New Brief Examines Social-Emotional Learning in Pre-K

One area of focus for many states is kindergarten readiness. Social-emotional (SE) skills play an important role in a child’s transition from pre-K to kindergarten and his or her engagement in learning. Taking turns, following directions, and paying attention are some examples of SE skills that enable learning and success in and outside of the classroom. Kindergarten teachers continue to cite the importance of social-emotional skills as a key measure of school readiness.

All 50 states currently have social and emotional learning (SEL) standards outlined in their pre-K programs. This nationwide effort speaks to the need to establish and formalize SEL as an integral part of early childhood education. A new brief from The Pennsylvania State University and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provides an overview of existing SEL programs and practices that work. The brief also outlines elements of an effective SEL program.

SEL involves both interpersonal skills - sharing, making friends, empathy - and intrapersonal skills - emotion regulation, goal-setting, problem solving. Some SEL programs choose to focus on one set of skills, while others are all encompassing. Developing SE skills is beneficial for all children, but the impact can be even more powerful for children in low-income communities.

In the presence of significant threat or adversity, children growing up in poverty are more likely to show delays in social and self-regulation skills due to higher levels of stress. These delays hinder learning and can initiate a downward cascade of academic and behavior problems. Teaching SEL to children in low-income communities can close the school readiness gap and build resilience to prepare them for future obstacles.

The brief discusses evidence-based SEL programs that have been shown to promote SE skills in pre-K students. Factors that determine the success of an SEL program include teachers’ classroom management, the quality of teacher-child interactions, high-fidelity implementation, and parental involvement. Regardless of the setting, it is important to use an evidence-based program that focuses on teaching practices that support SE skill development. Comprehensive SEL models that incorporate multiple elements of an effective program lead to more sustained outcomes.

Supportive teacher-child interactions are crucial for SEL programming to be effective. The amount of teacher training has been shown to predict the impact of SEL on children. Teachers must receive professional development to develop practices of positive classroom management and to ensure consistent classroom implementation. For example, the brief cites the Incredible Years Teacher Training Program (IYTTP), which runs monthly workshops on positive classroom management using videotapes of classrooms and group discussions about teacher-child interactions. A randomized-controlled study on IYTTP showed improvements in classroom behavior problems, learning behaviors, and emotional skills. BEST in CLASS is another teacher training program that provides in-class coaching to help teachers apply positive behavioral management strategies. An initial randomized trial also showed a decrease in behavior problems. Teachers hold an important role in the implementation of SEL programs.

A major misconception about SEL is that it is disconnected from academics. In fact, though, SEL interventions lead to positive gains in both SE skills and academic achievement. At the pre-K to kindergarten level, data from the Head Start REDI program show that SEL skills acquisition during pre-K contributes to kindergarten readiness. In the long run, pre-K classrooms that integrate both academic and SE programming leave children equipped with the skills for success that will take them far beyond the classroom.

While evidence-based SEL programming show promising results, there are challenges to program implementation that have to be addressed. First, there needs to be more research on the critical features of SEL programs to help streamline implementation. Many early childhood centers do not have the capacity, time, or money to test out different versions themselves, and this may discourage them from including SEL more deeply in their curriculum. For SEL to be successful, there needs to be extensive effort put into the planning process, while still remaining mindful of the fact that there are other stressors early childhood teachers and centers are managing at the same time.

A second challenge that comes up with program implementation deals with the wide range of formal and informal early childhood programs that serve three- and four-year-olds across the nation. While this report focuses on center-based care, at age four, a quarter of children in non-parental care continue to spend most of their time in informal care. A four-year old who attends a state-funded pre-K program is going to have a different experience than a four-year-old who spends their day at a neighbor’s house. How should we account for these differences when we think about how to bring SEL to all pre-K children?

The next step for promoting SEL in pre-K will be to understand how to scale up the components of SEL programming (curriculum, training, and coaching) across various types of child care settings and to disseminate information to the wide range of providers — who have varying levels of education — working with three- and four-year-olds.

Although there are challenges in strengthening SEL in pre-K classrooms, the brief shows that evidence-based SEL programs are effective in preparing our youngest learners for school and life. Social-emotional and academic learning are inextricably linked, and both types of learning are important to include in our conversations about pre-K.