The Importance of Teaching Social-Emotional Skills in Schools
The Need for Social-Emotional Learning
New Yorkers care that our students are educated in core subjects like reading, math, science, and history, but we also expect and deserve more. We want our young people to know how to resolve conflict, build community, and create connection. These skills are as basic as reading, writing, and arithmetic. The skills that help students develop and restore relationships, improve decision-making, solve problems, and communicate effectively are social-emotional skills. Let’s teach them.
Teaching Conflict Resolution
We in public schools teach our kids about conflict, an unavoidable fact of life for everyone, from loving spouses to rival politicians. This is why it’s less important to eliminate conflict than to teach ways to resolve it constructively. Society’s collective success is tied to our ability to navigate conflict effectively, consider multiple perspectives, create opportunities for consensus, and solve problems for the common good.
Building Community
Approaches like restorative practices teach young people the value of community, how to navigate conflict, and how to make amends for the impacts of their decisions on their peers and teachers. When we succeed in this work, our students learn that they are valuable to us. They realize they won’t be discarded or excluded when they make poor decisions, but are worthy of the time and effort it takes to teach them more effective ways of solving problems. They see they have a place in our city.
Creating Connection
We are still in the midst of an unprecedented mental health crisis for adolescents, with 78% of New York City teachers saying students’ mental health is worse than before the pandemic, suspensions increasing for students across the city, and parents calling for more social-emotional learning for their children. Teaching social-emotional skills leads to a stronger school climate, an increased sense of belonging in schools, less emotional distress, and improved mental health for students up to 20 years after they learn these concepts and skills.
The Benefits of Social-Emotional Learning
By embracing social-emotional learning throughout New York City Public Schools, we can contribute to the public good. We can disrupt the school-to-prison pipeline that disproportionately affects students from marginalized communities. We can empower every child in our schools to show concern for someone, think before they act, resolve disagreements, get along well with different types of people, and learn from experience. We can increase academic outcomes, improve workforce readiness, decrease mental health challenges for our students, and ensure our children know that their social-emotional development is worth our time and is in the interest of all public schools, because it is in the interest of New Yorkers as a whole.
Conclusion
The skills that help students develop and restore relationships, improve decision-making, solve problems, and communicate effectively are social-emotional skills. Let’s teach them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is social-emotional learning?
A: Social-emotional learning is the process of developing skills that help students develop and restore relationships, improve decision-making, solve problems, and communicate effectively.
Q: Why is social-emotional learning important?
A: Social-emotional learning is important because it helps students develop skills that are essential for success in both personal and professional life.
Q: What are some examples of social-emotional skills?
A: Examples of social-emotional skills include conflict resolution, community building, and connection, as well as self-awareness, self-regulation, and social awareness.
Q: How can schools implement social-emotional learning?
A: Schools can implement social-emotional learning through approaches like restorative practices, social-emotional learning programs, and teacher training.
