Early Adolescent Black Girls’ Reflections on a Multi-Year Transformative SEL Intervention.

• In Event: Considering Culture and Contexts in Socio-Emotional Learning

Abstract

There is a call for transformative social and emotional learning (SEL) programs and strategies that acknowledge the unique experiences of racial and ethnic minority youths (Jagers, 2016). To support optimal development for minoritized students, SEL must focus on issues of power, discrimination, and justice and intentionally provide students with the knowledge and skills to engage in critical consciousness (Jagers et al., 2019). Unfortunately, there are still significant gaps in the literature regarding SEL programs that do this successfully (Jagers et al., 2018; 2019). The current paper aims to address this gap by analyzing Black early adolescents’ reflections on their participation in a multi-year transformative SEL intervention conducted in single-gendered groups. Specifically, we asked seven questions during semi-structured interviews (Roulston, 2010) to gain insight into participants’ perceptions of the curricular content, instructional methods, and success of the intervention. Participants provided rich responses demonstrating their ability internalize SEL content, apply it to their personal experiences, and engage in self-reflection and assessment. Their responses were interpreted and organized using the phenomenological variant of ecological systems theory (PVEST; Spencer et al., 1997) which captures the unique developmental pathways of ethnic/racial minority children. Although both male and female students’ responses reflected PVEST tenets, the current study focuses only on the girls’ responses. We identified nine themes across the five PVEST tenets. One theme, “She don’t look right,” reflected the first PVEST tenet, Vulnerability. This theme refers to instances where the participants identified and challenged racial and gender stereotypes. Within Stress Management, a PVEST tenet, we identified two themes: “I watch my back at all times” and “Boys, we talked about that.” The first reflects conversations about their hypervigilance outside their homes, and the second reflects conversations about their hyperawareness around males. Another tenet, Reactive Coping Methods, is characterized by four themes that describe the participants’ behavior within interpersonal interactions. Within the first theme, “Just stay in myself,” participants discussed creating psychological and physical distance between themselves and a risky situation. The second theme, “Talk to the adult,” represents another response to conflict, where participants described deferring judgment on handling a situation to someone of higher authority. The third, “Catchin’ an attitude,” captures participants’ focus on effective communication. In the fourth theme, “We can trust all the girls,” participants discussed the trust and relationships built during the intervention through open and honest communication. Emergent Identities, the fourth PVEST tenet, was characterized by one theme, “Smart, beautiful, funny,” where participants described themselves positively. Lastly the tenet Life Stage Outcomes was represented in “It’s all about maturity,” where participants described their growth since the start of the intervention. Across themes, participants highlight areas of concern and the strength of the participatory, adaptive, and intersectional nature of this transformative SEL intervention. Furthermore, participants’ reflections illuminated their intersectional experiences as Black girls, affirming the need to consider not only race, but also the duality of race and gender, within SEL programs.

Authors

• Taylor McGee, Georgia State University
  Presenting Author

• Michelle Tobar, Georgia State University

• Rebekah Pollock, Georgia State University

• Calvin Smith, Georgia State University

• Ann Cale Kruger, Georgia State University