Giving Compass' Take:

• Ross Wiener explains how research has shown that students need a safe school climate in order to learn. 

• How can philanthropy support schools looking to improve their climate? How do current events impact school climate? 

• Learn more about the importance of social-emotional learning.

Every once in a while, a research finding comes along that has paradigm-shifting significance. The University of Chicago recently produced one: principals’ greatest influence on student achievement is through changes in school climate.

This is true across the achievement continuum; that is, principals in both lower- and higher-performing schools contribute to student gains mainly through improvements in school climate.

According to study co-author and director of UChicago’s Consortium for School Research Elaine Allensworth:

A lot of times people think school climate is something you work on and take care of so you can get to the real work of teaching and learning, but what we find is learning is inherently social and emotional. If students don’t feel safe and engaged, they aren’t learning.

This echoes the scientific consensus statements on How We Learn produced by the National Commission on Social, Emotional, and Academic Development’s Council of Distinguished Scientists (and, indeed, it reinforces the very name of this blog: Learning Is Social and Emotional!). These findings validate the National Commission’s focus on safe, inclusive learning environments as critical to improving academic achievement and genuine readiness for college, careers, and life.

Read the full article about school climate by Ross Wiener at The Aspen Institute.