Social-Emotional Learning

The teenage brain is extremely complete tools that is made up of many different components.  In order to properly function the brain is broken down into several different areas which are controlled by executive functions.  Executive function is a group of important mental skill that set goal.  Executive function involves working memory, flexible thinking and self-control.  Children that have problems with their executive functions have difficulties paying attention, organizing, and shift focus between task.  Problems with executive functions tend to be linked with ADHD or learning disabilities.  There are strategies that can be utilized to help students overcome these issues. 

The executive function of the teenage brain can be impacted by Social-Emotional Learning factors.  These factors such as divorce, SEL, empathy, and sleep all can impact a student academic and emotional performance.  The information below will help you as parent, teachers, family, and friends better understand social and emotional influences that can hinder a teenagers emotional and academic performance.

The teenage brain can be impacted by many different factors sucks as social-Emotional learning, exercise, and screen-time.  Social and emotional Learning (SEL) is when the teenage brain development is impacted by social skills.   One of the major factors that can influence social emotional learning is divorce.  A teenager that comes at a divorced family usually lacks emotional stability.  In the United States research states that 30-50% of marriages end in divorce. 

Children that come from divorced families are:

·      more cognitive deficits

·      suffer more psychosocial shortfalls

·      endure more mental health problems than kids from non-divorced families. 

·       tend to have greater hostility towards adults

·      more anxious

·      more likely to be depressed and withdrawn

·      more aggressive

·      have attentional difficulties. 

These students tend to have more problems relating to peers, which means fewer friends.  As a result, they are overly sensitive to peer approval and are more likely to fear peer rejections.  Research has also shown that children from divorced family school more poorly on standardized test.  Due to the change in family dynamic most divorced household’s standard of living changes due to change income.  Families are often forced to move which causes children to change schools, disrupt friendships, and change their daily routines.   As a result, students from divorced households are almost three times more likely to become high school drop outs. 

Despite the negative divorce could bring to a child there are not always negative outcomes.  In early developing social communication skills called joint attention.  The focus of joint attention is to help individuals communicate and develop important social skills such as bonding and seeing another personal point of view.  The use of Social and emotional learning is to help children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and mange emotions.  They set and achieve positive goals to show empathy to others.  The two types of empathy are cognitive empathy and affective empathy.

·      Cognitive empathy is the ability to understand another person’s perspective.

·      Affective empathy is the ability to feel what another person is experiencing.

The development of these skills has shown overall positive result by maintaining healthy relationships and practicing self-care.  In additions teenagers who are empathetic tend to have better academic performance, improved attitudes, behaviors, and relationships with peers.  In addition, they have a deeper connection to school, fewer delinquent acts, and reduced emotional distress.

In order to establish positive social and emotional learning the SAFE curricula has been created. 

·      Sequenced- does the program use a connection and coordinated set of activities to achiever their objectives relative to skill development? 

·      Active- does the program use active forms of learning to help youth learn new skills?

·      Focused- does the program have at least one component devoted to developing personal or social skills?

·      Explicit- does the program target specify SEL skills rather than targeting skills or positive development in general terms?

In addition, sleep has also been linked to help students achieve better report card grades, standardized test scores, and over performance in core subjects.  The University of Minnesota performed a student that if school start times were later by a few hours student performance would increase.  In addition, there would be a reduction in tardiness, truancy, and dropout rates.  It would cause an increase in teens executive function and improve mood. 

Medina, J. (2018).  Attack of the Teenage Brain!: Understanding and Supporting the Weird and Wonderful Adolescent Learner. Alexandria, VA: ASCD.