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

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

School Finance

September 23, 2021

Staffing shortage delays ambitious program to extend school day and year in California

Low-income districts have priority funding for a nine-hour day and 30-day summer school; lacking staff, they'll have an extra year to plan.

John Fensterwald

Commentary

September 17, 2021

Showing we care: Centering 'cariño' in the return to in-person learning

As we enter yet a new phase of the pandemic, we must prioritize care and compassion for our students, families and educators.

Louie F. Rodriguez

Learning Well: Beyond the Pandemic

August 24, 2021

How California teachers are welcoming back English learners — with language and community

Some teachers are focused on giving students who are learning English as a second language lots of time to talk and write about their feelings.

Zaidee Stavely

Quick Guides

August 17, 2021

Pandemic prompts grief support in schools | Quick Guide

An ACLU survey in March found that more than 30% of students said they’d lost someone close to them over the past year.

Betty Márquez Rosales

Student Well-Being

July 15, 2021

In LA, secretary of education says students need help with social and emotional health

Cardona was in Los Angeles to emphasize the need for students to reconnect with one another after a year spent mostly in isolation.

Michael Burke

Student voices

May 13, 2021

Finding our voices, and our research skills, during the pandemic

Surveying their peers provided high school students with unique insights on the effects of the pandemic.