It has become vital
for educators of today to support students’ social emotional learning (SEL) in
and out of the classroom. Hind Louali French
School of Austin-Ecole Jean-Jacques Rousseau points
out that the goal of SEL initiatives largely involves developing certain cognitive
and behavioural competencies, like self-awareness, self-management, social
awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. Nurturing such
skills with the help of intentional activities in the classroom helps students
to take responsibility for their actions as well as make good choices in
academia and beyond.
Hind Louali sheds
light on how SEL can improve STEM outcomes
Social-emotional
learning impacts the manner in which students collaborate and communicate with
others. Students who have good communication skills would be better
positioned to air out their views on a particular concept and explain their
perspectives in a profound manner. Social-emotional skills also have a
significant impact on social behaviours. Individuals with good SEL skills tend
to be good listeners as well, which makes it easier for them to draw
differences and correlations and ultimately come up with better ideas. Such
capabilities make it easier for students to collaborate and come up with better
solutions.
SEL skills can
significantly help in lowering academic stress among students. Students can
reach out to their peers through collaboration, and obtain solutions to
intricate concepts and projects. Students would also be better positioned to
engage more with their peers and learn how to set SMART Goals and cultivate
means to achieve them.
Innovations are meant
to bring about a positive change in the lives of people. Understanding of human
problems is therefore vital for innovation. SEL learning fosters a sense
of empathy among students, leaning on which can help improve STEM education
outcomes, as students are able to better understand human pain. Empathy
has a positive impact on the design thinking process. Tapping into the power of
empathy makes STEM learning more meaningful and impactful.
SEL puts emphasis on
self-awareness, which enables individuals to be better informed of their
weaknesses, strengths and potential. When people are aware of their strengths,
they will be in a better position to set goals and work on achieving them. When
pursuing STEM education, SEL makes it easier for students to grasp that
learning is much like an ongoing process much like having to deal with
different people in life. It helps students to learn through mistakes, and makes
them motivated to pursue higher goals even after experiencing failure. STEM
activities at times prove challenging to students, which can cause students to
lose interest in science subjects. However, as they build perseverance and
resilience to learn despite limitations, the students can work to improve
themselves and their abilities.
Hind Louali French
School of Austin-Ecole Jean-Jacques Rousseau mentions
that SEL plays an important role in elevating creativity and problem-solving
skills which leads to innovations and breakthroughs. It is instrumental in
fostering a culture of learning to listen to others for diverse and fresh
perspectives. Understanding and managing emotions, along with fostering quality
relationships, enhances students' ability to collaborate and communicate
effectively. This also leads to cognitive flexibility, allowing students to
switch between tasks and manage classroom anxiety more efficiently.
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