Social and Emotional Learning for Asian American Children: New Meaning and Needs for Different Times

• In Event: Exploring the Multidimensional Experiences of Asian American Children and Families in Educational Contexts

Abstract

This presentation foregrounds the importance of SEL for young children and highlights the imperative to consider cultural responsiveness. It will critically examine how the current SEL research may or may not be conducive for all young children, particularly Asian American children. Implications for early childhood teacher educators and researchers in the realm of Asian American children’s SEL will be discussed.
Social and emotional learning (SEL) has garnered unprecedented attention from educators, parents, and even politicians and policymakers across the United States. Robust research (e.g., Durlak et al., 2011; Mahoney et al., 2021) supports the pivotal role of SEL as a foundation for positive educational outcomes, including students’ improved behavior, peer relationships, academic achievement, and overall school functioning. Longitudinal research (e.g., Posamentier et al., 2022; Taylor et al., 2017) further affirms that SEL can help address mental health crises among older children and youths.
Nevertheless, a growing number of experts are calling for a newer approach to SEL that goes beyond Westernized intervention-driven and teacher-centric approaches (Clark et al., 2022; Hoffman, 2009; Ramirez et al., 2021; Simmons, 2019). They recognize the importance of considering cultural relevance and sustainability to ensure the SEL programs are not neglecting diverse children’s sociocultural contexts.
For Asian American children, the pervasive model minority stereotype continues to seriously influence the societal views of them, ultimately jeopardizing their healthy SEL development (Author A). When Asian American children are lumped as monolithic model minority, this fails to acknowledge the diverse intersectionalities among them. Additionally, when they are chronically expected to have good behavior and be compliant at school, this becomes an exclusionary framing to marginalize those who do not fit nicely into the narrow norms.
Research about Asian American families’ perspectives and experiences of SEL is inevitably tied with how they are perceived by the larger U.S. society; hence they are extremely divergent. One research strand (e.g., Gonzalez et al., 2021; Author C; Wang et al., 2007) documents Asian American families’ traditional perspectives about SEL-related constructs. The other line of research (e.g., Chen et al., 2014; Curtis et al., 2020; Huang et al., 2017) focuses on identifying Asian American families’ level of cultural orientation or acculturation and examining the correlations with their children’s SEL. Another emerging research strand (e.g., Fung & Lau, 2009; Kang et al., 2024; Shin & Wong, 2013) is to unveil more first-hand perspectives of Asian American families sharing nuanced and countering narratives about their children’s SEL.
Given the limited research on early childhood teachers’ perspectives about Asian American children’s SEL, it would be imperative to reexamine how teachers are trained to implement culturally responsive SEL. Furthermore, an expanded research approach to SEL that collaborates closely with Asian American families/communities is crucial to amplify the authentic voices of Asian American children in SEL research. This presentation is aimed to challenge prevailing model minority stereotypes associated with Asian American children’s SEL and to advocate for a more inclusive understanding of transcultural SEL for Asian American children in early childhood education.

Author

• Sophia Han, University of South Florida