June 2021 Newsletter
SEL in Practice
From Your Editor-of-the-Month
Giancarlo Brotto
The June Karanga newsletter is here! This month we bring you a special focus on social and emotional learning in practice!
In this edition you will hear about the important role of adults, the importance of integrating SEL into all learning experiences, how adopting evidenced-based programs is a key strategy for providing consistent SEL opportunities for learners and as well hear 5 common global obstacles found amongst those currently adopting SEL practices in their learning environments.
You will also learn about these and other incredible initiatives and resources from around the globe:
HundrEd and Lego Foundation - identifying and selecting 10–20 of the most innovative, impactful, and scalable education programs fostering SEL skills in children around the world.
CASEL – 2021 guide to effective social and emotional learning programs that help identify SEL programs that have been reviewed for consistency and quality of program delivery.
EASEL Lab - analysis to identify key features and attributes of the 25 leading SEL programs so that district and school leaders have a detailed, research-based tool to make informed decisions about what to use in their context.
Explore SEL – a product of the EASEL Lab Taxonomy Project to help you explore, connect and comparing SEL frameworks and skills.
SEL in Education Club on Clubhouse – weekly ongoing conversations sharing ideas, strategies, research and challenges around implementing SEL in education.
Hope you enjoy the incredible insight from this month's contributors.
Giancarlo Brotto
Steering Committee Member - Karanga
Cofounder - Catalyst
Global Education Advisor - SMART
4 'Musts' for Increasing Children's Social and Emotional Capabilities Globally
How can we increase social and emotional skills in children throughout the globe in a systematic way? HundrED and the Lego Foundation have partnered up to identify solutions that help parents and educators support the development of children’s social and emotional skills.
We invited two leading experts, Stephanie M. Jones, professor and director of EASEL Labat Harvard Graduate School of Education, and Joan Lombardi, the first Deputy Assistant Secretary for Early Childhood during the Obama Administration and the first Director of the Child Care Bureau during the Clinton Administration, to have a conversation with us. They shared four elemental ‘musts’ that we as a global education community have to consider if we want to get serious about increasing social-emotional capabilities around the world.
2021 Guide to Evidence-based Social and Emotional Learning Programs
Adopting an evidence-based program is one of the key strategies for providing consistent social and emotional learning (SEL) opportunities for students. Research shows that evidence-based SEL programs promote students’ social and emotional development and increase academic performance. In practice, school districts and schools increasingly use programs as part of a comprehensive approach to SEL implementation that permeates the entire system - from strengthening school climate to integrating SEL into core academic instruction. For example, hear from El Paso Independent School District in Texas on how they developed meaningful relationships with staff, families, and students to select districtwide programs.
Has your community invested in an SEL program? Do you need support in finding one that meets your community’s needs? The 2021 edition of the CASEL Guide to Effective Social and Emotional Learning Programs can help, identifying 77 SEL programs that have been reviewed for consistency and quality of program delivery.
Programs that apply to be reviewed by CASEL are designated as SELect, Promising, or SEL-Supportive. Explore the free guide to filter programs in terms of local priorities, compare multiple programs, and determine opportunities for training and implementation support for school and district staff. Learn more: https://pg.casel.org
To better understand how evidence-based programs fit into a systemic approach to SEL, check out our free guiding frameworks for school districts and for schools.
Carolina Herrera
Director of Communications
CASEL.org Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning
Navigating Social and Emotional Learning from the Inside Out
The EASEL Lab, led by Stephanie Jones at the Harvard Graduate School of Education, has developed a number of practical tools and resources that provide information about social and emotional skills and competencies, relevant frameworks, as well as effective strategies, practices and programs that enable stakeholders to make informed decisions as they plan, implement, and assess SEL initiatives in their schools and communities. Read this article to find more information about these tools and resources, as well as how to access them.
5 Global Obstacles to SEL in Practice
Throughout this turbulent past year, educators fully embraced the importance of social emotional learning (SEL) - for themselves and their students. For those who have been committed to SEL for decades, this has been a welcome shift in education. Even though hundreds of programs, initiatives, and frameworks support SEL integration within educational organizations, we know significant challenges remain to achieve comprehensive, sustained implementation.
To uncover these challenges, we hosted several conversations on the world’s most popular audio-only platform, Clubhouse, through the SEL in EducationClub. Hundreds of attendees listened live as we conducted thirty-five informal conversations with educators spanning the United States, Canada, India, Romania, Britain, South Africa, China and more…what did we learn? We identified five obstacles that remained constant across location and grade level:
Increasing Awareness
Getting "Buy-in" and Building Capacity
"Finding" time
Collaborating with Families and Community Members
Monitoring SEL Growth Among Students
Our next SEL Global Leadership Series event is taking place this July 7! Karanga's very own Dominic Regester will be joined by Karanga colleagues Ana Rold (Diplomatic Courier) and Mark Herbert (British Council) for a fascinating discussion on SEL and International Relations
Register here
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
“Education’s Achilles Heel: Achieving High-Quality Implementation”
Karanga is an alliance of individuals and organizations committed to advocating for and supporting social and emotional learning programs within formal and non-formal education. Our vision is of a thriving world where all learners are enabled with the skills to succeed in school, work, and life.
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