SEL Kernels as a valuable tool in mental health prevention in Estonia

• In Event: SEL Kernels across contexts: Adapting evidence-based strategies for use in different countries and learning environments

Proposal

Social-emotional competence plays an important role in mental health prevention as most of the knowledge, skills and attitudes that are connected to self-care in mental health are closely linked with social-emotional competence (Domitrovich et al., 2017; Durlak et al., 2011). Students' mental health indicators are alarming in Estonia (Estonian Children's Mental Health Research Consortium, 2024). Recent crises (Corona pandemic and war in Ukraine) have added more stress and uncertainties in children's lives. It is important to support people working with children and children themselves to acquire the skills that help to notice their own needs, but also the needs of others and know ways to offer support. Thus, knowing that social-emotional skills are a valuable resource of resilience, mental health prevention in Estonia led by NGO Peaasjad (HeadMatters) is also now more focused on finding ways to include social-emotional learning in the Estonian education system.
As a post-soviet country, focus on supporting only students' subject-based knowledge is slowly shifting towards a more general competence informed and student-centered approach and teachers are interested in finding suitable ways to support students' social-emotional competence. Starting from fall 2024 SEL Kernels are being localized in Estonia to offer educators more options next to comprehensive programs (KIVA antibullying program, PAX Good Behavior game etc).
As a start of the localization process mixed method study design was used to understand better how social-emotional competence is reflected in nationally important documents (document analysis) and how educators in Estonia are describing social-emotional competence, supporting it in the classroom, but also seeing specific need of extra support. The document analysis revealed that the current version of the Estonian National Curriculum puts more emphasis on supporting higher-order skills (critical thinking and problem solving, prosocial and cooperative behavior) and does not specifically mention supporting skills in emotion subdomain.
Educators (n=430) think that the most important skills for students from cognitive subdomain are focusing attention, planning and organizing, from emotion subdomain processing emotions and understanding feelings and from social subdomain, getting along with peers, managing difficult behavior, teamwork and cooperation. From more in-depth focus-group discussions with educators it was found that from their perspective social-emotional competence is expressed through calmness and students' ability to manage failures, but also in their ability to be curious in learning situations. Based on the background information, subdomains of Kernels are renamed as locally relevant and specific SEL kernels are chosen to be modified and tested with educators in Estonia. For example, Estonian educators feel the need for more tools to support self-regulation in real classroom situations and understand better the changes related to students with special educational needs. More specific examples from the data analysis are presented and discussed.

Authors

• Marit Kannelmäe-Geerts, MTÜ Peaasjad

• Triin Ulla, Tallinn University

• Elina Malleus Kotsegarov, Tallinn University