectively with conflict
Make ethical, constructive
choices about personal and social
behavior
Manage emotions and behaviors to achieve one’s goals
Show understanding and empathy for others
Recognize one’s emotions, values, strengths, and
limitations
The SEL Competencies Supported by the NJ State Board of Education Resolution, August 2017
Sample Activities in Handout
We Must Shift Our Focus• Preparation for College
Completion“+” and Career Continuity
Ready, Willing, and Able– Savitz-Romer & BouffardClosing the Revolving Door– Rutgers Collaborative
Center
Good Science Links SECD to the Following Student Gains:• Social‐emotional skills
• Improved attitudes about self, others, and school
• Positive classroom behavior
• 10‐11 percentile‐point gains on standardized achievement tests
And Reduced Risks for Failure:• Conduct problems
• Aggressive behavior
• Emotional distress
Source: Durlak, J.A., Weissberg, R.P., Dymnicki, A.B., Taylor, R.D., & Schellinger, K. (2011). The Impact of Enhancing Students’ Social and Emotional Learning: A Meta-Analysis of School-Based Universal Interventions. Child Development. (available at www.casel.org) and M. Berkowitz & M. Bier, What works in character education. (Washington, DC: Character
Education Partnership, 2006) (available at www.characterandcitizenship.org.)
Benefits of SECD
Our Guiding Beliefs• How we treat children in all aspects of our
contact with them ‐as parents, teachers, clinicians, policy makers or advocates ‐matters, including many small things that add up to make a big difference.
• What matters most is the extent to which we act with respect, challenge, caring, safety, civility and encouragement of opportunity and resilience.
• All children can succeed. Do we really believe it, and are we ready to act on that belief with no alibis, no excuses, and no exceptions?
The Challenge of Resilience: We Must Turn our Jumbled Schoolhouses into Places that Synergistically Promote Social-Emotional and Character Development (SECD)
A Jumbled and Fragmented Schoolhouse
A School of Social-Emotional Competence &
Character
SECD
Health, MH Ed
ATOD
Ed
Violence
Prev
Character EdService Learning
Sex EdAcademic Skills and Multiple Literacies
SCHOOL-FAMILY-COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
Sex Ed
Health, MH Ed
Violence
Prev
ATOD Ed
Academic Skills,Literacies Families
Community Involvement
School-Wide Efforts
Rethink Trauma• All learning must be trauma-informed• This is a continuum, not an absolute based
on SES or race/ethnicity• Better: all learning must be emotion-
informed• Schools must not inflict additional trauma on
students• Schools and communities and wider social
institutions are responsible for minimizing trauma and the disproportionality of trauma
“ All SEL Should Be Trauma-Informed”:PDK Nov. 2019, v.101 (3), 37-41
• “Those who design SEL programs cannot assume they will be implemented under the best of circumstances, in schools where past initiatives were introduced with great care and fidelity, and where teachers and staff remain confident in the change process. Rather, implementation plans should allow for the likelihood that local students are coping with varying kinds of trauma, and that local educators are suffering from some amount of reform fatigue.”
“ All SEL Should Be Trauma-Informed”:PDK Nov. 2019, v.101 (3), 37-41
• “That’s why it’s critically important for implementation efforts to be led by at least a few individuals in key leadership positions who are committed not just to bringing SEL into the school but also to pushing through initial obstacles, recognizing that overworked, overstressed, and quite possibly traumatized teachers and staff may be reluctant to sign on to something new (Elias, 2010). And the more unstable the school environment, the more important it will be for leaders to carve out the time, space, and resources people need in order to become familiar with SEL, air their questions and concerns about it, and become invested in the work. This means that while the urgency is high, the pace of change must be tempered in light of trauma-informed realities. Only slow and steady will win the race.”
Teach SECD/Performance
CharacterCompetencies
P ,
ProvideOpportunities for
Positive Contributions, Recognition, and
A Sense of PurposeAnd Pride in BeingPart of the SchoolFor ALL Children
Prevention:Less Risky
Behavior, More Assets, &Positive
Development
GreaterAttachment,
Engagement, & Commitmentto Schools of
Character
BetterResilience
and Success in Schooland Life
Evidence-Based SECDProgrammingand Promising
Practicesto Support The Whole
Child and All Children
W
Safe, Caring, Cooperative,
Well-Managed Learning
Environments
Resilience Comes from a Confluence of SECD and Supportive School and Community
Environments
LifeSuccess
Self‐awareness
Social awareness
Relationshipskills
Responsible decision making
Self‐management
Form positive relationships, work in teams, deal effectively with conflict
Make ethical, constructive choices about personal and social behavior
Show understandin
g and empathy for
others
Recognize one’s emotions, values, strengths, and limitations Manage emotions
and behaviors to achieve
one’s goals
Integration of CASEL and CCE Frameworks: Singapore Model of SECD
SEL4NJ Guidelines for the Culture of a Learning Organization
• INSPIRING…………………of one another • CHALLENGING…………..take risks to improve• SUPPORTIVE…………….collective efficacy• SAFE AND HEALTHY……others’ keepers• ENGAGED…………………collaborative norms• RESPECTFUL……………...no-fear communication• COMMUNITIES OF LEARNERS…set and pursue
goals for learning together• It all begins with the first day of school and persists every day thereafter!
• See: http://selinschools.org/new-jersey-culture-and-climate-coalition/
Basic to Humanity: Belief in Oneself as an Agent of Positive
(Noble) Purpose
The intention to accomplish
something that is both:
Personally meaningful
In service of a greater, non-destructive
good
Human Dignity is the Guide on the Path to Positive Purpose
It did not really matter what we expected from life, but rather what life expected of us.
Viktor FranklIf you believe you are here for a purpose, your
energies will be focused. A sense of mission will give you strength. You will do remarkable things.
Rabbi Lord Jonathan SacksThe two most important days of your life are the day
you were born and the day you know why.Mark Twain
Research Foundations of Resilience and SELSupport the Circle of Courage
The Circle of CourageBelongingOpportunity to establish
trusting connections
MasteryOpportunity to solve
problems and meet goals
IndependenceOpportunity to build self
control and responsibility
GenerosityOpportunity to show
respect and concern
SEL ResearchSignificanceThe individual believes
“I matter because we all are interdependent.”
CompetenceThe individual believes
“I am an effective problem solving and I can overcome obstacles.”
PowerThe individual believes
“I have efficacy.”
VirtueThe individual believes
“My life has purpose.”
Resilience ResearchAttachmentMotivation to affiliate and form
social bonds
AchievementMotivation to work hard and
attain excellence
AutonomyMotivation to manage self and
exert influence
AltruismMotivation to help and be of
service to others
The Search for Meaning and Purpose
• Parker Palmer and Rachael Kessler, (1999 issue of Educational Leadership devoted to spirituality) have spent a great deal of time with adolescents and these are among the most frequent questions they have heard:
Adolescents’ Key Questions• How does my life have meaning and purpose?• What gifts do I have that the world wants and
needs?• To what or whom do I feel most deeply
connected?• How can I rise above my fears and doubts?• How do I deal with the suffering of my family, my
friends, others in the world, myself?• What or whom is it that awakens or touches the
spirit within me?
Inspiration Precedes Remediation• Adolescents are entering a search that will
continue throughout their lives, as they author their identity through their deeds.
• Each of these big questions-- about purpose, gifts, connection, fears, suffering, and personal spirit– represents a connection to purpose and meaning and a key deterrent to problem behaviors, as well as to recovery.
• Inspiration precedes remediation.
Help Youth Understand Their Purpose
Trajectory of Purpose-Related Activities• Level One: The Positive Purpose of a Well-
Known Individual– via picture book, fiction, biography, social studies, current events
• Level Two: The Positive Purpose of a Personally-Known Individual– local hero, community leader, clergy, first responder, family members, educators
• Level Three: My Positive Purpose• Principal Kafele https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U98d6CQbz4s
Formalizing goal-setting in school toward Positive Purpose
• Set the expectation- do on a half-year or marking period basis-- 3 goals to:
• Make myself better• Make my classroom better• Make my school better• Make the wider community and world
better
Laws of Life/Purpose Essays
• What is the Laws of Life/Purpose Essay?The Value of Expressive Writing
• Case examples: Plainfield Public School District, Plainfield, NJ and Urban Dreams; MOSAIC in Jersey City
• Extending the effects into homes and communities
• Multiple Intelligences Adaptations: VPA
Identify Student’s Broad Priority/Value
• What is one rule that you believe is important to live your life by, that gives your life meaning and purpose?
• When you are at your best, how do you act?
• When do you feel best about what you do for others? What is it that you are doing then?
• Think of someone you admire most. How do they live their lives?
Prompts to Think and Write About Purpose
• (1) “Write about a personal experience where you feel that something you did made a difference” (e.g. family, friends, school, community, or natural environment).
• (2) “Describe how these experiences helped give you a sense of purpose.”
• (3) “How will your continue working toward this purpose?”
Integration of Purpose/Other Virtues into Academics: Fill in the Blanks
Positive Purpose
LanguageArts
Art/Music
Math/Science
Health/PE/Sports
Social Studies
SECD Lessons,Prevention
Connect to goals and exemplars
Keep the Focus on Building a Climate of Empathy and Kindness: Fill in the Blanks
Empathy/Kindness/
Insensitivity
Reading Art
Math/Other Subject
Written Expression
Social Studies
Classroom and School Settings,Formal and In-
formal
Turn Your Students from Complainers to Activists, from Bystanders to
Upstanders, From Defeated to Engaged• Teach your students a strategy for addressing personal, classroom, school, community, or global problems or issues
• Align with Social Studies/Civics/History Instruction, and Clubs
• Consider running Social Action Groups instead of remediation groups
The Possibilities for Youth Action Are Greater Than We Might Realize
The Path to Purpose: Acting With Caring for Others’ Benefit
One thing I know: The only ones among you who will be really happy are those who will have sought and found
how to serve.Albert Schweitzer
If you are not a better person tomorrow than you are today, what need have you for a tomorrow?
Nachman of Breslov
Everyone can be great because everyone can serve.Martin Luther King, Jr.
New Jersey Social Studies Standards Are Forward Looking and are More than SS Standards
• Mission: Social studies education provides learners with the knowledge, skills, and perspectives needed to become active, informed citizens and contributing members of local, state, national, and global communities in the digital age.
• Vision: An education in social studies fosters a population that:• Is civic minded, globally aware, and socially responsible.• Exemplifies fundamental values of American citizenship through active
participation in local and global communities.• Makes informed decisions about local, state, national, and global events
based on inquiry and analysis.• Considers multiple perspectives, values diversity, and promotes cultural
understanding.• Recognizes the implications of an interconnected global economy.• Appreciates the global dynamics between people, places, and resources.• Utilizes emerging technologies to communicate and collaborate on career
and personal matters with citizens of other world regions.
Focal Social-Emotional Skills Developed in the Students Taking Action Together (STAT) Approach
1. Empathy2. Perspective Taking3. Communication4. Social Problem Solving5. Emotion Regulation
Students Taking Action Together (STAT): The Civility Project
• One of the purposes of STAT is to build students’ SECD to create dialogue and civility among diverse students, and a sense of empowerment and civic engagement.
• Another purpose is to foster deeper thinking and engagement about issues in the classroom, school, community, and world.
Students Taking Action Together (STAT): Partner in Civility
• The STAT approach is ideal for partnerships between school mental health professionals and those teaching social studies and related classes, as well as language arts
• How: Co-teach; support instruction; use STAT approaches in disciplinary and Tier 2 contexts to conduct respectful debates and build communication, problem solving, ability to deal with differences and setbacks, other skills for humane interpersonal effectiveness.
STAT Teaching Strategies
• Norms• Yes-No-Maybe• Respectful Debate• PLAN problem solving framework
Becoming a STAT Leader• Share STAT with colleagues (flyer, website,
documents, formal and informal meetings—staff, grade-level, PLC’s, Social Studies, Teachers’ lounge)
• Model its use in your context, share successes, and offer to co-lead lessons
• Evaluate STAT’s use at the end of each marking period
• Connect with STAT Team at Rutgers for support
Norms• Foundational process for creating safe and
constructive climate• If you already do this, keep doing what you’re
doing! • Student-generated norms• Sample activities: Picture illusion• Tip: Frame norms positively rather than
negatively (i.e. what to do, rather than what notto do)– Example: “Be a respectful listener by paying
attention to the speaker with my eyes and ears.”
Yes-No-Maybe• Key Points:
– 3 versions: current events, historical events, school problems
– Easy and active intro activity for any lesson– Student summarizes what group discussed– Teacher models summarizing the points of all groups
and checks for understanding– Timing: Typically at start of lesson for 5 minutes
• SEL Connection: Social Awareness• YNM Video (up to minute 5:20):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=316&v=7PuPbjGQE0k
Students Should be able to Think, Speak, and Act on Statements Like
These: Yes-No-or Maybe• Students should be more focused on the rest of the world than on our country.
• Students should participate in school committees about bullying, drugs and alcohol, and discipline.
Respectful Debate• Key Points:
– Read nuanced articles (e.g., AllSides: https://www.allsides.com/unbiased-balanced-news)
– Summarize the other side and check for understanding– Switch sides– Timing: Typically one or multiple 45-min classes– Tips:
• Create graphic organizer that has students consider economic, legal, ethical, and scientific arguments
• Create close-ended (vs. open-ended) prompts• Start with simple example (e.g., “Should students have to take tests
in school?”; “Should students be allowed to chew gum in school?”)• Point out “ad hominen” arguments (i.e., personal attacks)
• SEL Connection: Relationship skills
Respectful Debate Prompt• Prompt: Should students be allowed to chew gum in school? • Instructions:
– Randomly divide half the participants into two groups, while the other half observes
– Each side gathers their arguments– Pro side shares out– Con side summarizes pro side, checks for understanding, and shares its
perspective– Switch sides and each side gathers their arguments– Pro side shares out– Con side summarizes pro side, checks for understanding, and shares its
perspective– Debrief: what did you learn? What made you think differently?
• Educators consider: – What might this activity teach us about strong opinions we hold about current
events, historical events, or interpersonal disputes? – How would you consider modifying Yes-No-Maybe, Respectful Debate to fit
your own teaching/counseling situation?
PLAN• Problem Solving Framework (School and community
issues, current events, historical problems)• Acronym:
– Problem description– List goal, options, pros/cons– Action plan (Note: Anticipate obstacles)– Notice successes
• Start with simple example (e.g., Cafeteria food or literature example)
• Timing: Typically multiple 45-minute lessons • Can connect to service-learning and audience-focused
communication• SEL Connection: Responsible decision-making
Examples of STAT in Action
• Example #2: Social Studies/History class
– Topic: the Civil War
Example #2 of STAT in Action
• Consider beginning with a debate, or a Yes-No-Maybe discussion on this question, based on this statement:
All through history, many countries have had slaves. What the South was doing was no
different.• Then, with background reading from your
current curriculum, consider the problem from different perspectives, using the PLAN framework
Example #2 of STAT in Action
• P: How did the North and the South define the problem in the country? What were the issues, from each perspective? Who were the key people involved in making important decisions?
• L: What were their goals? What options did they consider to be acceptable ways to resolve the problem? What did they ultimately decide?
• A: How did they carry out their plan? What obstacles did they encounter? How did they deal with them?
• N: How did it work out? What can be learned from their experiences that are relevant to the present?
Let’s Take a Look at Tier 1 SEL
• Watch the “Smart Hearts” video, at www.edutopia.org
• What sound pedagogical techniques are you seeing to foster skill and virtues development?
Build EQ Realistically in Your Tier 2 Counseling
Complements existing SEL programs your school might be using
Can be used in anEmpowermentModel, e.g., Newspaper Club; Girls Leading Outward
Three Primary EQ Areas• Module 1: Self-Awareness and Self-
Management
• Module 2: Social Awareness and Relationship Skills
• Module 3: Responsible Decision-Making and Problem Solving
Sample Time Frames and Lessons
• If you have a full school year:• Modules 1, 2, and 3, plus the self-evaluation lesson
• If you have 21 or more meetings: • Modules 1 and 2 or Modules 1 and 3, plus the self-evaluation
lesson
• If you have 11 meetings: • Module 1, Module 2, or Module 3, or Skills 1, 3, 5, 7, and 11,
plus the self-evaluation lesson
• If you have 6 meetings:• 1 lesson for each skill of a module, as well as the concluding
lesson of that module, or Skills 1, 2, and 3 (Module 1)
Developing Self-Control (M2, S5, L9)
• Sharing Circle• Ask students to share examples of things they do to calm themselves down• Ask them if they usually use negative self-talk when they are calm
• Skill Introduction• Ask students when it is important for them to be able to control their strong
feelings. • Because self-control is so essential, you will show them strategies in this
lesson and the next one to help them exercise self-control when they most need it.
•• Show and Practice “Belly Breathing,” “Four-Square Breathing,” “Keep Calm”
Developing Self-Control (M2, S5, L9)
• Reflection• Write in EQ journals which breathing strategies they prefer• Ask them to anticipate an upcoming time when they might use these
strategies and what might help them remember to do so.•• Homework• Practice the techniques when calm, in preparation for using the techniques
when they feel strong emotions. – determine good times to do this• Write what happens when they actually try using one of the techniques and
whether it goes well or not.
• Generalizaton:• Reminders are essential. Work with other school staff, parents to provide
prompts to use the skills.
Teach Classrooms and Schools a Self-Calming Strategy
How would you prompt and cue a self-calming strategy for an amnesiac?
“Keep Calm”… derived from Lamaze, used in Social Decision Making
How can We Infuse Keep Calm into our Day?
• Keep Calm Corner?• Common Language/Prompt and
Cue• Reflection• Keep Calm Journals• Other Ideas?
Integration of EQ Skills you work on into lessons, for generalization
FEELINGS
ReadingIdentify how passages
reflect emotions
ArtDraw where people feel emotions; feelings and colors
MathCollect and graph “feelings” data; track emotions during problem solving
Written ExpressionUse feelings vocabulary in journal entries, poetry, essay writing; read
wordless books
Computer Literacy
Computer generated illustrations of feelings;download songs reflecting emotions
SECD LessonsBuild skills via games,videos; practice withrole plays and application
to group work
Integration of EQ Skills you work on into lessons, for generalization
Self-Control
ReadingReading words
carefully, not skipping sentences
ArtBeing careful when staying within lines and spaces
MathReading problemscarefully; Checking
your work
Written ExpressionTaking time to think of the
right words to use; checking and
correcting
Social StudiesLook at historical events
for examples of where peoplewere impatient, acted hastily All Lessons
Discuss in class how students should try to calm
Themselves when upset, frustrated, confused
Assertive Communication(M2, S7, L13)
• “Without mentioning any names, what are the things that people do that show you they are being aggressive, passive, or assertive?”
• Recognize these communication patterns in others
• Practice via video examples or role plays
• A necessary step before improving their own communication skills
Assertive Communication(M2, SX, L1)
• Your BEST Communication Skills • Using your BEST communication skills means using assertive body language, eye
contact, speech, and tone of voice..•• B: Body language: posture and movements. For example, Slouching, standing or
sitting up straight, getting too close to the other person while you’re speaking. •• E: Eye contact: whether you are looking at the other person and how you do so. For
example, rolling your eyes, gazing steadily and calmly? Facial expressions: frowning, scowling; discuss cultural variations
•• S: Speech: the verbal content of your communication. avoid saying things that are
likely to set other people off or make a situation worse (which can happen easily in trigger situations). Beb clear and direct
•• T: Tone of voice: how you sound as you speak. Is the tone calm, whiney, sarcastic,
loud, or hesitant? An assertive tone of voice is moderate, confident, and sincere.
Assertive Communication(M2, S7, L13)
• “When is it hardest for you to be your BEST? Why? What is it about the person, place, time, or situation that makes it hard?”
• Homework: Monitor Trigger Situations and use of BEST skills in situations, especially stressful ones
• Trigger Situation Buster (TSB) Form• Briefly describe the trigger situation that happened. • What feelings did you notice during this situation? • What physical signs of stress did you notice? in your body? • What self-talk were you aware of? • What did you say and do? • What happened after your actions? How did things end up?• Rate how calm and under control were you while the situation was taking place? • Rate whether you used deep/belly breathing and how it went• Rate whether you used four-square breathing and how it went1: I didn’t try it.• Rate how satisfied you were with each element of your BEST skills • What are some things you might do differently or better next time you face this situation or a
similar situation?
Art is Equity• “Art reaches a segment of children
who have not found their way in another specialty. If we can help those kids find themselves in any way possible, then we’ve helped this generation get that much further along in how they will eventually contribute to society.”Heather Becker, Chicago Conservation Center
CEO, February 2009 (Greater Good, p. 30)
Examples of Arts-SECD Integration
•Using art to illustrate artists’ purpose and being an Upstander
• Teaching SEL skills through the arts.
•Using multiple intelligences to express what you know.
• Sample lessons at:• https://www.secdlab.org/supplemental-
lessons-1
John Pitman Weber, TILT (Together Protect the Community), 1976
Academy for Social-Emotional Learning in Schools: SELinSchools.org
• Overarching goals are to address the gap in professional development of school leaders and teachers that exists today and to create a community for on-going mentoring, resource support, and sharing of experiences from walking the talk!
• The Academy offers a virtual Professional Learning Community and two certificate programs.
• Certificate for School Leadership in Social-Emotional Learning and Character Development.
• Certificate for Instruction of Social-Emotional Learning and Character Development. (sel.rutgers.edu)
• Academy Overview Video: http://sel.cse.edu/
What is the Online Professional Development Community?
• A unique feature of the courses and the certificate is participants’ involvement in a virtual Professional Learning Community (vPLC). Beginning with participation in one’s classes and practicum, there is an emphasis on being part of a community of learners who support and assist one-another during the courses– and beyond–in making applications of SEL/SECD and academics for prek-12.
Courage, Persistence, and Support Structures Are Needed to Sustain
Resilience and Character“Don’t let what you
cannot do interfere
with what you can do.”
John Wooden
“The children are
watching.”
Ted Sizer
Contact Information for Materials and Follow Up
• www.secdlab.org/STATwww.secdlab.org/MOSAIC
• The Resource Center at SELinSchools.org• For Support or Questions about Implementation:
Please follow the lab @SECDLab for updates and information on the latest projects and events.
https://twitter.com/SECDLab• For ongoing information about SECD:
• www.edutopia.org/profile/maurice-j-elias