Giving Compass' Take:

· Ross Wiener, commissioner of the Aspen Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development, has some cautionary thoughts for schools implementing social-emotional learning.

· What are some of the biggest concerns when implementing SEL? What are independent factors in schools that influence the way students adopt SEL?

· Read more about implementing social-emotional learning.

The other day, I shared some cautionary thoughts by Robert Pondiscio warning that we not allow social and emotional learning (SEL) to enshrine therapy at the expense of academics. Well, at the same symposium where Robert offered that caution, Ross Wiener, vice president at Aspen and a commissioner of the Aspen Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development, offered some complementary thoughts on what it takes to implement SEL in a way that values academics and avoids the things that Robert feared. I asked Ross if he minded my sharing his take, and he kindly agreed. Here's what he had to say:

  1. First, effective SEL instruction involves many factors.
  2. Second, social-emotional development happens in the context of a school and the community it serves. There is no one-size-fits-all approach to developing students’ social-emotional and cognitive competencies.
  3. Third, policy should prioritize conditions for learning, not individual, student-level skills. It won’t surprise many parents or teachers that students’ sense of safety, belonging, and purpose in school profoundly influences student engagement, effort—and learning outcomes.
  4. Fourth, principal and teacher preparation, licensure, and supervision should emphasize educators’ role in fostering social-emotional development. Teachers don’t only convey content, they also influence students’ engagement and persistence, behavior, and social-emotional skills.
  5. Fifth, assessments should be more like work that is valued outside of school. Out in the world, people care about what you know and they care about how you interact with them and with others, whether you can navigate teams and interpersonal dynamics, how well you handle critical feedback, etc.

This strikes me as the kind of thoughtful, informed guidance that can help avoid the potential pitfalls that lie ahead for SEL. Now, I certainly am not sure I accept all of this. For instance, I’ve already got a raft of concerns about preparation and licensure, and I’m not at all optimistic about what happens if SEL gets folded in. But, I can wholeheartedly say that, if educators and community leaders take Ross’s advice to heart, the odds that the SEL push stays on the rails will markedly increase.

Read the full article about implementing social-emotional learning by Frederick M. Hess at AEI.