Social, Emotional
and Behavioral Learning:
A Way Of Thinking and
A Set of Practices. (not a program) "What does it look
like, sound like, feel like?" asks a skeptic. We've created
two scenarios based on real experience, to address that
question.
"We're All In This Together" Elementary
School has four hundred students in a suburban location
that has an increasingly urban profile.
On our tour we learn that:
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Three years ago the School Improvement Team adopted a five-year plan to infuse Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Learning into every aspect of school life. |
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All students who reside in the school's district attend the school. There are no out-of-school placements except for emergencies. |
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All adult personnel have received professional development in Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports and the school now has a Universal Team, a Targeted Team, and an Intensive Team to address the needs of every student. Each team includes parents and family members, students, and representatives of community organizations and agencies. |
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The school has adopted the Restitution model of discipline, based on a book by Janet Gossen. |
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All new personnel have a mentor to help them acculturate to the school's beliefs and practices. |
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Every new student is immediately connected to a peer helping team. |
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The school is ranked "High Achieving and Improving." |
We observe:
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Welcomers at the school's entrances, greeting everyone as they enter. |
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A wall of pictures on the front corridor that includes everyone in the school community. |
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Adults in the offices and the halls greeting students by name. |
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A mural in the corridor, "Ways We Build COMMUNITY at 'We're All In This Together' Elementary School." |
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Older students walking with younger students. |
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Posters everywhere - "Our ONE School Rule: Everyone Has Responsibility For Herself/Himself. Everyone Has SOME Responsibility For Everyone Else." |
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Physical space organized in many configurations - rows of desks, circles of chairs, clusters of desks, learning centers - determined by the function of the activity taking place. |
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Student work displayed everywhere. |
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A Parent Resource Room. |
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Students facilitating class meetings. |
In the classrooms we hear:
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"Let's take five minutes to check in with each other this morning before beginning our academic work." |
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"What do we have in common?" |
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"How can we work together so that everyone achieves 100% proficiency on the spelling test?" |
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"Will someone help me? " |
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"Take a few minutes to reflect on your behavioral skills in your "'Self-Management' journals." |
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"You don't have to like someone to be able to work with them." |
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"I understand that you're upset about what your sister said to you. What can you do to manage the feelings so that you can get on with your work?" |
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"How did you help strengthen our classroom community today?" |
On the playground and in the cafeteria we hear:
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"Want to sit with us?" |
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"We're getting a fun game together. Come on and play!" |
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"Let's meet the new kid." |
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"The Peer Helping Network is meeting during lunch today." |
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"Let's talk about it." |
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"Think it over before you do something to get in trouble." |
We feel:
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Welcome |
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Stimulated |
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Hopeful |
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Affirmed |
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Energized |
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Like the educators we want to be |
"In Flux" Middle
School has eight hundred students in the heart of the city.
Here we learn:
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The school is ranked "under-performing and improving." |
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Last year they reduced out of-school suspensions by 60% by instituting a learning center, a short-term alternative environment for students who present behavioral problems that are not dangerous or illegal. |
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A third of the teachers and paraprofessionals have attended professional development on Restitution discipline and some are using this approach in their classrooms. |
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The new principal has made the improvement of the school climate a top priority. |
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The social worker and the school resource officer have organized a voluntary anger management group for "repeat performers and the initial results are promising. |
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All adults who work in the school, students and some parents have learned how to read and to interpret the school's SALT data.
(School accountibility for Learning and Teaching) |
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Two teachers, a teaching assistant, and a counselor have helped thirty seventh graders organize a Peer Helping Network that welcomes newcomers and watches out for students who are isolated or marginalized. |
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Three special education teachers and five regular education teachers have formed a teaching collaborative. |
We see:
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Inspirational posters created by students all over the school. |
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New students being interviewed by their peers during class meetings |
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A notice, "Learn More About Restitution Discipline: A Workshop Presented By Your Peers Thursday, November 14 at 2:30. Stipends Available Through The Professional Development Fund." |
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A mix of general education and special needs students engaged in a cooperative learning project. |
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Enlarged charts of SALT data on "safe and supportive environment" posted on corridor walls with the question, "What can we do to improve our school climate? Join the School climate Committee and have your voice heard." |
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Students working on their digital portfolios that include academic, social, emotional, and behavioral artifacts. |
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A meeting of the Peer Helping Network beginning to plan the orientation of next year's sixth grade. |
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A counselor co-teaching a lesson on decision making with the health teacher. |
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The principal and assistant principal visiting many classrooms and walking the corridors throughout the day. |
We hear:
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"OK. Let's talk about the problem before you decide what to do." |
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"Yeah, I'll work with him." |
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"I know you think it's boring, but we have to do it, so let's spend a minute on the 'boring' feeling and then move on." |
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"The data shows that bus behavior has improved a lot since September." |
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"The climate's important and it's the test scores that make the headlines." |
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"I don't know. I'll find out." |
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"Before we talk about his problems, let's talk about his strengths." |
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"What can you teach me about your culture. I'd like to learn and you're the expert." |
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"You made a mistake and now you have a chance to make amends and start over." |
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"We've made progress and we have a long way to go." |
We feel:
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Encouraged |
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Safe |
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Surprised |
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Curious |
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Optimistic |
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Willing |
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A little overwhelmed |
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