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Student Well-Being
Topic

Social and Emotional Learning

Social and emotional learning occurs when teachers and school staff help students develop the interpersonal skills they need to succeed in school and work. This skill-building happens in the course of everyday instruction, when teachers pause to encourage students to pose a question in a more respectful tone, imagine how others feel, take a deep breath to calm themselves down, break a goal into manageable pieces and more. Social and emotional self-management is thought to set the stage for productive, cooperative learning.
Commentary
September 26, 2022

We need to fix professional development for teachers

Instead of long, arduous training about content they are already experts in, schools should offer training that is engaging and focused on content enrichment.

Kati Begen
Commentary
August 23, 2022

To solve our mental health crisis, give more children equal access to play

Many public schools have defunded sports programs, and most offer physical education just a few days a week, reinforcing a pay-to-play youth sports culture with few free and low-cost opportunities at a time when they are most needed.

Renata Simril 
Discipline
August 19, 2022

Hope, relief and lessons learned: Teachers anticipate a smoother school year 

EdSource roundtable put a spotlight on teachers' challenges and expectations for the year.

Carolyn Jones
Commentary
July 6, 2022

Berkeley High foils attack but schools still need help to keep students safe

Students at Berkeley High — and every other school in the United States — are being made to feel less safe by a Supreme Court intent on expanding “gun rights.”

Louis Freedberg
Los Angeles Unified
June 22, 2022

Strategic plan aims to prepare students for life beyond Los Angeles Unified

Superintendent Alberto Carvalho's plan, which aims to create a foundation for student success, will shape district priorities for the next four years.

Kate Sequeira
Student Well-Being
June 9, 2022

Can arts education help kids heal from the trauma of the pandemic?

The arts can be a safe haven for California schoolchildren to face big emotions, experts say, to channel fears and frustrations into acts of creativity.

Karen D'Souza
Commentary
May 10, 2022

Reframing school as an identity playground: A space for exploration and affirmation

When students are encouraged to explore exactly who they are and who their classmates are — and not to expect everyone to conform to one homogenous view of the world — school becomes not just a place of education, but one of humanity.

Leigh Dela Victoria
Commentary
March 22, 2022

Graduate profiles help districts prepare students for college and careers

California school districts are developing "graduate profiles" that help focus teaching and learning on ensuring students can think critically and creatively, collaborate with others, tackle real problems and contribute to society.

Roman Stearns and Mary Perry
Student voices
February 28, 2022

How adults can help youth avoid violence, maintain mental health

Supportive relationships with adults in their lives can help youth weather pandemic-related stress and steer clear of abusive relationships.

Angel Quintanilla
Commentary
December 7, 2021

What’s the point of high school? Where I teach, it's more than a diploma

We need to get back to the reasons teachers start teaching in the first place: to support students, to inspire futures and to create fulfilled adults.

Laura Ochoa
Commentary
November 2, 2021

Why controversial issues must still be taught in U.S. classrooms

Teaching controversial issues is a cornerstone of democratic education and a powerful vehicle for developing independent thinking, civic reasoning and discourse in all subjects.

Judith L. Pace and Wayne Journell
Commentary
October 26, 2021

Rebuilding community: Simpler than it sounds, harder than it looks

After the devastating emotional and mental toll of the pandemic, it is almost unthinkable to imagine asking students to learn to read, play an instrument, or solve algebra equations without first rebuilding a nurturing and safe environment.

Tony Solina
Federal Education Policy
October 25, 2021

For months, California private schools have been waiting for 'emergency' Covid aid

Delay by the California Department of Education is denying vital services for students, creating a budget squeeze for urban Catholic schools.

John Fensterwald
Commentary
October 10, 2021

You can't have meaningful civic engagement without social and emotional skills

Young people need role models. That means that educators, families, and policymakers must show what it looks like to have empathy, to solve problems collaboratively, and to insist on perspective-taking.

Karen Niemi
Commentary
September 26, 2021

Healthy Kids Survey data belong on the California School Dashboard

We cannot talk about post-pandemic change in schools without considering the views of the families and students we serve.

Thomas Courtney