[MUSIC] Welcome to module five of this third course Expanding SEL, titled Moving Forward: A Critical Examination of the Social Competencies. In module four, we examined how the competencies of self-awareness and self-management are currently framed in SEL programming and ways which we might approach their instruction with a critical lens or an eye to how the competencies are socially and culturally constructed. In this fifth and final module of the third course, woo hoo, we embark on a similar investigation, this time aimed at the two social competencies, social awareness and relationship skills. First, let's briefly review what each of these competencies are. First is social awareness, and this refers to the ability to empathize, feel compassion, take the perspective of others and understand social norms for behavior. Second, we explore relationship skills or the ability to establish and maintain healthy and sustainable relationships. To start, I will discuss how these two social competencies are traditionally framed in the SEL programs. Some of the abilities associated with social awareness include taking the perspective of those with different backgrounds or cultures. Empathizing and feeling compassion. Understanding social norms for behavior. And recognizing family, school, and community resources and support. Similar to how constructs of identity were notably absent from the self-awareness domain we discussed last week, the social awareness competency also benefits from an explicit attempt at developing awareness of how power and privilege operate in social interaction. Additionally, I argue that advocating for others and understanding that social norms for behavior vary across locations and situations are important considerations for developing a more critical approach to SEL. What other possibilities for expansion do you see? >> Let's turn to relationship skills which as explained refers to the tools needed to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships, and to act in accordance with social norms. Some of the abilities associated with this competency include communicating clearly, listening actively, cooperating, resisting inappropriate social pressure, negotiating conflict constructively and seeking help when it is needed. As you complete the readings and activities for this week,consider how these social abilities might be revisited and expanded upon to better reflect and honor the life experiences of students. I'm excited to introduce our two articles from module five, which give us some valuable tools for supporting student social awareness and relationship skills. Dr. Elizabeth Dutro is a friend and colleague of mine from the CU Boulder School of Education. Her article, Children's Testimony and the Necessity of Critical Witness in Urban Classrooms, introduces these key notions of testimony and witnessing. Why testimony and witnessing? I'm guessing that you'd all agree that having trusting, caring relationships with students is an important part of the teachers' job. I definitely do. But when it comes to children growing up in poverty, facing struggles such as having to negotiate new foster families or missing basic necessities such as adequate clothes and food, what does it mean to show care or to earn trust in that situation? For Professor Dutro, the key is to honor the kinds of testimonies that students share about their everyday lives by being a critical witness to their experiences. The article unpacks these ideas of witnessing and shares examples of what it means for a teacher to be a witness to their students' experiences which is key to modelling and sustaining the kinds of social relationships that all children need. >> I'll add that the article does a good job of highlighting the importance of teachers becoming aware of their own biases, assumptions, or judgments about their students. This is especially likely for white teachers who are teaching in communities of color, but not necessarily living in the communities where their students live. Give the article a read to learn some of these new ways to think about building trust and developing caring relationships when your students are going through difficult life circumstances. >> The second article is by Professors Maria Elena Torre and Michelle Fine from the City University of New York. Whereas Elizabeth Dutro's piece focuses on elementary age children, Dr. Torre and Dr. Fine discuss a project to work with a group of high school students, who came together from a diverse range of racial and class backgrounds, for a project called Echoes of Brown. Echoes of Brown is a reference to the Brown vs Board of Education decision of 1954, where the Supreme Court declared that separate public schools for black and white students was unconstitutional. This participatory action research project invited students from different high schools in the New York City metro area to reflect on their school experiences and to do research about the impact of ongoing racial segregation and ability tracking in their schools. I'm excited about this article because like Dr. Dutro's article, it challenges my own thinking about what counts as SEL. Consistent with the theme of this whole course, course three, it encourages us to think about social awareness in a broader context than just relationships between two people. Instead, the article explores what it means for teenagers to develop social awareness of broader systems of racial segregation and inequality in their schools. >> How does it feel to be in segregated classes? How can we challenge each other to question what counts as normal or natural? Most importantly, what are ways that groups of students can work together with teachers to develop ideas about how to challenge aspects of their schools that are unjust or that create barriers for their learning? This teaching approach called Youth Participatory Action Research, or YPAR, is explained by the authors with examples from the Echos of Brown project. I encourage you to ask yourself, as you read the article, what kinds of social awareness and relational skills are the students developing by being a part of this project? >> This article about Echos of Brown gives us examples of the importance of student voice and agency. This is a core research area of mine. How can we create learning environments that foster and sustain student agency? Where they have opportunities to talk about their social worlds, participate in decisions that affect their lives, and even develop creative solutions to complex problems in their schools or communities. I strongly believe that SEL must include this leadership and civic engagement element because social and emotional learning is not just about developing coping strategies to adjust to the world. But also the kinds of proactive leadership skills that enable students to work to improve their schools and communities, often in tandem with teachers or caring adults. The YPAR article gives us a great example of that. And you'll see in the assignment this week that we want you to peruse the YPAR Hub website. It's a resource created by educators at the University of California Berkeley and we ask you to identify lessons that you think might be useful with your own students for talking about issues in their world, or developing skills for doing action research together. And these resources really can be appropriate and adapted for any age level. It's been a pleasure exploring this material with you. We hope it has inspired you to consider new identity affirming approaches to SEL in your classroom. We hope to see you in course four where Dan and Randy lead us in exploration of programs that support teachers' own social, emotional well being.
