A Rosetta Stone for Social and Emotional Skills
A Rosetta Stone for Social and Emotional Skills
Research has shown that social and emotional skills may be as important for academic performance as cognitive ability is, and that these traits positively predict performance, behavior, and satisfaction in work and life. In the context of fairly recent studies showing that personality can change over the lifespan, research suggests that social and emotional factors could and should play a more pivotal role in educational policy and practice than hitherto realized.
These types of outcomes, however, are rarely intentionally inculcated through elementary and secondary teaching and learning. As a result, such skills are often fostered through informal means – as a byproduct of good teaching or good parenting – or through non-formal programs, including extracurricular activities and programs organized by community-based organizations. This means that some students benefit from the opportunity to develop these skills, while others do not. In fact, they are as important as academic abilities in predicting success in school and careers, and thus are essential for all students.
What are social and emotional skills?
A commitment to developing character, social and emotional skills, and 21st century competencies can be found in the mission statements of many schools across the globe and in national policy statements worldwide. In addition to delivering academic learning, schools proclaim their commitment to developing students to become life-long learners, skillful collaborators, moral individuals, confident and persistent problem-solvers, organized and conscientious leaders, innovative thinkers, and much more. Many of these skills — such as curiosity, cultural competence, collaboration, and leadership — are included in the concept of global competence.
The list below names almost 50 of these skills, and it isn’t exhaustive.
Assertiveness, Adaptability, Cheerfulness, Collaboration, Collegiality, Communications, Confidence, Coping with Stress, Creativity, Cultural Competence, Curiosity, Dependability, Determination, Effortful Control, Enthusiasm, Entrepreneurialism, Ethical Behavior, Fairness, Friendliness, Generosity, Global Mindset, Grit, Growth Mindset, Honesty, Imagination, Innovation, Integrity, Kindness, Leadership, Liveliness, Moderation, Optimism, Organization, Patience, Persistence, Planning, Professionalism, Punctuality, Resilience, Responsibility, Self-Consciousness, Self-Esteem, Self-Regulation, Sociability, Teamwork, Time Management, Tolerance, Trustworthiness, Work Ethic
It is no simple task for educators to narrow down the above list, prioritize what is most important, and develop these skills in young people. It is easy to see why: they are all good things, at least in moderation, and their instruction is not self-evident. What is needed is an evidence-based framework to help educational policymakers and educators make sense of the plethora of skills beyond academics that are critical for 21st century success, along with strategies and approaches to effectively teach and reliably assess these skills.
Making sense of social and emotional skills
A Rosetta Stone for Social and Emotional Skills, a paper published by the Center for Global Education at Asia Society and ACT, puts forward one such framework: the Big Five personality factors. These factors, the authors write, can act as a Rosetta Stone to "translate" the various concepts and terms used among and between researchers and practitioners, economists and businesspeople, and policymakers in education systems in different countries. Interpreting critical social and emotional educational outcomes through the lens of the Big Five tethers them to the hundreds or thousands of psychological studies conducted in the past two decades. The conclusion of this research is clear and compelling: these traits matter.
A Rosetta Stone for Social and Emotional Skills describes the Big Five factors, how they were determined, and how they have been demonstrated to be universal across different ages and consistent across different countries and cultures. It concludes by reviewing many of the approaches to assessment of these skills, and the related challenges and solutions.