UNlVERSl"l'/ ~· NORTHERN 6RITIS.-: CO._.J,i/IBIA LIB?.ARI Princo George, B.C. BRICKS AND MORTAR: BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN YOUR SCHOOL by Liam J. McCracken Bachelor of Education, University of Alberta, 2004 PROJECT SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTERS IN EDUCATION IN MULTI-DISCIPLINARY LEADERSHIP UNIVERSITY OF NORTHERN BRITISH COLUMBIA March 2014 © Liam J. McCracken, 2014 11 Abstract In this study, a teacher leader who plays a key role in bringing social and emotional learning (SEL) to one school has designed a resource useful to other educators applying emotional intelligence theory to support student learning and well-being. The handbook includes a research-based rationale describing the potential benefits of such a program, a general plan for implementation based on current programs, and personal accounts and suggestions from experience at one school. Included are templates, websites, and print resources that administrators and teacher leaders may fmd helpful during their own SEL implementation process. The resource will be timely, given the current shift in education toward an emphasis on developing student social and emotional competencies. lll TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract ii Table of Contents iii List of Figures v Glossary vi Acknowledgements viii CHAPTER ONE: THE OPPORTUNITY 1 A Tale of Two Students 2 Emotional Intelligence 3 Social Emotional Learning 4 One School's Journey 4 Personal Location 6 Chapter Summary 6 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW 8 Effect on Achievement 8 Inclusive Education 10 Student Mental Health 12 Bullying 13 Preparing Tomorrow's Workforce Today 14 Informing Literature on Program Implementation 15 Chapter Summary 19 IV CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHOD 20 Outline of Resource 22 CHAPTER FOUR: REFLECTIONS 23 References 25 Appendix 29 v List of Figures Figure 1: Inspiring Education 14 Figure 2: Implementation Plan for Emotionally Literate Schools 17 Vl Glossary ability emotional intelligence • one' s actual ability to recognize, process, and utilize emotion-laden information • measured through self-report questionnaires and pertains to the realm of personality alexithymia • a person' s difficulty in experiencing, expressing, and describing emotional responses emotional intelligence • the ability to monitor one ' s own and others' feelings and emotions, to discriminate among them and to use this information to guide one' s own thinking and actions empathy • the ability to consider and understand the feelings of other people experiential emotional intelligence • the ability to perceive emotions and use them to facilitate thought intra personal • the internal thought or language of an individual interpersonal • of or pertaining to the relationship between two or more people lagging skills • developmental delay in thinking skills such as regulating emotions, considering the outcomes of actions, understanding how one ' s behavior affects others, and having the words to express emotions Vll strategic emotional intelligence • the ability to understand and manage emotions social emotional learning • the process oflearning life skills, including how to deal with oneself and with others, how to manage relationships, and how to work in an effective manner trait emotional intelligence • a set ofbehavioural dispositions and self-perceptions concerning one's ability to recognize, process, and utilize emotion-laden information such as facial expression, tone of voice, or body language well-being • a term used by author Michael Fullan (2007) to describe an individual's social and emotional health. The term appears to be used as a synonym for emotional intelligence. vm Acknowledgement Since much of the focus of emotional intelligence and social emotional learning is relationship based, it seems fitting that I acknowledge those individuals who helped shape this resource with me. First and foremost I would like to acknowledge my parents, Bill and Wendy, who laid the foundation for my own emotional intelligence long before I was aware of it. Also, I'd like to acknowledge my partner in life, Melodie, who challenged me often, but forced me to think critically and pushed to me to hone my message. I would like to thank my committee members. First, Dr. Bryan Hartman, for lending his experience and expertise in the development of this resource. Second, Dr. Willow Brown for her passion and enthusiasm for this subject matter and for her thorough and comprehensive feedback. I truly appreciate Lesley Krpan, my friend, colleague and the third member of my committee for sharing her insight and interest in this process, and for her unwavering faith in me. Lastly, thank you to my colleague and unofficial committee member, Leanne Schweitzer, for her friendship, counsel and feedback over the years. 1 CHAPTER ONE: THE OPPORTUNITY The landscape of education today is such that many students are arriving at schools unprepared to learn because they have not developed the emotional capacity to do so. Despite this limitation, it is the responsibility of the school and the individual teachers to get these children to master the literacy and numeracy skills needed for life. Currently, teachers react to these conditions. If children demonstrate emotional struggles, we send them to the school counselor who may only see them on a semi-regular basis due to a large case load. We bring in special-event presenters to address bullying. We adopt character and citizenship programs or we focus on single aspects of character and citizenship such as community service or mental health. We designate certain times for attributes to be practiced, such as "value of the month" programs. Based on my experience as a teacher leader who played a key role in bringing social emotional learning or SEL to one school, I believe the best hope for addressing the emotional and social difficulties that inhibit student learning lies in a proactive and comprehensive school-wide approach to helping students develop socially and emotionally. SEL is not a course or a subject or a program but a philosophy that can be brought to life proactively, throughout the school day and across the curriculum, to equip students with the social and emotional attributes to support academic success. However, to achieve this kind oflearning, educators may need to change their thinking. With other innovators at my school, I have found that the effects of SEL are strongest when they are practiced every day and in every way across the grade levels and the curriculum. Such an approach will be reflected naturally in the school's culture: classroom 2 newsletters, assemblies, in the halls and on the walls. Emotional intelligence becomes the message and various curricula become the medium. A Tale of Two Students Recently one of my former students, three years removed, came out of the viceprincipal's office with a few others. Moments before, I had noticed this group being rushed into the office by the vice-principal as he held a cell phone, clearly not his, in his hand. Trouble was afoot. "Zoe" walked past me in the hallway quietly as she headed back to class. I stopped her and asked what was happening. She began by telling me that the phone, her phone, had images on it sent from another student, a new girl who had a tough home life and struggles when interacting with others at school. I asked her to stop. "Did you do anything you should not have done?" She replied with a simple ''No." In fact, she and the others felt it was important to bring the images to the attention of administration. They were trying to help. How proud was I? There was one of my students, acting as an ethical citizen- not a "tattle-tale" and not the stereotypically manipulative, vindictive teen. She was acting out of empathy and was communicating her concern to an adult. Zoe was practicing the very attributes that are expected from responsible citizens in a caring society. On the other hand, "Jeff' was a gifted student. While other children his age were swimming at the community center over the holidays, this nine year old was working on a quantum theory poster. Although he had an advanced IQ, Jefflacked the emotional management skills to deal with the social complexities oflife at school. At the beginning of the year, Jeff would regularly and, by admission, deliberately throw up in class so that he could leave for the security of home. Jeffhad learned how to avoid stressful situations rather 3 than to cope with them. Whether his problem was perseverance or emotional control, Jeff needed to understand that the stressful situations at hand were in fact normal and that he could handle them. These stories, poignant memories for me, may seem familiar to other educators because they are illustrations of the broad spectrum of personality, personal history, and behaviour that can be found in every classroom across North America. The students in today' s classrooms present a social and emotional landscape that must be navigated before educators can even begin to teach successfully. It has become increasingly obvious that emotional and social well-being are necessary pre-conditions for learning. Looking closer to home, there has been a notable shift in education in Alberta. The focus, by school districts, the people, and the Government of Alberta is no longer limited to literacy and numeracy. Instead the spotlight is shifting to emotional intelligence attributes such as, perseverance, emotional management, and communication for example, that have been deemed necessary by authors such as Tony Wagner (2008), for success in the 21st century. Schools have always played a role in teaching these basic life skills. What is new is the importance that these attributes are expected to play in the 21st Century and the prominence that teaching these attributes has gained in the provincial curriculum in Alberta and elsewhere. Emotional Intelligence (EI) Despite the vast amount ofliterature and research outlining and supporting emotional intelligence, it is still a rather elusive concept. As applied in schools, EI is not just about students learning to get along, nor is it about learning how to be emotional. Goleman (1998) viewed emotional intelligence as a set of learnable competencies and skills, including a 4 variety of facets such as self-awareness, communication, emotional management, conflict resolution, and empathy. Goleman (1998) also proposed that emotional intelligence is a greater predictor of success in life than IQ. Salovey and Mayer ( 1990) described emotional intelligence as the "ability to monitor one ' s own and others' feelings and emotions, to discriminate amongst them and to use this information to guide one' s own thinking and actions" (p. 189). Essentially, emotional intelligence has two components: the intrapersonal and the interpersonal (Goleman, 1998). In the development of this implementation handbook, I have focused on the self-awareness and emotional management elements of intrapersonal EI, and the empathy and communication elements of interpersonal El. I have chosen to focus on these because, in my experience, they represent the fundamental aspects of El. Social Emotional Learning (SEL) If emotional intelligence for students is the desired end, social emotional learning is the means to that end. "SEL refers to the acquisition of skills such as self- and social awareness, self-regulation, responsible decision making and problem solving, and relationship management" (Brackett et al. , 2009). In short, a focus on SEL becomes a process by which schools can help students develop their social and emotional competencies. One School's Journey The kindergarten to grade 9 school in which I work currently houses over 800 students and is located in Grande Prairie, Alberta, the largest northern city in Alberta. The school opened in September of2007. Our school participated in the Alberta Teachers' Association' s Accountability Pillar Pilot Project upon our opening. Through the project we 5 looked at the variety of ways student success within the school can be measured, as alternatives to accountability through Provincial Achievement Testing alone. After much discussion and reflection, EI became our school focus. Educators at our school believed that emotionally intelligent kids would be prepared to navigate the challenges of life. We focused specifically on student self-awareness, empathy, communication, cooperation, conflict resolution skills, and management of emotions. Participation in the pilot project led our staff to consider programs like The Leader in Me (Covey, 2008) to develop an EI culture in our school. In the spring of2010, we felt very strongly that the implementation of a program like this would enable us to achieve our vision for the students of our school. However, an advisory panel, led by internationally prominent educational consultants, advised us against such a direction. Their reasoning was that our school was already developing an emotionally intelligent culture. Following the meeting in which we received this advice, a core group of teachers developed a curriculum and a method of assessment based on the six previously mentioned facets of EI. Before the end of that school year, the staff voted in favour of returning to school a day early from summer vacation to work on grade-level EI year plans. Also in the spring of2010 we administered our assessment tool, a survey, to all students, teachers, and parents. Our intention was to triangulate the data which we felt would provide a trustworthy measure of every student's EI. We planned to track students' development over time and compare their progress with their reading levels and Provincial Achievement Test scores, to provide evidence ofthe effect ofSEL on achievement and to monitor our level of success. Our 2010 data were to be our base-line data. We have since administered the survey a second and third time in the spring of2011 and 2012. 6 Personal Location In the 2009/2010 school year, our school ' s third year, I was appointed the lead teacher of our Emotional Intelligence Project. I played a lead role as we sought to develop an emotionally intelligent culture. We began by looking at the whole school. I sat as a member of the core group that developed our curriculum of emotional intelligence and the assessment tool to measure the growth of our students' emotional intelligence. As a staff, we embedded aspects of SEL in our unit plans and learned to look for and capitalize on teachable moments for SEL. We sought to ensure the physical environment of our school, including our banners, posters, and student work on the walls, reflected EI. Additionally, we agreed on a common language throughout our school based on The 7 Habits ofHighly Effective People (Covey, 1989). We had begun to develop a unique culture. For us, emotional intelligence was becoming more than an initiative - it was a concern and a skill set that was part of the identity of the teachers, parents and students of our school. Subsequently, I have used my school based experience, knowledge and learning to develop myself as a leading voice on emotional intelligence in our region. I have spoken on the subject to school district administrators, student teachers, college programs and at multiple regional conferences. The creation of this implementation handbook is the culmination of my learning and my work to date. Chapter Summary There is compelling evidence that purposeful efforts to develop emotional intelligence have a positive effect on student success. However, implementation is not without challenges. On the one hand, developing a child's self-concept or capacity for perseverance or establishing strong teacher-student bonds is likely to have a significant 7 impact on that child's achievement. On the other hand, students who struggle emotionally require time and attention to develop their emotional intelligence, just to bring them to readiness for learning. The opportunity at hand is for me, a teacher leader on this subject, to contribute to the discourse on emotional intelligence and demonstrate, with research and school-based experience, the value of a proactive, cross-curricular SEL program. Our school has found that the effort required to apply EI theory has been worthwhile, and so our experiences may be a useful guide to others setting out on a similar path. 8 CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW The literature reviewed here outlines the positive outcomes of EI attributes on academics, the critical importance of EI for emotional management, the shift in education towards EI related themes, and the growing importance of EI attributes in the 21st century economy. The Effect on Achievement The first argument for implementing an SEL program in a school setting is the positive effect that can be expected on student learning. In their study of school-based interventions, researchers found that students participating in an SEL program averaged an 11 percentile gain in achievement (Durlak, Weissberg, Dymnicki, Taylor, & Schellinger, 2011). Desired Effects. Hattie (2009) conducted a meta-analysis of 800 studies related to the influences on achievement in school aged children. The study identified educational programs, strategies, and interventions that could be expected to influence student achievement favourably. The vast majority of these had a positive effect on student achievement and those with an effect size over d=0.40 were deemed significant. Moral and value programs (d=0.24) as well as social skills programs (d=0.24) both had a positive effect size but would not be considered significant. However, students' self-concept (d=0.43), level of concentration, persistence and engagement (d=0.48), ability to reduce anxiety (d=0.40), and relationships with teachers (d=O.72) all fell into what Hattie described as a "zone of desired effects." These desirable student attributes are all related to the concept of emotional intelligence and may be addressed and developed specifically as part of an SEL program. 9 The Pillar of Pillars. Fullan (2007) declared that well-being, a term he substitutes for emotional intelligence, is one of the three basics for children under the age of 12, the other two being literacy and numeracy. It is critical for children to have developed these as they move forward in life. No one would argue the importance ofliteracy and numeracy and certainly the vast majority of school time and resources are devoted to these two pillars. However, well-being serves double duty. It directly supports literacy and numeracy; that is emotional health is strongly associated with cognitive achievement. It also is indirectly but powerfully part of the educational and societal goal of dealing with the emotional and social consequences of failing and being of low social status (Full an, 2007, p. 46). Well-being or emotional intelligence can therefore be considered the pillar upon which literacy and numeracy rest. Despite its fundamental importance, well-being is addressed, in many instances, in an isolated class or a program instead of being integrated across the subjects and throughout the school day, so that students can internalize the learning and apply it in situations beyond the lessons. The Stanford Marshmallow Experiment. The benefits of a higher emotional intelligence can be illustrated in a famous 1960s era study called the Marshmallow Test developed by psychologist Walter Mischel of Stanford University. An example of delayed gratification from this study is that a number of four year olds were given the choice of having a marshmallow immediately or wait a few minutes to have more than one marshmallow. Nearly ten years after the initial experiment, the participants were revisited. It was found that those who were able to delay the immediate gratification were more 10 academically and socially competent, verbally fluent, rational, attentive, and perhaps most importantly, able to deal with frustration and stress (Mischel, Peake, & Shoda, 1990). Inclusive Education Emotional intelligence is by definition an inclusive philosophy. The goal of an inclusive education system is to provide each student with the learning environment to best reach his or her potential, regardless of age, cultural background, ability, gender, or language. As a consequence teachers must approach their students, as they most naturally would, with empathy and understanding so that they can differentiate their instruction. Lagging Skills. For too many students, academic success is an after-thought; their primary need is to develop the social and emotional competencies that will enable them to function in a classroom. A study commissioned by Alberta Education (Early Child Development Mapping Project Alberta, 2013) gives the implementation of SEL programs local relevance: "Although the majority of [kindergarten aged] children in Grande Prairie are developing appropriately, a large percentage are experiencing difficulty or great difficulty, particularly in communication skills and general knowledge (30.57 per cent) and emotional maturity (29.20 per cent) (p. 6)" So, as students are entering Grande Prairie public schools, a third of them may not be capable of succeeding in a classroom environment. Greene (2008) noted that students with behavioural challenges lack important thinking skills. That is, as a result of a developmental delay, these children are unable to regulate their emotions, consider the consequences of their actions, express themselves in words, or respond to changes in a flexible way. A comprehensive, SEL program has the potential to support the emotional growth of these students. 11 Aboriginal Education. Alberta Education (2013) is committed to improving education outcomes for First Nations, Metis, and Inuit (FNMI) students and to closing the gap in education achievement between FNMI and other provincial students. A focus on SEL can play a supportive role in this process by supporting personal healing and resilience for students and families that have suffered harm. Evidence of the connection between SEL and the needs of Aboriginal people who have suffered harm is presented in a study entitled Promoting Emotional Intelligence with Aboriginal People (Parker, Shaugnessy & Wood, 2012) that was conducted to measure the degree of alexithymia in Aboriginal inmates. Alexithymia is a term originally coined by psychotherapist Peter Sifneos that refers a person's deficiency in processing, understanding, and describing emotions. In the study, some of the inmates had been participating a in a program designed to enhance the social and emotional competencies of Aboriginal adults. The program, called the Red Path program, incorporated four key aboriginal concepts: Circle, Creativity, Balance and Ceremony. Participants used language and respect to build community and relationships. Storytelling and portfolios were used in Creativity. Modeling and repetition encouraged Balance. Ceremonies reinforced the other quadrants and further grounded the participants in tradition. A strong connection to SEL is evident because community, relationships, and grounding are all concepts rooted in emotional intelligence. Parker et al. (2012) found that those who participated in the program scored significantly higher on intrapersonal, adaptability, and stress management scales. In addition, a philosophy growing in popularity is the Circle of Courage (Reclaiming Youth International, 2013). Each quadrant ofthe Circle of Courage- belonging, mastery, independence, and generosity - stands for a central value of an environment that can claim 12 and reclaim all youth. This approach to personal development emphasizes the kind of social, emotional, and spiritual learning and healing that is a key component of a traditional Aboriginal worldview. Two ofthe four quadrants in the Circle of Courage (Brendtro, Brokenleg & Van Bockem, 1989) appear to relate directly to emotional intelligence. As participants practice belonging, they strengthen the bonds and relationships with their kin. Teaching independence can be equated with teaching self-discipline. This is further evidence that EI and SEL can play a supportive role in the growth and healing of the Aboriginal community, in a way that is culturally affirming and responsive. Student Mental Health The Seat of Emotion. "Calm down! Relax! " How many times as parents or as educators have we told our children to do just that? What does that even mean? Calming down can be a complex process and is a skill that must be learned as one of the key components of emotional intelligence. The human limbic system is where emotional memories are stored. Love, fear, anger, and even the sense of smell are processed in the limbic system. "Because of the link between the sensory memory and the emotional memory, the brain is able to connect certain external experiences with a particular emotion" (Corrie, 2009, p. 54). The negative effect of this link is when stress, anxiety or sadness hijack a student's thinking and interfere with learning. As educators we can develop our students' "psychological immune system" (Plaford, 2006) with routine and storytelling. Both aid in shifting the locus of control in the brain out of the limbic system and toward the left hemisphere where these emotions can be better managed. Suicide. For an educator or parent, the worst case scenario is that a young person will take his or her own life. Yet it happens. Between 2005 and 2009, an annual average of221 13 youth in Canada between the ages of 10 to 19 years ended their lives (Statistics Canada, 2013). Schools do not have an influence on the genetic or neurobiological factors that influence the likelihood of suicide attempts, nor can they control or influence the accessibility to external factors such as drug use. However, schools can have an influence on suicidal ideation and attempts. In their study of the moderating effect EI has on the relation between stressful life events: specifically, childhood sexual abuse, suicide ideation and suicide attempts, Cha and Nock (2009) found that EI had a significant effect. In particular, it was strategic EI, the ability to understand and manage one' s emotions, which had the most significant moderating effect. Bullying Bullying is a societal plague that often reveals itself in schools. Developing the EI competencies of both bullies and victims is integral to counteracting this plague. The development of empathy, the ability to understand and connect with others, is a key component of SEL. Plaford (2006) described how important bonding is as a protective factor for children. Teacher-student and student-student connections help insulate students from a number of conditions that can be destructive. These factors can contribute to behaviour problems, low self-esteem, and poor academic performance. Having teachers and students take the time to get to know each other provides some emotional and social stability. Furthermore, connections built in childhood are critical elements for happiness or well-being as an adult. According to Massari (2011), when students learn to self-monitor and selfregulate, to recognize their own behavioural tendencies and develop healthier patterns, and to be empathetic of others, bullying behaviours will subside. 14 Preparing Tomorrow's Workforce Today Rampant and ever evolving change in technology and in the global economy have set a new stage for employment in the future, requiring new skill sets from the students of today. In many ways, this new skill set is directly associated with the attributes of emotional intelligence. Alberta education: The turn of the tide. In the document, Inspiring Education: A Dialogue with Albertans (Alberta Education, 2010), which reflects the voices of Albertans, the Government of Alberta outlined "the Three E' s" of education for the 21st Century: engaged thinker, ethical citizen, and entrepreneurial spirit (see Figure 1). Examining the "Three E' s" further, dispositions like communication, collaboration, leadership, social responsibility, personal management, among others, are revealed. Figure 1: Inspiring Education. This figure illustrates the relationship between literacy, numeracy and the 21st Century competencies Back to the Future: 21st Century Skills. Research suggests that this shift in attention is valid. Wagner (2008) contends that the current focus in schools will not equip 15 children for the growing knowledge economy. Wagner lists the following as the seven basic skills needed for success in the 21st Century: critical thinking and problem solving, collaboration and leading, curiosity and imagination, agility and adaptability, initiative and entrepreneurialism, accessing and analyzing information, and effective communication. Now Hiring. The business community is recognizing this shift as well. In a survey of over 400 U.S. employers, it was found that skill sets for new employees should include professionalism/work ethic, written and oral communications, team work/collaboration, and critical thinking/problem solving. In fact, "the findings indicate that applied skills on all educational levels trump basic knowledge and skills, such as Reading Comprehension and Mathematics. In other words, while the "three R ' s" are still fundamental to any new workforce entrant's ability to do the job, employers emphasize that applied skills like Teamwork/Collaboration and Critical Thinking are "very important" to success at work. " (Casner-Lotta, 2006, p. 9). Informing Literature on Program Implementation There is plenty of quality and well researched " canned" programs to select from, but consider this. Schools are a reflection of their community, and not all communities are created equal. Why then impose a structure or program that may promote specific values that your school may not? Or perhaps the program may include a standards-based assessment that your students may not be able to meet. Hargreaves and Shirley (2009) suggest, among other things, a philosophy of decentralization. The purpose being that school districts and schools themselves understand the needs of their students. Therefore, schools and school districts should develop their own programs. Imagine a self-developed, flexible, and evolving program, with minimal costs, where criteria are determined on-site along with the means of 16 delivery and the methods of assessment. The following sections discuss the commonalities in other implementation guides, suggesting a universal method of implementation. The Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL). CASEL is a not-for-profit organization founded in 1994 for the purpose of advancing the science and evidence-based practice of social emotional learning. CASEL' s program implementation model for its Emotionally Literate Schools program (Brackett et al, 2009) is one that has had the greatest influence on the development of my handbook (see Figure 2). The model ' s first phase recognizes the importance of drawing in "key stakeholders, to build a shared vision between the school or district and program developers, and to create an action plan for program implementation" (p. 337). Phase Two, the implementation phase, involves training and development of administrators, coaches, and family members before bringing the program to the classroom. Phase Three is the sustainability phase. Formal and informal evaluations are carried out to measure the effectiveness of the program. Additionally, this phase encourages the development of master trainers to sustain and enhance the program. The process, though founded in research, paints broad strokes and does not acknowledge the individual needs of specific schools and communities. In accordance with Hargreaves and Shirley' s (2009) thinking, my handbook will accommodate those specific needs by not promoting a specific program, but rather allowing for the stakeholders to set their own vision and develop a unique program from within, using existing programs as tools. 17 Figure 2. Implementation Plan for Emotionally Literate Schools. This figure depicts the phases and steps involved in implementing an SEL program The Leader in Me. Stephen Covey's The Leader in Me is a school program based on The 7 Habits ofHighly Effective People. Primarily a program for developing leadership skills in children, the book of the same name does offer useful strategies for program implementation: establishing a mission and vision, bringing people on board and aligning them with the vision, and training staff in the vision. Perhaps the greatest strength of The Leader in Me program is the pervasiveness of its culture. Teachers model the philosophy, students practice it, the walls and the ceremonies reflect it. It is everywhere. The Heart of the Matter. In 2005, Alberta Education, recognizing that schools play a significant role in teaching cultural and societal values, produced a document entitled The 18 Heart ofthe Matter (Alberta Education, 2005) as a means of supporting schools in implementing character and citizenship programs. The document not only offers a number of critical questions that staff members should ask themselves during the mission/vision stage of implementation, but it provides a great number of resources to be used. Building consensus with community partners, bully prevention strategies, unit plan exemplars, this document is particularly influential in the details of my handbook. The Heart of the Matter deals specifically with character and citizenship education, therefore I would not use it primarily as an implementation guide for EI. Much like the rule that all squares are quadrilaterals, but not all quadrilaterals are squares, I would argue that EI is a quadrilateral and character and citizenship education is a square. Story-telling Technique. As a young teacher, I read Parsons and Beauchamp' s book Stories of Teaching ( 1991 ). It was a collection of personal stories of when Dr. Parson was a younger teacher. Story telling has a way of deepening meaning by making personal connections. As a teacher leader interested in the emotional domain, I understand the power of personal stories to bring meaning to change initiatives. Fullan (2007) identified meaning as a key element of successful implementation and sustaining change. In the Social Emotional Learning resource I have developed, I share some of the vignettes that have given our school' s SEL initiative meaning for me. This retelling of stories has merit as research data. Stories help us create context and make meaning so "we can put them to intelligent use in theorizing about social life" (Silverman, 1998, p. Ill). Referring to the impact of the initiative for particular students gives a rational plan for implementation a human face that I hope will be inspiring for other educators. 19 Chapter Summary This chapter first provides the argument that emotional intelligence is important to students in the classroom today and the boardroom tomorrow. Currently, students deal with bullying, depression, and emotional management on a daily basis. They require the skills to simply survive these conditions. At the same time, schools can use emotional intelligence as a means of embracing aboriginal and other cultures and capabilities outside of the mainstream. The future is here and students must be prepared for it. Researchers, employers, and even governments are recognizing that the skills of tomorrow (and now!) are rooted in the attributes of emotional intelligence, justifying even more the implementation of emotional intelligence in schools today. Second, this chapter outlines programs I have reviewed as models of implementation. Commonalities in these models are identified so as to provide a standard implementation model that can be used by other schools. As a matter of style and to provide personal meaning, I discuss my preference for complimenting the content of the handbook with stories from my own teaching experience. 20 CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH METHOD The design of this study draws on qualitative research traditions. The method can be described as professional inquiry (Brown & Cherkowski, 2011; Kaser & Halbert, 2009). This method of investigation is appropriate for school leaders, "who do not presume an outcome" but "allow for a range of outcomes and keep searching for increased understanding and clarity" (Kaser & Halbert, 2009, p. 61) to improve student learning and well-being in schools. An inquiring mindset is an aspect of professionalism recommended by Kaser and Halbert (2009) to combat the complacency and cynicism that may come with experience. However, when conducted systematically and reported publicly, professional inquiry becomes a legitimate research method that is context-specific but has implications for an audience beyond the researcher's own school (Brown & Cherkowski, 2011). This study began with the reflective inquiry (Kaser & Halbert, 2009) or action-based inquiry (Brown & Cherkowski, 2011) that occurred as our school embarked upon the SEL initiative, collected data to monitor outcomes, and revised our actions to better meet student needs. My plan to create a resource for other teachers merges narrative inquiry (Kaser & Halbert, 2009) with design-based inquiry (Lienweber, 2013). That is, I have reflected on the story of our school's experience and drawn wisdom from that narrative to design a useful and inspiring resource for other educators looking to develop students' emotional intelligence. I have used an integrative design process (Lienweber, 2013) to create the resource by combining excerpts from our school's narrative with information from other SEL initiatives and from pertinent literature. Combining or creating a bricolage of research methods in one study is an appropriate way to design qualitative research. Furthermore, this approach is an illustration of Kaser and Halbert' s (2009) spiral of inquiry; in which the questions that arise 21 from one study are more deeply explored in the next. Describing the connections between one inquiry and the next as cycles in a deepening spiral of learning is a valuable way to illustrate the ongoing learning that is a key aspect of professionalism for educational leaders. In producing a resource for others framed as inquiry, it was helpful to have focus questions to guide the process. For this study, my main focus question was: How can a resource be designed to share the SEL experience of our school as an inspiring and practical guide for other schools? This question has helped me focus on my intended purpose as I considered which parts of our school's implementation narrative would be useful to others and how to arrange these parts in a logical order. Three related questions focus on the reflection and design aspects of this professional inquiry: 1. Reflection: Which stories or vignettes from our school 's SEL experience will be most helpful for other educators? What quotes, excerpts, or advice from the academic or professional literature should also be included? 2. Design: How can the resource be organized and presented so that our experience and the academic and professional literature work together to provide an accessible and trustworthy guide? Finally, framing this study as professional inquiry assumed that useful knowledge can be generated with practitioner inquiry, a problem-solving dialogue between academic and experiential understandings (Brown & Cherkowski, 2011). Those ofus who hold this assumption would not be true to our convictions if we packaged our new learning as a program to be implemented faithfully by other educators. Instead, I must emphasize that the resource is designed for others to adapt, through inquiry, to their own school setting- it will be a guide and not a prescription. The study is an act of leadership in the production of the 22 resource itself, as a contribution to the professional community, as well as in the way that an inquiry mindset has been modelled throughout the process of professional inquiry. Outline of Resource The title of the resource that I have designed is: Bricks and Mortar: Building a Foundation for Emotional Intelligence in Your School. Part A ofthe resource consists of(a) an argument for the importance of the problem and the opportunity to learn from a case study of SEL implementation, (b) the literature that establishes the value of SEL for schools and reviews existing programs as models of implementation, and (c) a rationale for my inquiry method as well as a description of the design process and structure of the proposed handbook. Part B is a handbook that is ready to distribute to educators interested in implementing an SEL program. The handbook consists of general steps recommended for implementation, illustrative stories from experiences at our school, and suggested resources. It should be noted that due to the chosen nature of the narrative inquiry, I have included stories detailing my own experiences, but have assigned pseudonyms to ensure the anonymity of coworkers, administrators, and students. 23 CHAPTER FOUR: REFLECTIONS The focus of my journey was to produce a document that was both inspiring and practical. By drawing upon personal experiences and the resources I have either accessed or helped create, I believe I have achieved this balance. As I embarked on this journey there were three facets that I felt were particularly important to the development of the handbook. First, which stories or vignettes from our school's SEL experience will be most helpful for other educators? I answered this guiding question in two ways. To begin with, by retelling the steps, and missteps, of our journey I felt I gave other educators a frame of reference and insight into our thinking. These educators can then develop their own meaning as they reflect on our experience while comparing it with what the experts in this field suggest. As well, by relating personal stories from outside of the school setting which connected directly to the topic of EI, I felt I was able to connect with readers on an emotional level. It is my belief that when people connect to a cause emotionally, they are more motivated than usual to act. Second, what quotes, excerpts, or advice from the academic or professional literature should be included? This question required some careful consideration and selection. I felt it appropriate to use a combination of a resource I've had experience with, The Leader in Me, one that has local relevance, The Heart of the Matter, and one that has more international prestige, The RULER Approach. The final aspect needing deliberation when constructing the handbook was design. The question I asked myself was: How can the resource be organized and presented so that our experience and the academic and professional literature work together to provide an accessible and trustworthy guide? The answer was simple. First I had to justify to educators 24 why this approach was a moral imperative and then I had to outline how they could implement it. 25 References Alberta Education. (2005). The heart of the matter: Character and citizenship education in Alberta schools. Retrieved January 21,2013 from: http:/leducation.alberta.ca/media/547951/heartmatter.pdf Alberta Education. (2010). Inspiring education: A dialogue with Albertans. Retrieved March 24, 2012 from: http://www.inspiringeducation.alberta.ca/ LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=wqYRVMaWPH8%3D&tabid=7 5. Alberta Education. (2013). Success for first nations, metis and Inuit students. Retrieved October 28, 2013 from: http://education.alberta.ca/teachers/fnmi.aspx Brendtro, L., Brokenleg, M. & Van Bokem, S. (1990). Reclaiming youth at risk: Our hope for the future. Indiana: National Education Service Brackett, M.A. , Patti, J., Stem, R., Rivers, S.E., Elbertson, N., Chisholm, C., & Salovey, P. (2009). A sustainable, skill-based model to building emotionally literate schools. In Hughes, M., Thompson, H. & Terrell, J. (Eds.). Handbook for developing emotional and social intelligence: Best practices, case studies, and tools (pp. 329-358). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Brown, W. & Cherkowski, S. (2011). Owning our learning: Scaffolding professional inquiry for educators. LEARNing Landscapes 4(2), 61-78. Casner-Lotto, J. (2006). Are they ready to work? Employers ' perspectives on the basic knowledge and applied skills of new entrants to the 21st century US. worliforce. Retrieved March 24, 2012 from: http://www.p2l.org/storage/documents/FINAL_REPORT_PDF09-29-06.pdf 26 CASEL. (2008). Connecting social and emotional/earning with mental health. Chicago: Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning. Cha, C. & Nock, M. (2009). Emotional intelligence is a protective factor for suicidal behaviour. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 48, 422-430. Corrie, C. (2009). Becoming emotionally intelligent. UK: Bloomsbury Academic. Covey, S. (1989). The 7 habits of highly effective people. New York: Free Press Covey, S. (2008). The leader in me: How schools and parents around the world are inspiring greatness, one child at a time. New York: Free Press. Durlack, J., Weissberg, R., Dymnicki, A., Taylor, R. & Schellinger, K. (2011). The impact of enhancing students' social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development, 8(1 ), 405-432. Early Child Development Mapping Project Alberta. (2013). Community results. Retrieved October 28, 2013 from: https: //www.ecmap.ca/Pages/default.aspx. Fullan, M. (2007). The new meaning of educational change. New York: Teachers College Press. Goleman, D. (1998). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ. New York: Bantam. Greene, R., (2008). Lost at school: Why our kids with behavioural challenges are falling through the cracks and how we can help them. New York: Springer. Hargreaves, A. & Shirley, D. (2009). The fourth way: The inspiringfuture of educational change. California: Corwin Press. 27 Hattie, J ., (2009). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analysis relating to achievement. New York: Routledge. Kaser, L. & Halbert, J. (2009). Leadership mindsets: Innovation and learning in the transformation ofschools. Routledge Falmer, London. Lienweber, M . (2013). Restitution as aboriginal worldview for elementary classrooms. Unpublished master's thesis. University ofNorthem British Columbia. Massari, L. (2011). Teaching emotional intelligence. Leadership, 40(5), 8-12. Mischel, W., Peake, P. & Shoda, Y. (1990). Predicting adolescent cognitive and selfregulatory competencies from preschool delay of gratification: Identifying diagnostic conditions. Developmental Psychology, 26 (6), 978-986. Parsons, J. & Beauchamp, L. (1991) Stories ofTeaching. Richmond Hill: Scholastic. Parker, J. Shaugnessy, p. & Wood, L. Trent university research report series: Promoting emotional intelligence (Report number 27). Retrieved June 23, 2012 from : http://www. scribd. corn/doc/114973 84/Promoting-Emotional-Intelligence-WithAboriginal-People. Plaford, G. (2006). Bullying and the brain: Using cognitive and emotional intelligence to help kids cope. Maryland: Rowan and Littlefield Publishers Inc. Reclaiming Youth International. (2012). Circle of courage. Retrieved September 21, 2013 from: http://reclaiming. corn/content/about-circle-of-courage. Salovey, P., & Mayer, J.D. (1990). Emotional intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 9, 185-211. 28 Silverman, D. (1998). Qualitative research: Theory, method and practice. London: Sage Statistics Canada. (2013). Suicides and Suicide Rate, by Sex and by Age Group. Retrieved October 28, 2013 from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sumsom/10 1I cstO 1/hl th66a-eng.htm Wagner, T. (2008). The global achievement gap: Why even our best schools don 't teach the new survival skills our children need-and what we can do about it. New York: Basic Books. 29 Appendix: BRICKS AND MORTAR: BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN YOUR SCHOOL 1 :t::: :.:1 ~ :· r;:: :·1 :: Page ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~~~~~ ~~ ~ ~ Introduction: Building for the Future, Today 2 Chapter One: Defining Emotional Intelligence 3 Chapter Two: 5 Emotional Intelligence and Education Chapter Three: 10 One School' s Experience with Emotional Intelligence Chapter Four: The Framework 13 Chapter Five: Resource List 23 Chapter Six: 26 Planning Templates and Exemplars References 29 Image Sources 33 Appendix A: 34 Emotional Intelligence Program Plan Appendix B: Survey Assessment 37 Appendix C: "I Can Statements" 38 2 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ' Recently, one of my former students, three years removed, came out of the viceprincipal 's office with a few others. Moments before, I had noticed this group being rushed into the office by the viceprincipal as he held a cell phone, clearly not his, in his hand. Trouble was afoot. "Zoe " walked past me in the hallway quietly as she headed back to class. I stopped her and asked what was happening. She began by telling me that the phone, her phone, had images on it sent from another student, a new girl who had a tough home life and struggles interacting with others at school. And that 's when I asked her to stop. "Did you do anything you should not have done? " She replied with a simple "No. " In fact, she and the others felt it was important to bring the images to the attention of someone in authority. The students were trying to help. How proud was I? There was one of my students, acting as an ethical citizen not a tattle tale and not the stereotypically manipulative, vindictive teen. She was acting out of empathy and she was communicating her concern to an adult. Zoe was practicing the very attributes that are expected from responsible citizens in a caring society. On the other hand, "Jeff'' was a gifted student. While other children his age were swimming at the community center over the holidays, this nine year old was working on a quantum theory poster. Although he had an advanced IQ, Jeff lacked the emotional management skills to deal with the social complexities of life at school. At the beginning of the year, Jeff would regularly and, by admission, deliberately throw up in class so that he could leave for the security of home. Jeff had learned how to avoid stressful situations rather than to cope with them. Whether his problem was a lack of perseverance or emotional control, Jeff needed to understand that the stressful situations at hand were in fact normal and that he could handle them. 0 The landscape of education today is such that many students are arriving at schools unprepared to learn because they have not developed the emotional capacity to do so. Yet it is the responsibility of the school and of individual teachers to help these children master the literacy and numeracy skills needed for success in life. Currently, schools appear to take a reactionary stance when students lack the social and emotional skills necessary for success. If children demonstrate emotional struggles, they may be sent to the school counselor, who may only see them on a semi-regular basis due to a large case load. Schools bring in special-event presenters to address bullying. We adopt character and citizenship programs or we focus on single aspects of character and citizenship such as community service or mental health. We designate certain times for attributes to be practiced, such as value of the month programs. Social emotional learning or SEL is not a course, subject or program but a philosophy that can be brought to life proactively, throughout the school day and across the curriculum, to equip students with the social and emotional attributes that support academic success. However, to achieve this kind of learning, educators may need to change their thinking. Based on my experience as a teacher leader who played a 3 key role in bringing SEL to one school, I believe the best hope for addressing emotional and social difficulties that inhibit student learning lies in a proactive and comprehensive school-wide approach to helping students develop Emotional Intelligence. With other innovators at my school, I have found that the effects of SEL are strongest when they are practiced every day and in every way across the grade levels and across the curriculum. Such an approach will be reflected naturally in the school's culture: in classroom newsletters, in assemblies, in the halls and on the walls. Emotional intelligence becomes the message and various curricula become the medium. It is with stories of my personal and professional experiences as an educator and the literature of today on emotional intelligence and program implementation models that I have crafted this handbook. In the chapters to follow, I will relate EI to education, provide an overview of my own school's journey in implementing an EI program, and outline a program implementation framework. It is my hope that other schools use this handbook as a guide to implementing an emotional intelligence program that meets the needs of their students. en ·-- == 5 ~~ intrapersonal ~ - ·= ·..... -= == -C'll:l -e ~ .....__. C'll:l-= =--= C'll:l ~ u8 en :;= ~ g;, c t:N) ~ a:» C'll:l =- = ,. ,., =n; .5! ~ ~en \ot-== - - - G:) .: a ..::: ; ; =-== e e!3 JIIIIIM(I ~~ ~ en g "Q u ~ • G:) ~ s interpersonal CIJ:le 8 ;; _ en e l=:.i achievement inclusiveeducation Image 1: EI Today ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~~ ~~ ~~~ ~ ~~~ ~~~~ :t: J::1·,:·:::·r;::::t:: Before I became a teacher, I worked for nearly 10 years in the restaurant industry. I waited tables and tended bar, which proved to be the perfect environment to transition me from an introvert to an extrovert. It wasn 't until I moved into management that I began to develop my skillset. What I found was that I was a natural people person. I could manage my coworkers and I could relate to my customers. I also prided myself on my ability to stay calm when we got rushed. The first time I came across the term "emotional intelligence " was in a conversation with my father. A former community college president, my father had a talent for human relations. "He lacks emotional intelligence, " he said. I was discussing with my father a coworker of mine, a chef, who had a strong technical knowledge of his craft, but would get quickly frustrated during the dinner rush. Emotional self-management, specifically, is what he lacked. So my journey towards understanding emotional intelligence and the development of my personal definition began. Initially, I felt it related directly to leadership. Then, as I became an educator, it became more about being an organized and effective student. When I became a father, I found that emotional intelligence was about understanding and managing yourself and, if you're really good at it, understanding and managing others 4 What is Emotional Intelligence (EI)? Despite the vast amount of available literature outlining and supporting emotional intelligence, it is still a rather elusive concept. As applied in schools, EI is not just about students learning to get along. Nor is it about learning how to be emotional. Noted author and psychologist Daniel Goleman (1998) viewed emotional intelligence as a set of learnable competencies and skills, including a variety of facets such as selfawareness, communication, emotional management, conflict resolution, and empathy. Goleman (1998) also proposed that emotional intelligence is a greater predictor of success in life than IQ. Image 2: The Domains and Facets of Emotional Intelligence Image 3: Time Magazine Researchers Peter Salovey and John Mayer (1990) described emotional intelligence as the ability to monitor the feelings and emotions in ourselves and others, and to use this information to guide our thinking and actions. Essentially, emotional intelligence has two components: the intrapersonal and the interpersonal. If emotional intelligence for students is the desired end, social emotional learning is the means to that end. SEL refers to the process by which students acquire skills such as self- and social awareness, selfregulation, responsible decision making and problem solving, and relationship management. In short, schools with a focus on SEL can help students develop their social and emotional competencies. 5 ~ ~~ ~~ ~~ vme: ~~~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~ ~~ ~ ~~ ~ I had three best friends in high school. "Al" and L in particular, spent a lot of time together. He was the only one of us to have a job (he sold women 's shoes). He had his own car (a two-door, beige Renault). He was the son of a doctor. He was the president of the local Progressive Conservative Youth party, and he was the guy who brought a briefcase to school! He was the responsible one for sure and all business at school. AI could also make me laugh harder than anyone I had met. He wasn 't a funny guy, he just did funny things. He had a frenetic energy about him, like a kid in a candy store. I always felt that with us, he escaped his responsibilities. Nonetheless, AI grew up and moved on with life, getting his pilot 's license and eventually moving to Vancouver to work in British Columbia 's tourism industry. We lost touch after graduation, but he called a few times and we talked briefly. At the age of 36, AI died outside his backdoor of exposure on Christmas Eve. When I heard of his passing, I was floored and I immediately called his family. I was told that less than a year earlier, his parents had to pull him out of Vancouver after being fired. He had thinned considerably and his skin had yellowed. They set him up with another job closer to home, but he was soon fired from that one as well. My understanding is that on the night of his death, he was drunk and unable to find his keys to open his door. He must have collapsed or fallen asleep and died, alone. How could this be? As I look back, I wonder about his emotional intelligence. As teenagers, he once asked me, "How do you have fun?" I didn't think much of it at the time, but that may have been . an indicator. For all his drive and excellence at school, I wonder if he knew how to relax? My theory is that the big city, Vancouver lifestyle overwhelmed him. Perhaps he didn 't have the skills to ease into or out of it. He called me months before he died. It was out of the blue and he said very little. Could that have been him reaching out? Was he asking for help? "I can talk to a friend or an adult about a problem I am having " is one of the objectives we have in our EI curriculum at my school. In retrospect, I wish AI could have grown up in a school where this skill was explicitly taught. Perhaps life would have been different for him. 0 Tragedies or struggles like this touch our lives as individuals, parents or as educators all the time. We may not deal with extremes like the death of a friend, but perhaps it is a student unable to work in a group, or a son or daughter unable to handle the pressures of life in the workplace. Hope lies before us though. There is growing evidence to support the critical role EI plays in our lives. Defining emotional intelligence is one thing; applying it in the form of planned SEL in an educational setting is another. Before any educator, school, or school district considers adapting EI as a philosophy and SEL as an integrated curriculum, they have to believe that it is a worthwhile approach. Questions have to be asked. Does increased EI affect achievement? How does EI relate to 6 inclusive education? Does EI support the acquisition of 21st Century skills? What Impact Does EI Have on Achievement? For many educators the argument for any educational approach or philosophy begins and ends with its impact on achievement. Implementing an SEL program in a school setting can have a positive effect on student learning. In their study of schoolbased interventions, researchers found that students participating in an SEL program averaged an 11 percentile gain in achievement (Durlak, Weissberg, Dymnicki, Taylor & Schellinger, 2011). Education researcher John Hattie (2009) conducted a meta-analysis of 800 studies related to the influences on achievement in school aged children. The study identified educational programs, strategies, and interventions that could be expected to influence student achievement favourably. The vast majority of these had a positive effect on student achievement. However, students' self-concept, level of concentration, persistence and engagement, ability to reduce anxiety, and relationships with teachers all fell into what Hattie described as a "zone of desired effects." These desirable student attributes are all related to the concept of emotional intelligence and may be addressed and developed specifically as part of an SEL program. Renowned authority on educational reform, Michael Fullan (2007) declared that it is critical for children under 12 to develop their sense of well-being (a term he substitutes for emotional intelligence) along with literacy and numeracy as they move forward in life. Certainly no one would argue the importance of literacy and numeracy with the vast majority of school time and resources devoted to them. However, well- being also uniquely supports the development of a child's literacy and numeracy skills, because emotional health is strongly related to cognitive achievement. Therefore, well-being or emotional intelligence can be considered the pillar upon which literacy and numeracy rest. Yet despite its fundamental importance, wellbeing is, in many instances, addressed in an isolated class or a program format as opposed to being integrated across the subjects and throughout the school day. This disjointed approach precludes students from internalizing the learning and applying it in situations beyond the lessons. Image 4: Self-Awareness The benefits of a higher emotional intelligence level can be illustrated by a famous study conducted in the 1960s by psychologist Walter Mischel called the Stanford Marshmallow Test (Mischel, Peake & Shoda, 1990). An example of delayed gratification, a number of four year olds were given the choice of having a marshmallow immediately or waiting a few minutes to have more than one marshmallow. Nearly ten years after the initial experiment, the participants were revisited. It was found that those who were able to delay the immediate gratification were more academically and socially competent, verbally fluent, rational, attentive, and perhaps most importantly able to deal with frustration and stress. 7 In short, yes, EI does impact achievement. As students learned to manage their feelings and emotions, they also learn to set goals, organize their studies and persevere through challenges. Additionally, when students have established bonds with classmates and teachers they are provided with a sense of a positive and canng environment to come to everyday. Is EI Compatible with Inclusive Education? In recent years, Alberta Education has shifted from a two-stream educational system in which students with certain physical, emotional, or cognitive needs were isolated from the mainstream student body, to a single inclusive environment. The goal of an inclusive education system is to provide each student with the learning environment to best reach his or her potential, regardless of age, cultural background, ability, gender or language. As a consequence teachers must approach their students, as they most naturally would, with empathy and understanding so that they can differentiate their instruction. Therefore, EI/SEL is by definition an inclusive philosophy. Students with Lagging Skills For too many students, academic success is an after-thought; their primary need is to develop the social and emotional competencies that will enable them to function in a classroom. A study commissioned by Alberta Education (Early Child Development Mapping Project Alberta, 2013) found that one quarter of students may not be capable of succeeding in a classroom environment because they are experiencing difficulty in communication skills and emotional maturity. Child psychologist and author, Dr. Ross Greene noted in his book Lost at School (2008) that students with behavioural challenges lack important thinking skills. That is, as a result of a developmental delay, these children are unable to regulate their emotions, consider the consequences of their actions, express themselves in words, or respond to changes in a flexible way. A comprehensive, SEL program has the potential to foster the emotional growth of these students. Aboriginal Students A focus on SEL can play a supportive role in students' development by supporting personal healing and resilience for those who have suffered harm. Evidence of the connection between SEL and the needs of Aboriginal people who have suffered harm is presented in a program designed to enhance the social and emotional competencies in adult Aboriginal inmates. The program, called the Red Path Program, incorporated four key aboriginal concepts: Circle, Creativity, Balance and Ceremony. Participants used language and respect to build community and relationships. Storytelling and portfolios were used in Creativity. Modeling and repetition encouraged Balance. Ceremonies reinforced the other quadrants and further grounded the participants in tradition. A strong connection to SEL is evident because community, relationships, and grounding are all concepts rooted in emotional intelligence. Researchers found that those who participated in the program scored significantly higher on intrapersonal, adaptability, and stress management scales than those who did not participate in the program (Parker, Shaugnessy, & Wood, 2012). 8 Image 5: The Four Quadrants of the Circle of Courage In addition, a philosophy growing in popularity is the Circle of Courage, a program co-founded by Dr. Martin Brokenleg. This approach to personal development emphasizes the kind of social, emotional, and spiritual learning and healing that is a key component of a traditional Aboriginal worldview. Two of the four quadrants in the Circle of Courage relate directly to emotional intelligence. As participants practice belonging, they strengthen the bonds and relationships with their kin. Teaching independence can be equated with teaching self-discipline. This is further evidence that EI and SEL can play a supportive role in the growth and healing of the Aboriginal community, in a way that is culturally affirming and responsive. Is there a Connection between SEL and Mental Health? "Calm down! Relax! " How many times as parents or as educators have we told our children to do just that? What do we mean when we say that? Calming down can be a complex process and is a skill that must be learned. The human limbic system is where emotional memories are stored. Love, fear, anger, and even the sense of smell are processed in the limbic system. The negative effect of this link is when stress, anxiety, or sadness hijack a student' s thinking and interfere with learning. Gary Plaford (2006), director of social services at Monroe County Community School Corporation, states that as educators we can develop our students' "psychological immune system." Storytelling and routine help shift the locus of control in the brain out of the limbic system and toward the left hemisphere where these emotions can be processed more rationally. Storytelling allows students to confront and reflect on troubling scenarios in a secure environment, while routine reduces stress and anxiety by reducing unpredictability. Schools provide an ideal forum for mental health early intervention strategies. School-wide SEL programming fosters in all children the skills to cope with life' s challenges (CASEL, 2008). It is evident that students provided with instruction in strategies to assess their emotions can better moderate feelings of anxiety and depression (Fernando-Berrocal, Alcaide, Extremera, & Pizzaro, 2006). More intensive strategies may then be allocated to students experiencing acute mental health difficulties. The ability to recognize and manage emotions can also be life-saving. For any parent or educator, the worst case scenario is that a young person will take his or her own life. Yet it happens. Between 2005 and 2009, an average of 221 youths in Canada between the ages of 10 to 19 years ended their lives (Statistics Canada, 2013). Schools do not have an influence on the genetic or neurobiological factors that influence the likelihood of suicide attempts, nor can they control or influence the accessibility to external factors such as drug use. However, 9 schools can have an influence on the visualization of suicide, or suicide ideation, and suicide attempts. In their study of the moderating effect EI has on the relation between stressful life events, specifically childhood sexual abuse, and suicide ideation and attempts, Cha and Nock (2009) found that EI had a significant effect. In particular, it was strategic EI, the ability to understand and manage one's emotions that had the most significant moderating effect. Can SEL Reduce Bullying? Bullying is a societal plague that often reveals itself in schools. Developing the EI competencies of both bullies and victims is integral to counteracting this plague. The development of empathy, as well as the ability to understand and connect with others, is a key component of SEL. Plaford (2006) described the importance of bonding as a protective factor for children. Teacher-student and student-student connections help insulate students from destructive conditions such as transience. These factors can contribute to behaviour problems, low self-esteem and poor academic performance. Having teachers and students take the time to get to know each other provides some emotional and social stability. Furthermore, connections built in childhood are critical elements for happiness or well-being as an adult. According to school counselor and anti-bullying advocate, Lauri Massari (2011), when students learn to self-monitor and self-regulate, to recognize their own behavioural tendencies and develop healthier patterns, and to be empathetic toward others, bullying behaviours will subside. Are EI Skills Relevant to the 21st Century Economy? Rampant and ever-evolving change in technology and in the global economy has set a new stage for employment in the future, requiring new skill sets from the students of today. In many ways, this new skill set is directly associated with the attributes of emotional intelligence. In the document, Inspiring Education (Alberta Education, 201 0), which reflects the voices of Albertans, the Government of Alberta outlined "the Three E's" of education for the 21st Century: engaged thinker, ethical citizen, and entrepreneurial spirit. Examining the "Three E's" further, personal dispositions such as communication, collaboration, leadership, social responsibility, personal management, among others, are revealed. Image 6: Inspiring Education. Research suggests that a shift in attention toward social-emotional dispositions is valid. Author of The Global Achievement Gap (2008), Tony Wagner, 10 contends that the current focus in schools will not equip children for the growing knowledge economy. Wagner lists the following as the seven basic skills needed for success in the 21st century: • critical thinking and problem solving • collaboration and leading • curiosity and imagination • agility and adaptability • initiative and entrepreneurialism • accessing and analyzing information • effective communication. The business community is recognizing this shift towards these socialemotional dispositions as well. In a survey of over 400 U.S. employers, researchers found that skill sets for new employees should include professionalism and work ethic written and oral communications, team ' work and collaboration, and critical thinking/problem solving (Casner-Lotto, 2006). Image 7: Communication ~ ~ ~~ ~~ 1 ~ ~ ~~ wn:m ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~~ ~~~~ ~~~ ~~ Ii ~~~ I " J__•:)_ a The argument for implementing an EIISEL program or approach is sound. Students will benefit. Resources abound that recommend steps for implementing new programs. I share some in greater detail in Chapter 4. Much can be learned, however, from the experience of others. Reflecting on the choices, the successes and the setbacks of another school can prove just as valuable as any research or program guide. The purpose of this chapter is to describe the journey of one school as it worked to implement EI into its culture. "Northern Alberta Public School" (NAPS) participated in the Alberta Teachers' Association's Accountability Pillar Pilot Project from our opening as a new school in 2007 until 2011. Through the project, the school looked at the variety of ways student success within the school could be measured as alternatives to accountability through Provincial Achievement Testing alone. When we opened, school administrators consulted school staff and parents to establish our shared values. In early 2008, a school planning committee, dubbed the Committee of Champions was created to ensure that our shared values were reflected in our school efforts. Shortly after, following the guidance of educational consultants provided by the AT A, our school administration adopted EI as a focus. Thus, the NAPS Emotional Intelligence Project was born. 11 We defined EI as "the ability to perceive accurately, appraise, and express emotion; the ability to access and/or generate feelings when they facilitate thought; the ability to understand emotion and emotional knowledge; and the ability to regulate emotions to promote emotional and intellectual growth." Our teachers were to assist students in the development of their emotional intelligence by focusing on the following stx facets: self-awareness, managing emotions, empathy, communication, cooperation and conflict resolution. By late 2009, staff, students and parents were really beginning to embrace this philosophy. A common language, based on The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, was adopted. Lesson plans and other resources reflecting the six facets were being planned and compiled. EI had become such a core component of our school culture that the Committee of Champions was replaced by a new group called the EI Committee. This group, which comprised of many of the members of the Committee of Champions, took a more deliberate approach to integrating EI into school life. The EI Committee investigated possible resources and programs to advance our philosophy. The committee researched and subsequently settled on the idea of our school becoming a Leader in Me school. The idea of adopting the program from the Covey organization, including costs and commitments, was presented to and approved by the staff. However, in early 2010 our ATA advisory committee dissuaded us from adopting a commercial program. Their argument was that we were already developing our own emotionally intelligent culture. Members of the EI Committee accepted this advice, not as a setback, but as a new and exciting challenge. We were empowered to create our own EI curriculum based on the Six Facets of Emotional Intelligence. ··The Six Facets of Emotional Intelligence Self -Awareness One of the basic emotional skills involves being able to recognize feelings and put a name on them. It is also important to be aware of ithe relationship between thoughts,feelings and actions. What thought sparked off that feeling? What feeling was bebind that action? Managing emotions •It is important to realize what is bebind feelings. Beliefs have a fundamental effect on the ability to act and on how things are done. Many people continually give themselves negative messages. Hope can be a useful asset In addition, fmding ways to deal with anger, fear, a!IXiety and sadness is essential: teaming haw to soothe .oneself when upset, for example. Understanding what happens when emotions get the upper hand and how to gain time to judge if ·what is about to be said or done in the heat of the moment is really the best thing to do. Being able to channel emotions to a positive end is a key aptitude. Empathy the measure of a situation and being able to act 1appropriately requires understanding the feelings of the others involved and being able to take their perspective. It is important to be able to listen to them without being carried away by personal emotions. There's a need to be able to distinguish between what others do or say and personal reactions and judgments. ~ 'Communieating DeveJoping quality reJationships has a very positive effect on all involved. What feelings are being communicated to others? Enthusiasm and optimism are contagious as are pessimism and negativity. Being able to express personal concerns without anger or passivity is a key asset. Cooperation Knowing how and when to take the lead and when to follow is essential for effective co-operation. Effective leadership is not built on domination but the art of helping people work together on common goals. Recognizing the value of the contribution of others and encouraging their participation can often do more good than giving orders or complaining. At the same time, there is a need to take responsibilities and recognize the consequences of decisions and acts and follow through on commitments. Resolving Confficts In resolving confficts there is a need to understand the mechanisms at work. People in conflict are generally locked into a selfperpetuating emotional spiral in which the declared subject of conflict is rarely the key issue. Much of the resolution of conflicts calls on using the other emotional skills mentioned here. 12 Additionally, a program plan (see Appendix A) was developed to equip the students of NAPS with the 6 facets of Emotional Intelligence. The plan, which follows our Program Implementation Pyramid, established a series of goals in curriculum, planning, instruction, resources, culture and human resources. Refine Experiment Image 9: Program Implementation Pyramid Specifically, the program set out to organize the following: • implement an EI Coordinator position • provide Professional Development to all staff • develop a Curriculum of Emotional Intelligence • have teachers plan imbedded instruction and direct instruction of EI curriculum as developed by the EI Team • develop a survey assessment • see the completion of the assessment by all students, parents and teachers • have the physical and cultural environment of the school reflect the importance of the EI project • accumulate teacher resources to be used at the elementary and JH level. The heart of the Program Implementation Pyramid is the Curriculum, which influences how EI will permeate every aspect of school life. The Pyramid also suggests the entire program 1s m a constant state of experimentation and refinement. One of the goals of the school was to develop an assessment tool which would be used to generate data in regard to the emotional intelligence of the students as well as perceptions of teachers and parents involved in the school. Based on the objectives outlined in the curriculum, surveys were developed for each division to be completed by the students, parents, and teachers (see Appendix B). Students completed the survey as a self-assessment. Parents completed it based on their perception regarding their child' s school experience and emotional development. Teachers completed a survey for each child to assess the child' s development within the school setting. The data were then compiled to provide the most accurate measure of the EI of individual students and of the student body. The growing value of our students' emotional intelligence could then be compared to reading levels, Provincial Achievement results, and Grade Level of Achievement by school staff. Our ongoing struggle has been consistency and accountability. The makeup of our staff, from administration to teachers and support staff is constantly changing. With those changes have come new initiatives and different levels of investment in the original vision. Following the completion of the Accountability Pillar Pilot Project, we found it difficult to maintain continuity with the work and accomplishments of years past. We have relied on our core staff members to "keep the torch lit" from year to year. Bear in mind, we understand that because we are still experimenting and refining our activities, there is no definitive end point to this process. 13 W0l'!J!X: ~~~~ :r:: :::t ~~ : : Il ": ,I :: ~ ~~~ ~ December 2012: In preparation for a paper I had been working on I was researching documents related to character education programs. This was the first time I was able to reflect on how programs like these were organized and implemented. It was also the first time I was able to step back and consider how we had organized our own program. Two years prior, our principal had asked myself and another colleague to develop a program plan for our Emotional Intelligence Project. We outlined strategic, operational and management plans for human resources, curriculum, and assessment, culture and resources. These were the parameters our principal had given us and what we did with it was ... a guess, an educated guess, but a guess nonetheless. Later, we discovered that our approach was similar to common approaches to planned change within other organizations. philosophy of decentralization, because school districts and schools themselves are in the best position to understand the needs of their students. Therefore, schools and school districts should develop their own programs to suit their specific circumstances. Packaged programs, however, have their merit as guides, informing the program implementation process. The Alberta Teachers' Association's Heart of the Matter, is an Alberta based character education and citizenship program. The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning's Implementation Plan for (CASEL) Emotionally Literate Schools outlines a broad but comprehensive implementation plan. Steven Covey' s The Leader in Me, offers valuable strategies for establishing an organizational vision, bringing people on board and aligning them with the vision, and training staff in the vision. For their noted strengths, these programs were selected, compared and used to inform the general composition of the following framework for program implementation. ~ ~ 0 There are plenty of quality and well researched, commercial programs to select from and I have listed some for you later in this handbook. But, consider that schools are a reflection of their community, and not all communities are the same. Why impose a structure or program that may promote specific values that are not desirable or the most valued within your own school setting? Or perhaps the program may include a standards-based assessment that your students may not be able to meet. Education change researchers, Andy Hargreaves and Dennis Shirley (2009) recommend a ~ ~ ..§ ~ ~ sy j ~ 'ctlc..-; lH > ~ ~ C,)t0 ~ ~ ~ ! ~ Jf Image 10: EI Resources ~ 14 The Program Implementation Framework The Program Implementation Model for Emotional Intelligence is a general framework for program implementation. It is the result of the lessons learned from my school's journey and from the informing literature on the subject of program implementation and is intended to guide other schools in their journey. This framework allows for a self-developed, flexible and evolving program, with minimal costs, where criteria are determined on-site along with the means of delivery and the methods of assessment. administrator, "Principal Patterson". With great enthusiasm, Principal Patterson seized the opportunity to involve our school in the Alberta Teachers' Association's Accountability Framework Project (AFP). The goal of the AFP was to identify alternative measures of accountability at the local, rather than provincial, level. Having facilitated sessions at school council and staff meetings to establish the mission, vision, and values of the school, Principal Patterson was able to help us articulate our school community 's core values. These core values, and the guidance of the educational advisors of the AFP, led to the concept of working as a staff to build the facets of emotional intelligence in our students. With the core values cemented and defined, the task to follow was to educate, lead and motivate staff for the EI focus. Personal relationships were important, because it helped speed the process. With key teacher leaders on staff embracing the agreed-upon core beliefs, and understanding his leadership style, Principal Patterson was able to work with individuals to support the bigger process with the whole staffgroup. 0 Image 11: The Program Implementation Model for Emotional Intelligence Step 1: Agree to the Vision A brand new school, a fresh start and a chance to develop a unique school culture from the ground up: this was the landscape that lay before our school 's first Implementing any program or philosophy within a school must involve all stakeholders, but needs to begin with administration. School administrators can inspire and organize staff during the initial stages of change by using Michael Pullan's five components of positive change, as outlined in Leading in a Culture of Change (2001), and Clint Swindall's three aspects of engaged-leadership, as described in Engaged Leadership (20 11 ). 15 FUnan's FiVe Components of Positive Change 'Swindall's Three Aspects of Moral Purpose The overall sense of social responsibility; meaning that educators not only make a difference in the lives their students, but can have a positive impact on their social environment. t;Directionalleadership Leader.s at this stage should seek the support 1 'of the most influential members of the staffi ;first. Then leaders should inform the balance ~ the staff of the changes to occur, how ?these changes will affect them and how they; can contribute to the process. .Coherence Making Seeking alignment with the variety of initiatives and directives allows the teachers to focus more deeply on the strategies for effective learning. When the moral purpose of a leader is communicated simply and passionately, the people they lead find themselves energized and engaged as a result. Build.Relationships A leader without followers is just someone going for a walk. Whereas moral purpose and coherence making are essential skills and understandings, relationship building is perhaps the essential value of a leader. Relationship building, however, takes time. Knowledge Sharing Related to relationship building as both are social in nature, information only becomes knowledge through a social process. Additionally, knowledge sharing is integral 'to the profession of teaching. The collaborative nature of professional learning communities is key to this sharing of knowledge. Understanding Change This is a critical mindset in the change process. Change is not steady, nor is it linear. Change is an involved process with ~ ~ Engaged Leadership ~ Leaders should find opportunities to motivate and encourage employees. Small successes should be acknowledged and :particular attention to those influential .members should be paid, because without encouragement they are often the first to · abandon implementation. Organizational leadership [Identify and position the right people in the right places to benefit both the employee and the organization. Establishing a core group. will help secure continuity as staff turnover occurs. As well, the organization should hire1 and educate new employees accordingly to ensure they have the needed skills and attitudes. Step 2: Form a Steering Committee August 2009: To date the culture of our school had been governed by a group of selected and volunteering staff members known as the Committee of Champions. Members of that group gathered a day before the start of the 2009 school year with a new principal, "Principal MacGregor. " Recognizing the value and trajectory of our Emotional Intelligence Project, Principal MacGregor asked for volunteers to form an EI committee. The group began with six 16 members: three from elementary, two from junior high and one administrator. In short time, a leader of this committee was appointed and began the process of collecting lesson plans from teachers throughout the year. Leadership of the committee was passed to mefor the start ofthe 2010/2011 school year. Again, recognizing the value of our vision of EI and the need for curriculum and staff development, Principal MacGregor provided classroom coverage for me, as the program coordinator, so that I might make myself available to other staff members as a defacto instructional coach with a focus on EI Meanwhile, the committee began to expand and organize. The committee, now totalling 16, comprised the original core members, plus representatives from each grade level and all members of administration. Representatives were selected on the basis of experience, interest, and sphere of influence. The core leadership group believed that if these teachers led, the remaining teachers would follow. from all over the organization in conversations about what is working , what is not, and how exciting it would be if the organization could move more in the direction of what is working" (p. 220). Roles should be established for committee members (Brackett et al, 2009). A coordinator, ideally an experienced teacher or administrator knowledgeable in the area and trusted by the team, should be appointed to lead the group and act as a liaison with administration. Other committee members could assume any of the following roles: • Learning Coach-assisting classroom teachers with instruction • Communications-ensuring the message of the philosophy is reflected in the hallways, newsletters, and assemblies. • Professional Development-orienting and training new staff members while providing ongoing development opportunities for established staff members. • Program Planning and Evaluationmonitoring, assessing and refining the program. 0 With the vision established and the staff engaged and motivated, the next step in the implementation process is to establish a steering committee to guide the development of the school's EI philosophy. "The school principal is usually instrumental in forming the committee and recruits members from every part of the school community. Members should include administrators, teachers from all subject areas, parents, school aides, support staff such as counsellors, social workers and psychologists and even students"(Brackett et al., 2009, p. 339). Goleman (2002) agrees with this bottom-up approach and suggests that "engaging formal and informal leaders Image 12: Empathy Poster 17 Step 3: Engage Stakeholders Spring 2010: the core EI core group travelled to a Leader in Me school, in southern Alberta. There we toured the halls, visited the classrooms, met some of the students and talked to a few of the teachers in an effort to understand the culture of The 7 Habit philosophy. The school's principal told us an enlightening story of one particular family and the effect the school's philosophy had on them. The father, a rather large, intimidating, rough and tumble sort, asked to meet with the principal one day. In that meeting, the father revealed that years before he had fled the United States, having committed one or more (it is unclear) crimes. The father now found himself at a crossroads. He had fled his past and was currently providing a good and stable life for his son. His son, however, was learning to model the vision of his school. He was acting as a leader and using The 7 Habits consistently in his life. The father, seeing that he could not honour his son, told the principal that his intention to do the right thing and turn himself into the proper authorities. Remarkable. 0 The stakeholders of a school include its students, immediate neighbourhood, and business community. Because stakeholders from each of these groups may act as members of a steering committee, forming a steering committee and engaging stakeholders, Steps 2 and 3 of the implementation process may be combined. The success of social-emotional literacy programs is reliant on school families acting as collaborators (Brackett et al, 2009). At a minimum, school administrators should inform parents of the intended direction and begin introducing parents to the tools and resources to be used at school. The Heart of the Matter (Alberta Education, 2005) notes that a strong schoolparent partnership can be forged by involving parents in one or more of the following activities: communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision making, and collaborating with the community. Additional community partnerships could include organizations like local businesses, colleges/universities, health care organizations, faith based organizations, and various levels of government. These partnerships can target and support student, family, school and/or community needs. Certainly, aligning and involving a community agency that naturally compliments the school's philosophy would be ideal. Subsequently, the program would be introduced into classrooms, engaging students. Students do not necessarily need to be passive participants in this early stage of the implementation process. Students at The Leader in Me schools assume or can be assigned leadership roles. Students may be natural public speakers, musicians, or athletes; and they can develop these talents as they promote the EI program. Other students may apply for leadership positions with various school councils or clubs. Further still, students can act as "line leaders" or librarians at the classroom. In each case, students are walking the walk of the school's vision Best-selling authors on leadership, James Kouzes and Barry Posner (2007) suggest two essentials ways that adult and students leaders can model the vision: personify the shared values and teach others to model the values. "In practicing these essentials leaders become role models for 18 what the whole team (the group, the organization, or the company) stands for, and they also create a culture in which everyone commits to aligning themselves with shared values"(Kouzes & Posner, 2007, p. 76). It can be expected that as school leaders and teachers model the vision to their students, the students would then adopt the vision and model it at home. Time," "Some of the Time" or "This is Hard for Me. " In an effort to make the data trustworthy, we triangulated the data by having parents and teachers complete the survey as well, with the individual student in mind. The idea then was to compare the EI data with Provincial Achievement and Fountas and Pinnell reading level data. Step 4: Curriculum and Planning Spring 2010: L along with three other teacher leaders, was afforded the opportunity by our principal to develop a curriculum of emotional intelligence. The six facets of emotional intelligence (empathy, emotional management, communication, cooperation, conflict resolution, and selfawareness) as outlined by one of our internationally renowned educational consultants, Dr. Stephen Murgatroyd, were used as the foundation for this curriculum. Four of us sat in a small room for a day examznzng these facets and designing objectives in the form of "I Can" statements to reflect those for each of the three divisions taught in our school (see Appendix C). It was important to us to show that these objectives evolved over time so that a Grade 1 student might say, "I know why my emotions change " while a Grade 9 student may express a more mature version of this understanding with, "I understand that my emotions affect my behaviour. " Subsequently, a survey that related directly to the objectives laid out in the curriculum became our assessment tool. As the curriculum itself varied for each division, so did the survey. In each case, students were asked to respond to a series of questions like "I can talk about my problems to an adult " by circling one of "All of the Image 13: Cooperation Poster With our curriculum giving us direction and an assessment tool ready to measure our success, the next question was how to teach the curriculum? As program coordinator, I decided that teachers should commit to completing two planning tasks each year (noted in Chapter 3). They were asked to examine their year plans and select three performance tasks in which they could simply highlight and be mindful of the inherent aspects of emotional intelligence. Secondly, teachers were to plan two explicit lessons per month such as a journal entry or a discussion. 0 What to teach? There are a few possible approaches to implementing and assessing emotional intelligence in your school. But let' s begin at the beginning. For the most part, the informing literatures for 19 this document are not singular philosophies. The Leader in Me schools have an eye on 21st century skills and have merged their leadership philosophy with leading edge educational research such as: Ron Clark's Essential 55, Dr. Larry Lezotte's 7 Correlates of Effective Schools and Rick DuFour's Professional Learning Communities. The Heart of the Matter provides a list of character education approaches such as Nel Noddings' Educating Moral People, the Supporting Safe, Secure, and Caring Schools in Alberta The Initiative and the Virtue Project. RULER Approach, like The Leader in Me, is its own philosophy, but is founded in decades of research. Unlike The Leader in Me, The RULER Approach has developed its own social-emotional literacy curriculum. These programs, however, may or may not reflect what the school community, its stakeholders included, wants to see in the children it raises. So, again it is along the vein of Hargreaves and Shirley's (2009) decentralized mindset that schools should decide for themselves on the objectives they want their children to achieve. Assessment, naturally, is tied to curriculum and schools must make a decision as to what they wish to assess. This topic is discussed to a greater extent in Step 5 as it also relates to program refinement and evaluation. Once your direction has been set, how to teach it? Without a doubt, the instruction has to be comprehensive. Elbertson, Brackett and Weissberg (20 10) have found that programs that are implemented with a singular focus, such as community service, or in a piece meal fashion are less effective than comprehensive, school-wide programs. Additionally, CASEL (2008) suggests that lessons should not only be direct, but woven throughout the curriculum and both inside and outside the classroom. Comprehensive programs must have a pre-planned component, whether it is year plans, unit plans or lessons plans. Forethought must be put into the teaching. Teachers should be, and can be, teaching these skills at any time they are interacting with their students. Teachers should consider this: imagine that EIISEL is the message you want to communicate and your curriculum is the medium in which you communicate it. This is a significant mind shift for curriculum-first educators. However, this SEL-first mindset allows for the coverage of the curriculum and for the flexibility and readiness to meet the moral imperative of social emotional learning. There could be resistance to this perspective. Some teachers may not connect EIISEL to subjects like science and math and may find language arts and social studies more natural fits. If a teacher is always at the ready and approaching any subject with an SEL-first mindset, then they can be ready to address topics such as group work, communication, problem solving, and test anxiety to name a few, none of which are subject specific. Image 14: Managing Emotions Poster 20 Step 5: Sustainability Winter 2010: Our EI committee met at the school district offices with our Superintendent and our panel of educational advisors. We presented to them our efforts and accomplishments to date and presented the idea of becoming a Leader in Me school. To my initial disappointment, our advisors dissuaded us from adopting a commercial program, noting that we were already on our way to becoming an EI school. Days later, I had an epiphany that resulted in feeling a sense of freedom with this direction. We had before us the opportunity to create something uniquely ours: to develop a program that reflected the needs of our school and our community. I particularly appreciated the notion that we had flexibility in our staff development. I realized we could identify lead teachers, have them trained as we saw fit and assign them the task of orienting new teachers to our philosophy. At a time of declining resources, this avenue seemed relatively cost efficient. 0 If the one constant is change, sustainability then must play a critical role in program success. In the case of implementing an EI culture, sustainability has three components to consider: program evaluation and refinement, human resources, and the organizational environment. administrators, teachers, students, and community members on what is working and what is not. Ultimately, the question of how the students are responding has to be asked. Student attitudes, behaviours, and engagement can be reflected upon. Formal evaluations should involve more empirical evidence. Steering committee members could opt to examine office referrals for behaviours, reading levels or achievement results which may validate the process. However, a supplemental strategy would be to assess the students' emotional intelligence directly. Schools can achieve this by relying on an assessment tool developed in-house, as we did in our school, or by using one of the following common tools for assessmg emotional intelligence in youth: • MSCEIT: YRV: A youth version of the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test designed to assess emotional intelligence in youth ages 10 to 18 years. This ability-based scale measures the same principle areas of emotional intelligence as the adult MSCEIT, and uses a variety of tasks to measure a youth's capacity to reason with emotional information and solve emotional problems. • EQ-i:YV: Based on the BarOn model of emotional intelligence, it measures the level of emotional and social functioning in children and adolescents. Program Evaluation and Refinement • SEI-YV: An on-line self-assessment for children and youth ages 8 - 18 years based on the Six Seconds Emotional Intelligence Assessment. Brackett et al. (2009) suggest continuous monitoring of programs, both informally and formally. Informal evaluations can include feedback from For overall program evaluation TaylorPowell, Steele, and Douglah (1996) provide a useful program evaluation plan. Users are guided through focussing the evaluation, 21 collecting the information, using the information and managing the evaluation. Human Resources Within a school, administrators and the visions that accompany them, change. All levels of leadership must not simply agree with the strategy, but to the strategy as well (Swindall, 2011). Therefore, to sustain an initiative, a school's leadership must hire staff with an understanding and interest in the school's philosophy, and so must district leadership when appointing a new administrator. Schools must also contend with the constant ebb and flow of staff members. The Leader in Me systematically trains staff over two years initially and then provides ongoing training and support of new staff members ...but at a cost. The RULER Approach suggests the preparation of master trainers to aid in sustainability. Master trainers, similar to Instructional Coaches, are those educators who receive additional training and are meant support teachers and program developers so as to maintain the program. Clearly, building capacity among staff members on an on-going basis is critical to maintaining an organization's culture Organizational Environment An organization's philosophy can be supported and reflected in its systems and its physical environment. Covey (2008) describes this as a ubiquitous approach, where principles permeate all the actions taken by members of an organization. Fullan (2002) agrees that for an emotionally intelligent philosophy to sustain itself, the organizations' system and practices must be aligned with the vision. Banners, murals and posters reflecting EI can be displayed throughout the school. Assemblies, newsletters, school functions can be used to reinforce the message. This ubiquitous approach should have what can be described as a greenhouse effect. When you walk into a greenhouse, you know you are in a greenhouse. Every one of your senses tells you that you are in a unique environment. Likewise, when visitors enter your school, they will know immediately that they are walking into an emotionally intelligent school. They will see it on your walls, in your halls, in your students and in yourselves. Final Thoughts It is clear that the social emotional domain impacts academic performance, well-being and success in life. The spectrum of SEL programs is wide and varied. Developing a program in-house without guidance can be daunting. The convenience of these standing programs is that they take decision-making out of the process and allow schools to implement them immediately. But are decision-making, assessment, and reflection responsibilities that school-based educators should be avoiding? When it comes to the social and emotional well-being of our students ... our kids .. . should we not be investing the time to decide on what we want them to grow up to be and how we will lead them there? As educators immerse their students in an environment of SEL, they will witness their school' s culture and community coalescing, test scores improving and discipline issues reducing, and perhaps, just maybe, it will impact their lives as well. 0 22 November 2, 2010. My father died. The former teacher, community college president and small business owner finally lost his battle with Alzheimer 's. With a balance of sorrow and relief, I knew his nightmare was over. I cried a little when my mother called to tell me the news, but I still got ready and headed off to work. When I arrived, I told my administrator and let him know I'd be leaving in a few days to join my family. I told a buddy of mine as well. And I With Alzheimer 's, family felt ... okay. members grieve the passing of their loved one long before the actual physical death. Then two unexpected things happened. First, I had to consider one of my students: "Alice. " Her father had completed suicide months earlier and I was concerned that the events in my life might bring back some of the sadness with which she had already been dealing. I didn 't want my pain to become hers. Before I told my class, I decided to pull her aside and tell her privately and express to her that I cared for her and hoped that I wasn't going to cause her more pain. Weeks later, her mother relayed to me that on that very day, when Alice got into her mom 's car after school, she slumped into her seat and sighed. Mom asked what was the matter and Alice replied, "Mr. McCracken 's dad died today and I know exactly how he feels. " Having found a connection, she and I used the rest of the year to develop a scrapbook about her father and allow her to grieve safely. What resulted was a bond that I 'll never forget. Also that day, my buddy mentioned to a few former students what had happened in my life. Like I said, I was handling the day well until the jive of them showed up at my door. I knew immediately why they were there and yet I still asked them what they needed. " We wanted to see if you were ... " was all they could get out before I began to cry. It was a big ugly cry too. We gathered into a big group hug and I let it all out. It was beautiful. Days later I looked back and saw how perfectly that day symbolized my personal journey with El My father was the first person to introduce me to the concept of El He was a natural at it and I watched and tried my best to emulate the best of him. I practiced his teachings in my own classroom, with my own students, talking with them (not to them), empathizing with them and building relationships. And at a time when the pain of death had touched my life, they were there for me and I was ... relieved. Image 15: Connections 23 ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~ Professional Resources Corrie, C. (2009). Becoming emotionally intelligent. New York. Continuum International Publishing Group. Goleman, D. (1997). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than. IQ. New York: Bantam. Teacher Resource Workbooks Teachers can use the following resources as unit guides or for individual lessons. Some resources may have reproducibles to use. Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 Habits ofHighly Effective People. NY: Free Press. Cowan, D. & Palomares, S. (1999). Talking with kids: Guided discussions for developing emotional intelligence. California: Innerchoice Publishing Massari, L. (2011). Teaching emotional intelligence. Leadership, 40(5), 8-12. Jasmine, J. (1997). Conflict Resolution. California: Teacher Created Resources Inc. Plaford, G. Bullying and the brain: Using cognitive and emotional intelligence to help kids cope. Maryland: Rowman & Littlefield. Emotional Intelligence in Literature Salovey, P., & Mayer, J. D. (1990). Emotional intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 9, 185211. The heart of the matter: Character and citizenship education in Alberta schools. (2005). Retrieved from: http://education.alberta.ca/media/54 7 951 /heartmatter. pdf Wagner, T. (2008). The global achievement gap: Why even our best schools don 't teach the new survival skills our children need-and what we can do about it. New York: Basic Books. (Lower Elementary) The following story books can be used as prompts for classroom discussions or reflective journal entries: I Care About Others, I'm a Good Friend, I Tell The Truth all by David Parker The Straight Line Wonder by Mem Fox A Bad Case of the Tattle Tongue by Julia Cook Have You Filled a Bucket Today? by Carol McCloud Stone Soup by Jon J Muth 24 Emotional Intelligence in Literature (Upper Elementary) The following story books can be used as prompts for classroom discussions or reflective journal entries: On Line Resources The RULER Approach: A series of professional developments sessions that help educators teach their students five key emotional literacy skills: Recognizing, Understanding, Labelling, Expressing, and Regulating http://therulerapproach.orgl Ish by Peter H. Reynolds Is There Really a Human Race by Jamie Lee Curtis The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstein The Three Questions by John Muth Oh the Places You 'll Go by Dr Seuss .The Fish! Philosophy: 'FISH! For Schools helps you to build a :POsitive, enthusiastic, caring and focused rculture. http://www.charthouse.com/content.aspx?na j me=home2 .• . Courage - Bernard Waber Bad Case of the Stripes Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (novel) Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (novel) Responsive Classrooms: A research- and evidence-based approach to education that leads to greater teacher effectiveness, higher student achievement, and improved school climate. Proactive strategies for preventing bullying are highlighted. http://www .responsiveclassroom.orglaboutresponsive-classroom peveloping Capable People: ~ and training programs designed to provide parents with strategies for rempowering the youths in their lives. http://www .resiliencyinstitute.com/parentEd ucation/developingCaP,ablePeqpJe.plm.,. 25 Kids Matter: KidsMatter provides a whole-service framework designed to support the mental health of young students so that they may develop strong relationships and experience long term success in life. http://www.kidsmatter.edu.au/earlychildhood Lions Quest: Lions Quest is a Canadian-based organization dedicated to fostering positive youth development by connecting them with effective tools to empower and caring adults in their lives. http://www.lionsquest.ca/ The Leader in Me: The Leader in Me is a whole-school transformation model based on The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. The Leader in Me equips students with the self-confidence and skills they need to thrive in the 21st century economy. http://www.theleaderinme.org/ Kids Health in the Classroom: Kids' Health is a resource for developing empathy with students. A lesson plan, discussion questions, and reproducibles are provided. http://kidsheal th.org/ classroom/9to 12/person al/growing/empathy.pdf The Circle of Courage: The Circle of Courage is a model of youth empowerment supported by research and Native philosophies of child care. http://www .reclaiming. com/content/aboutcircle-of-courage The Virtues Project: The Virtues Project nurtures children in the skills and qualities they need to be successful in school and in life http://www. virtuesproject.com/education.ht ml Values. Com: The Foundation for a Better Life: Values.Com is an online resource for values ~ inspirational videos, posters and quotes. http://www.values.com/ 26 ~ ~ ~~ ~~~ ~ ~ ~~ ~ ~ ~ ~~~ Emotional Intelligence Year Plan Template Direct Instruction Topic, Theme or Unit (2/month) Grade level or PLC teams will plan for direct instruction activities (at least 2 lessons per month). Indirect Instruction Topic, Theme, or Unit (3/year) Revise 3 performance tasks completed throughout the year to include or highlight EI curricular objectives. Resources Used Essential Facets: Note which ofthefollowing will be addressed: Self-awareness Communication Emotional Management Cooperation Empathy Conflict resolution Month Month Month Month 27 Emotional Intelligence Year Plan Exemplar Direct Instruction Topic, Theme or Unit (2/month) Grade level or PLC teams will plan for direct instruction activities (at least 2 lessons per month). Indirect Instruction Topic, Theme or Unit (3/year) Revise 3 performance tasks completed throughout the year to include or highlight EI curricular objectives. Resources Used Essential Facets: Note which of the following will be addressed: Self-awareness Communication Emotional Management Cooperation Empathy Conflict resolution Dec Sept Oct 1 Nov Read, discuss, and practice all 7 Habits (ongoing) Daily Agenda use (being proactive, putting first things first)- students write daily work as well as positives based on the habits (ongoing) Job charts-student responsibility (ongoing) Classroom Mission Statement (i.e. rules) Waste and Our World The Grade 4' s will collect the recyclable materials for the school. They will develop a budget based on their income. This is an ongoing activity 7 Habits of Highly Effective Kids Talking with Kids Self-Awareness Managing Emotions Communicating Resolving Conflicts Cooperation Empathy 28 Emotional Intelligence Lesson Plan Template Teacher: Date: Grade: Characteristic(s) addressed: Self-Awareness _Communicating _Managing Emotions _Empathy _Co-operation _Resolving Conflicts 7 Habit(s) addressed: _Proactive Think Win-Win _Begin with the End in Mind_First things First _Seek to Understand _Synergize _Sharpen the Saw Activity Objective: Students will ... Resource(s) Used: Internet Link _Text Book _Teacher Resource Guide Resource Details: Activity Summary: Assessment: Formative _Summative Assessment Summary: Rate the activity on a scale of 1 to 10. (1 being poor and 10 being excellent.} Road Blocks: Should the activity be continued or discarded? Why? : 29 Alberta Education. (2005). The heart of the matter: Character and citizenship education in Alberta schools. Retrieved January 21, 2013 from : http:/leducation.alberta.ca/media/547951/heartmatter.pdf Alberta Education. (2010). Inspiring education: A dialogue with Albertans. Retrieved March 24, 2012 from: http://www.inspiringeducation.alberta.ca/ LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=wqYRVMaWPH8%3 D&tabid=7 5. Alberta Learning. (1999). Supporting safe, secure and caring schools in Alberta. Edmonton: Alberta Learning. Bentro, L., Brokenleg, M. & Van Bokem, S. (1990). Reclaiming youth at risk: Our hope for the future. Indiana: National Education Service Brackett, M. A., Patti, J., Stem, R., Rivers, S.E., Elbertson, N., Chisholm, C., & Salovey, P. (2009). A sustainable, skill-based model to building emotionally literate schools. Handbook of developing emotional and social intelligence: Best practices, case studies, and tools (pp. 329-358). New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. CASEL. (2008). Connecting social and emotional learning with mental health. Chicago: Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning. Casner-Lotto, J. (2006). Are they ready to work? Employers ' perspectives on the basic knowledge and applied skills of new entrants to the 21st century US. worliforce. Retrieved March 24, 2012 from: http://www .p21.org/storage/documents/FINAL_REPORT_PDF09-29-06.pdf Cha, C. & Nock, M. (2009). Emotional intelligence is a protective factor for suicidal behaviour. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 48: 422-430. Clark, R. (2004). The essential 55: An award-winning educator's rules for discovering the successful student in every child. New York: Hyperion Covey, S. (2008). The leader in me: How schools and parents around the world are inspiring greatness, one child at a time. New York: Free Press. Dufour, R. & Eaker, R. (1998). Professional learning communities at work. Indiana: National Education Service. 30 Durlack, J., Weissberg, R., Dymnicki, A., Taylor, R. & Schellinger, K. (2011). The impact of enhancing students' social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development, 8(1 ), 405-432. Early Child Development Mapping Project Alberta. (2013). Community results. Retrieved October 28, 2013 from: https://www.ecmap.ca/Pages/default.aspx Elbertson, N., Brackett, M. & Weissberg, R. (2010). School-based social and emotional/earning (sel) programming: Current perspectives. New York: Springer Femando-Berrocal, P., Alcaide, R., Extremera, N. & Pizzaro, D. (2006). The role of emotional intelligence in anxiety and depression among adolescents. Individual Differences Research, 4, 16-27. Full an, M. (200 1). Leading in a culture of change. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Fullan, M. (2002). The change leader. Beyond instructional leadership. 59(8), 16-21. Fullan, M. (2007). The new meaning of educational change. New York: Teachers College Press. Goleman, D. (1998). Emotional intelligence: Why it can matter more than IQ. New York: Bantam. Goleman, D. (2002). Primal leadership: Learning to lead with emotional intelligence. Boston: Harvard Business School Press. Greene, R., (2008). Lost at school: Why our kids with behavioural challenges are falling through the cracks and how we can help them. New York: Springer. Hargreaves, A. & Shirley, D. (2009). The fourth way: The inspiring future of educational change. California: Corwin Press. Hattie, J., (2009). Visible learning: A synthesis of over 800 meta-analysis relating to achievement. New York: Routledge. Kouzes, J. & Posner, B. (2007). The leadership challenge. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Lezotte, L. (1991). Correlates of effective schools: The first and second generation. Michigan: Effective School Products. Massari, L. (2011). Teaching emotional intelligence. Leadership, 40(5), 8-12. Mischel, W., Peake, P. & Shoda, Y. (1990). Predicting adolescent cognitive and self-regulatory competencies from preschool delay of gratification: Identifying diagnostic conditions. Developmental Psychology, 26 (6), 978-986. 31 Noddings, N. (2002). Educating moral people: A caring alternative to character education. New York: Teachers College Press. Parker, J. Shaugnessy, p. & Wood, L. Trent university research report series: Promoting emotional intelligence (Report number 27). Retrieved June 23, 2012 from: http://www .scribd.com/doc/114973 84/Promoting-Emotional-Intelligence-WithAboriginal-People. Plaford, G. (2006). Bullying and the brain: Using cognitive and emotional intelligence to help kids cope. Maryland: Rowan and Littlefield Publishers Inc. Popov, L. (2000). The virtues project: Simple ways to create a culture of character-educator 's guide. California: Jalmar Press. Salovey, P., & Mayer, J. D. (1990). Emotional intelligence. Imagination, Cognition and Personality, 9, 185-211. Statistics Canada. (2013). Suicides and Suicide Rate, by Sex and by Age Group. Retrieved October 28, 2013 from http://www.statcan.gc.ca/tables-tableaux/sumsom/101 /cst01/hlth66a-eng.htm Swindall, C. (2011). Engaged leadership: Building a culture to overcome employee disengagement. Massachusettes: Books 24 x 7.com Reclaiming Youth International. Circle of courage. Retrieved September 21, 2013 from: http://reclaiming. com/ content/about-circle-of-courage. Taylor-Powell, E., Steele, S. & Douglah, M. (1996). Planning a program evaluation. Retrieved October 6, 2013 from: http://learningstore.uwex.edu/assets/pdfs/g3658-l.pdf Wagner, T. (2008). The global achievement gap: Why even our best schools don 't teach the new survival skills our children need-and what we can do about it. New York: Basic Books. 32 Image 1: EI Today, created by L. McCracken, October 2013, using wordle.com Image 2: The Domains and Facets of Emotional Intelligence, created by L. McCracken, October 2013. Image 3: Time Magazine, retrieved on October 2013, from http:/I content. time. com/time/covers/0, 16641, 19951 002,00 .html Image 4: Self-Awareness Poster, created by L. McCracken, January 2011 Image 5: The Four Quadrants ofthe Circle of Courage, retrieved on January 2013, from http://www .reclaiming. com/content/aboutcircleofcourage Image 6: Inspiring Education, retrieved on October 2013, from http://lillianosbome. epsb. calstudents? start=8 Image 7: Communication Poster, Created by L. McCracken, January 2011 Image 8: Resolving Conflicts Poster, created by L. McCracken, January 2011 Image 9: Program Implementation Pyramid, created by L. McCracken, May 2010 Image 10: EI Resources, created by L. McCracken, October 2013, using wordle.com Image 11: Program Implementation Model for Emotional Intelligence, Created by L. McCracken, October 2013. Image 12: Empathy Poster, Created by L. McCracken, January 2011. Image 13: Cooperation Poster, Created by L. McCracken, January 2011. Image 14: Managing Emotions Poster, Created by L. McCracken, January 2011. Image 15: Connections, created by L. McCracken using wordle.com, October 2013 . 33 Appendix A: Emotional Intelligence Program Plan ~ ~ an Strategic Plan What is our goal? Operational Plan How will we achieve the goal? Management Plan What support is necessary to achieve the goal? EI Coordinator position is implemented All staff is aware of who the coordinator is and are able to take advantage of this person ' s expertise; all information regarding implementation of programming is "filtered" through this person (questions, comments, etc.) EI Coordinator to be given release time on a weekly basis to be used for: Resource development Teacher observation and support for implementation A support person for each division reports to the coordinator School counselors have input into implementation Professional Development given to all staff Book Study at the end of the 09110 school year will set up our 1011 1 school year Teachers will be given PLC time in 10/11 school year to develop year and lesson plans. Dedicate time on our schedule. PLC time will be utilized for PD. Arrange speaker(s) with ATA around EI. Teachers need individual time to revise projects. PLC/grade level teams need time to develop year plans Dedicate some PLC dates to EI development early in the year. Some PLC time will be needed later on for PD opportunities. 34 ~ [nstruction j\ssessment Strategic Plan What is our goal? Operational Plan How will we achieve the goal? Curriculum of Emotional Intelligence will be developed. EI team will meet to develop a Curriculum based on the 6 facets of Emotional Intelligence Teachers to implement imbedded instruction and direct instruction of EI curriculum as developed by the EI Team. Direct instruction: Grade level or PLC teams will plan for direct instruction activities (at least 2 lessons per month). Year plan to be submitted to coordinator. Imbedded instruction: Revise 3 performance tasks completed throughout the year to include EI curriculum; project summaries to be submitted to coordinator (done individually) Survey assessment will be developed. EI team will develop survey based on the curriculum. All students complete the assessment in June. Teachers will select a block of time to complete the assessment with their class on-line. All parents will complete the assessment of their child by June. All teachers will complete the assessments of their students by June. Management Plan What support is necessary to achieve the goal? Assessment schedule will be developed by admin with input from EI coordinator. Include in newsletter. Surveys will be sent home in June OR done on-line. Teacher will fill out surveys on-line Ensure teachers are given PLC time to complete assessments. - 35 ~ lesources Strategic Plan What is our goal? Physical Environment of the school will reflect the importance of our EI project Operational Plan How will we achieve the goal? Cultural Environment of the school will reflect the importance of our EI project Junior High homerooms will be used to reinforce EI curriculum Project based School Counselor leads? Seek out teacher resources to be used at the elementary and JH level Banners/murals/other to be posted throughout the school Management Plan What support is necessary to achieve the goal? Bulletin board to display student work Posting Dinomites or similar to highlight student efforts Elementary Assemblies will be used to reinforce EI curriculum Student presentations Biweekly or monthly goals EI team, with input from school counselors, will assess and select resources that can be used for direct and imbedded instruction at all grade levels. Resources needed for JH homerooms and assemblies Is there a budget for this? 36 Appendix B: Survey Assessment (Division One: Parent Version) Division One: Thinkin2 About My Child ... Read each sentence carefully then select the answer that best fits your child A= S= H= All of the time Some of the time This is Hard for me 1. He/She can name his/her feelings. 2. He/She knows why his/her feelings change 3. He/She can put first things first 4. He/She can calm himself/herself down when upset 5. He/She can try new things 6. He/She can do his/her best 7. He/She can see how someone is feeling by how they look 8. He/She can tell how someone is feeling by how they sound 9. He/She can talk to an adult about a problem he/she is having 10. He/She can communicate verbally and non-verbally 11. He/She can work with others 12. He/She can keep his/her promises 13. He/She can speak calmly 14. He/She can listen respectfully 15. He/She can be responsible for his/her behaviour 16. He/She can use communication tools ("I messages", Ha, Ha, So, etc.) 17. He/She can say sorry the right way 4 Digit Code A s H 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 37 Appendix C: "I Can" Statements EI Skill SelfAwareness Division I I can recognize and name my feelings. I know why my emotions change. I can identify what is most important (First Things First) . Managing Emotions I can calm myself down when I am upset. I can try new things. I can do my best. Division 2 I am aware of my feelings as they happen. I understand that my emotions affect my behavior. I can identify and set priorities. Division 3 I am aware of my feelings as they happen. I understand that my emotions affect my behavior. I can use personal experience to set priorities. I can calm myself down to help me solve problems. I believe in myself when I try new things. I will not give up easily when faced with a challenge. I can control my emotions to help me solve problems. I believe in myself when I try new things. I can persevere when faced with a challenge. I can understand the non-verbal messages of other people. I can understand how someone is feeling by their tone of voice. I can understand why people feel the way they do by taking their perspective. I know when to speak about my personal problems to others. I can use verbal and non-verbal communication appropriately. I can influence those around me positively or negatively by how I communicate. Empathy I can see how someone is feeling by how they look. I can tell how someone is feeling by how they sound. I can see how someone is feeling by their body language. I can tell how someone is feeling by their tone of voice. I can understand why people feel the way they do. Communicati ng I can talk to an adult about a problem I am having. I can talk to a friend or an adult about a problem I am having. I am aware of how my verbal and non-verbal messages are perceived by others. I can influence those around me positively or negatively by how I communicate. I can work with others. I can follow through with my commitments. I can be a leader or follower in a group. I can encourage others to participate. I can recognize the contributions of others. I can speak calmly and listen respectfully. I can be responsible for my behavior. I can use my communication tools ("I" Messages, HA-HA-SO etc.). I can apologize appropriately. I can let go of the issue when the conflict has been dealt with I can communicate verbally and non-verbally. Cooperation I can work with others. I can keep my promises. Resolving Conflicts I can speak calmly and listen respectfully. I can be responsible for my behavior. I can use my communication tools ("I" Messages, HA-HA-SO etc.). I can apologize appropriately. I can work with others. I can follow through with my commitments. I can be a leader or follower in a group. I can encourage others participate. I can recognize the contributions of others. I can speak calmly and listen respectfully. I can be responsible for my behavior. I can use my communication tools ("I" Messages, HA-HA-SO etc.). I can apologize appropriately. I can let go of the issue when the conflict has been dealt with