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4 Ways Social-Emotional Learning Can Create Safe School Spaces for All Students

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4 Ways Social-Emotional Learning Can Create Safe School Spaces for All Students

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4 Ways Social-Emotional Learning Can Create Safe School Spaces for All Students - Market Brief

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Students must feel safe to reach their potential. Use these SEL techniques to create that type of school environment for a diverse range of students.

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However, from a policy standpoint, many signs point to a camera-optional rule. There are concerns about equity and bias, internet bandwidth, and privacy that make a camera requirement problematic.

A Question of Framing

Framing the camera question as being about rules and policies can pull our focus away from a more important question. Instead of asking, "Should I require my students' cameras to be on?" we should ask, "How do I create a learning space where students feel safe and comfortable turning their cameras on, where students want to see and be seen?"

Instead of mandating that students turn on their cameras, we should focus on creating a caring community where students can choose to turn their cameras on or off without shame or pressure.

Here are a few strategies for creating this environment in your classroom.

Let Go

The truth is, we cannot control what students do in their own homes-and control doesn't lead to student engagement anyway. Attempting to limit students' bathroom use or ban them from snacking is more likely to breed resentment than build relationships.

When we feel stressed, it's normal to reach for control as a way to make things feel predictable. But when we let go of the need to control our students, we become better able to join together with our students in the very human experience of living through uncertainty.

Rethink What Participation Looks Like

What does engagement look like? One assumption behind camera-mandatory policies is that teachers can tell whether students are listening by looking at their faces, but this simply isn't true. For some students, staring directly at the screen may indeed demonstrate that they are listening. But a student who is looking down or away, doodling or taking notes, may also be engaged.

Help students reflect on what works best for them. Encourage students to experiment with having their camera on or off, or taking notes on a Google doc versus on paper. This helps boost students' self-knowledge as learners.

Check In With Students

In addition to checking in on our own expectations and emotions, we need to ask our students how they feel about being on camera.

College instructor Karen Ray Costa reminds teachers that students may feel anxious about appearing on camera or simply unsure what they should be doing while onscreen. She recommends normalizing those anxious feelings and hosting a Zoom practice session to help students get familiar with the tools and expectations for online class.

Consider surveying your students and/or their families and caregivers to assess comfort with cameras, concerns about bandwidth, and availability of quiet spaces in the house. We know we cannot mandate that students join online class from a quiet desk space, because many of them don't have that type of space. Instead, we can try to better understand the types of spaces our students will be learning in and then plan accordingly.

For example, if I realize that many of my students will be joining class from the same room as siblings and it might get loud, I might build in more quiet, chat-based activities so that students don't have to mute and unmute as much. If I learn that many of my students are anxious about bullying or being judged by peers, I can address that by intentionally building community, being mindful that it takes time to cultivate trust.

Get Creative

Now that you have a sense of what your students need, it's time to get creative. By thinking flexibly, we can find multiple ways to engage students-whether cameras are on or off.

Use the chat feature to gather student questions or ask for quick responses. Use breakout rooms for small-group discussions, where students may feel more comfortable interacting on camera. Try technology tools like Padlet or Jamboard to work on collaborative writing, note taking, or mind maps.

You can also make a cameras-off environment more friendly to look at: Teach students how to add a profile picture so that students' faces are still present even when the camera is off. You might encourage younger students to aim the camera at a favorite stuffed animal or toy when they need a break from having their face onscreen.

Also, don't forget the power of one-to-one check-ins. Not every minute of a live class needs to have talking. Don't be afraid to use part of your synchronous class for students to read or write with cameras off. You can use this time to conference one-on-one or in small groups in a breakout room, or use the private chat function with one student at a time.

Be Real

Finally, teachers can support students by being authentic and modeling that it's OK to just be yourself on video. Don't worry about sounding rehearsed or making your space look Instagram-perfect. Embrace the fun and silly moments when pets and family members make guest appearances.

Create an environment where students recognize that turning cameras on means laughter, making silly faces at friends, and being seen for who they are. When students feel safe and connected in our online classes, we move from compliance to community.

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Allowing students to choose whether to turn their camera on for online classes enables them to take ownership of their learning.

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16 Tips for Creating a Safe Place to Learn

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16 Tips for Creating a Safe Place to Learn

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There's a lot more that goes into learning than what's in the curriculum. Decades of research going back to psychologists like Piaget and Maslow show that a safe environment is essential for student success. Creating a welcoming, inclusive space where students feel free to express themselves in service to their academic goals begins with how students are treated by teachers and peers-in interactions big and small.

Good teachers already know that "building the right kind of climate and culture is crucial to a successful classroom," writes Jal Mehta, a professor at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Fortunately there are "ample opportunities for this kind of integration."

When schools and teachers focus on honing complex skills like tone of voice and co-regulation, while generating connection and belonging between children, they help deliver the "physiological and psychological conditions for productive learning," note researchers Linda Darling-Hammond and Channa M. Cook-Harvey in a 2018 report. "Without secure relationships and supports for development, student engagement and learning are undermined."

We examined the research and combed through our archives to see how teachers keep their classrooms safe, open, and inviting learning spaces focused on collaboration, effective communication, and strong two-way relationships between students and teachers. Read on to see an assortment of ways teachers create these conditions in their classrooms.

3. Sit with Students: Teachers should circulate in the classroom, of course, but it's also important to occasionally sit beside them. "We might ask a strategic question, inquire about the group's project, or simply listen," writes Rebecca Alber, who instructs preservice teachers at UCLA's Graduate School of Education. It can be a uniquely powerful way to build connection, empathy, and ultimately trust.

4. Check In Daily: Each day at Rhode Island's Highlander Charter School begins with a morning meeting to help get students centered, connected to teachers and peers, and ready to learn. Former high school teacher Ronen Habib began class with a brief gratitude circle, a warm-up game, and a moment of mindful breathing. Such exercises build emotional intelligence skills such as self-awareness and self-management, says teacher Aukeem Ballard, and give students space to quiet down and reflect before learning.

8. Develop Your Tone of Voice: Using your voice to manage a classroom is a powerful tool-and it can take years to get right. A tone that's too strict or demanding can cause students, especially older ones, to disengage; too soft and you'll invite them to test boundaries. The best mix is somewhere in the middle, writes middle school teacher Kristine Napper. "Neither high expectations nor kind hearts can do the job alone," says Napper. Instead, aim for a warm demander tone that "focuses on building strong relationships with students, then draws on that wellspring of trust to hold students to high standards of deep engagement with course content," Napper writes.

9. Confront Language: Holding students accountable for the ways they talk and joke about topics like gender identity, body image, and race are key parts of building safe classroom communities and schools. "You can interrupt negative events when they happen in school-homophobic remarks, transphobic remarks, racist remarks-because when those things are not interrupted, that can be interpreted as teachers 'giving permission,'" says Dr. Joseph Kosciw, director of the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network Research Institute. "But it's also about creating an environment that embraces difference and diversity-and teaching an inclusive curriculum so kids connect to their learning." In the classroom, says educational consultant Becky Cohn-Vargas, consider introducing students to the concept of identity safety and invite them to help "formulate norms for respect, acceptance, and inclusion."

10. Make Time for Reflection: Research shows that giving students opportunities to reflect on the goals, relationships, and interests most important to them can boost achievement. Try regular low-stakes writing exercises like journal jots or quick writes, Alber suggests, with prompts such as: "What is your life's motto and why?" Also, make time for academic reflection, writes educator Andrew Miller, by asking straightforward questions about what students learned and what they think they need to learn more about.

12. Occasionally, Go Deeper: Quick check-ins like Roses and Thorns and cold opens allow students to express themselves before learning starts. But when time allows, a slightly more elaborate check-in can give students space to share more deeply and explore whether they're feeling supported in their learning, getting enough sleep, or feeling overwhelmed.

13. Be Trauma-Informed: Examining the impact on students of factors such as racism, poverty, and community violence comes with many misconceptions, writes Matthew Portell, executive principal at Fall-Hamilton Elementary in Nashville. A big one is that it's not teachers' jobs to be therapists. But being a trauma-informed educator doesn't mean that teachers need to "do the work of professional therapists," Portell argues. Instead, it's about taking a trauma-informed lens to how you approach all children. Research shows, for example, that building strong, nurturing relationships fosters a feeling of belonging that's important for all students-but for students who've experienced trauma, it's "absolutely imperative for healing," says Portell.

14. Don't Forget the Shy Kids: Shy or introverted students may be less likely to raise their hands in class-but they need opportunities to contribute in meaningful ways, writes special education expert Rachel Fuhrman. In lieu of cold calls, she practices warm calls, where she lets the student know ahead of time she'll be calling on them, and often lets students present at the front of the room in pairs. Also consider a modified Think-Pair-Share activity that gives students time to write down their thoughts instead of silent thinking time.

16. Audit Books and Classroom Materials: Review your classroom and lessons for blind spots, suggests elementary teacher Talya Edlund, especially in light of research indicating that up to 80 percent of characters in childrens' books are White. Include posters and wall art featuring people from a variety of cultural backgrounds and identities, and expose students to books and materials that address frequently overlooked stigmas around incarceration, body size, and homelessness, for example.

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16 Tips for Creating a Safe Place to Learn

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These teacher-tested strategies help students feel respected and connected in class-and primed for learning.

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By Jaclyn Borowski - January 28, 2022 4:58

For one Asian American principal, the pandemic, and the violence toward the Asian American and Pacific Islander community that's come with it, has brought fresh opportunities to engage in conversations with students about race and racism. It's enabled him to share his own experiences, answer students' questions, and help them understand what it means to be a person of color in America.

Jaclyn Borowski is the director of photography and videography for Education Week.

Voices From the Field: Conversations With Male Educators of Color

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'It's Not Been Easy': How One Asian American Principal Is Modeling Inclusivity

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One Asian American principal has used the increased violence toward the Asian American and Pacific Islander community during the COVID-19 pandemic as an opportunity for important conversations within his school.

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Ideas for How to Build Confident, Engaged Learners Now

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The Education Week newsroom explores a few of the practical & promising approaches to incorporate character education during the pandemic.

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A once-shy student is now a teacher working to make sure all students, even those who are quiet by nature, feel productive and included.

Bob Daemmrich / Alamy Stock Photo

Educational technology can help encourage quiet students to become active participants in the classroom, says Stacey Roshan, math teacher and director of innovation and educational technology in Potomac, Maryland. Being called on in class was stressful and intimidating for Roshan throughout her education, she writes in a recent piece on reaching quiet kids in class for EdSurge. "I could never pay full attention because I always felt on alert," Roshan says. "I was scared to be called on. I didn't want to be put on the spot." She recalls teachers frequently calling only on those who were first to raise their hands.

Her experience made her more sensitive to the needs of methodical thinkers and shy kids and informed her approach to facilitating class discussions. Roshan concluded that educational technology is a valuable tool "to engage students, inform individual and group instruction, differentiate lessons, document work, and empower students to direct their own learning."

Does it give each child a chance to participate, even if they are not the first to answer?

"Does it engage every learner in the room, and require them all to actively participate and respond to each question, form an opinion, and submit an answer?"

Does it allow for students to share openly, without risk of exposure of their mistakes to other students?

Is it efficient and effective for teachers to target not only class needs, but individual student needs?

Does it vary the way students can respond to a question? Some students like oral discussion while others prefer written replies.

But creating safe spaces for all students, she says, requires vetting technology for the classroom. Over many years, Roshan developed the following questions to assess whether educational technology is appropriate and useful which she uses as a rubric when deciding whether to adopt a technology solution:

Frequent, well-planned use of the tools that meet her high standards makes them feel second-nature to the students. Roshan recommends Flipgrid which allows students to create and post videos in response to questions from both the teacher and other students-a less stressful scenario for a shy student than speaking to a whole class. EdPuzzle also passes her test: It's a flipped classroom tool that enables students to interact with each other through video questions.

An inclusive classroom environment requires a culture shift from "first is best," where the teacher calls on the first student to raise her hand, to one where all students feel safe and comfortable participating.

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A Litmus Test for Making Tech More Inclusive

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A once-shy student is now a teacher working to make sure all students, even those who are quiet by nature, feel productive and included.