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Social and emotional learning (SEL) is critical for students' social and academic success. Students' SEL is often contingent on their teachers' social and emotional competencies and capacities (SECC; Jennings & Greenberg, 2009; Chapter 5) and teacher preparation to facilitate SEL in classrooms (Schonert-Reichl, Kitil, & Hanson-Peterson, 2017). Concerningly, teacher training to facilitate SEL is frequently predicated on a color-evasive perspective that ignores the ways structural racism impacts the schooling experiences of racially minoritized students and associated academic and SEL outcomes (Jagers, Rivas-Drake, & Borowski, 2018; Jagers, Rivas-Drake, & Williams, 2019). In order to support SEL for students from racially minoritized communities, we assert that teachers' social and emotional competencies and capacities must incorporate a culturally responsive pedagogical approach that explicitly acknowledges and addresses issues of race and justice (Jagers et al., 2019; Ladson-Billings, 2014; Ladson-Billings & Tate, 1995). In this chapter we (1) provide an overview of culturally relevant pedagogy in relation to teacher social and emotional competencies and capacities; (2) outline existing models that support a culturally relevant approach to teacher social and emotional competencies and capacities; and (3) discuss future directions for education research, practice, and policy.

The need for social and emotional learning (SEL) has never been so clear. The growing understanding of its benefits has been made more evident by the stronger focus of state, district, and school leaders, educators, and families to leverage SEL as a strategy to promote emotional well-being, to combat systemic and interpersonal inequities, and to engage students in positive learning environments. With this urgency to use SEL practices, now is the time to ensure a focus on creating environments and experiences that promote social and emotional development and deepening understanding of the motivational factors that promote student and adult success. Motivation researchers have been studying the motivational elements – and associated interventions – that better equip youth and adults to engage in their learning environments, suggesting the importance that the two fields learn with and from each other. The introductory chapter of the volume, Motivating the SEL Field Forward Through Equity, explores the intersections and accelerators of the two fields to create optimal learning environments and experiences for all youth. Specifically, we provide a high-level overview of the two fields, including ways each field takes into account personal development in relation to context and culture. We further explore ways in which the two fields intersect, elevating the importance of understanding the role of equity and excellence in research and practice. We then focus on one approach that we believe elevates equity of voice in research – research–practice partnerships. Finally, we highlight how this volume is organized.

Directing schools of high complexity in disadvantaged social contexts with high rates of emigration requires skills for emotional leadership. Directors with self-managing capacities are needed to manage their own emotions. They also need to mobilise people (teachers, students and families) by focussing on their feelings of satisfaction, identification with the group, belonging, joy, success, unity and cohesion.

The content of this chapter presents the study of the emotional management of directors who perform their work in two highly complex schools in Catalonia, Spain. The views of these directors as well as teachers and families examine: (1) the construction of their professional identity, (2) their social and ethical commitment to the community, (3) the orientation towards the values of social justice and (4) their emotional leadership practices focussed on personal attention towards all of the actors in the school community.

The chapter concludes with 10 suggestions that can be useful to improve the professional practice of school directors. These should also be taken into account when designing and implementing initial and ongoing training programmes for school leaders and to inspire ideas for future research.

Black males often are raised in poverty, exposed to violence and toxic environments that create different levels of trauma that can cause social emotional problems which lead to mental health problems. These problems along with a lack of adequate relationships with teachers can affect their schooling and attainment. No wonder, black males often suffer disproportionately from poor achievement, high suspension, exclusions, and drop-out rates. Young people who struggle in school often lack the social and emotional skills (or “soft skills”) needed to succeed academically, deal with anger, make sound choices, and handle challenging situations constructively, ethically, and manage behaviors that prevent them from being suspended/excluded from school. It does not help that teachers who are often afraid of them, and do not know how to relate to them and lack emotional literacy (EL) themselves. Unfortunately, because of these challenges schools will often place black males in special education classes.

There is a cognitive/non-cognitive divide in education. Most of the school curriculum/pedagogy focus on cognitive aspects of education/learning (e.g., memory-based education) when compared to non-cognitive aspects of learning (social and emotional skills/learning). If our young people are to realize their full potential in our schools, it is crucial we begin educating the “whole child” and increase social and emotional provisions in our schools. It is the cognitive and non-cognitive aspects of learning combined that make young people successful. We need a new educational paradigm/mind shift. After all, educating the whole child makes good sense of course, all learning has an emotional base.

While there has been a proliferation of social and emotional learning programs in schools in recent years, social and emotional learning programs that focus on black males and cultural competence are limited. Therefore, we propose a new framework for social and emotional development/learning model for black males that focus on cultural competence. Our EL/cultural competence model is called teacher empathy, which focuses on relationship black males have with their teachers and therefore focuses on both the pupil/student EL and the teachers. The aim/goal of our model/curriculum is to: improve academic performance, motivate and help both black males and teachers, regulate and manage their behaviors more effectively, and reduce suspensions, exclusions, and drop-outs.

The present work aims to investigate social competences as part of the broad discourse on social and emotional skills, abilities and competences (SESACs). The objective is to nourish the body of literature on the different standardisation processes of educational practices with specific emphasis on the motives which govern standardisation of SESACs. With the intention to empirically explore these themes, data from a research on social competences as conceived by Italian middle school teachers are presented. In order to understand the practices of meaning negotiation in a scenario of normative indeterminacy, teachers' conceptions of social competences are presented and analysed. Results suggest a great conceptual variation about what social competences are. The work addresses a reflection on the role of SESAC in educational contexts in the attempt to give content and educational significance to this potentially fruitful educational tool.

A vast and comprehensive body of research highlights the importance of motivation for academic outcomes. More recently, researchers and educators are increasingly becoming aware of the importance of motivation for social and emotional outcomes. In the current chapter, it is argued that motivation is a core component of social and emotional competence because such competence must be actively and willfully applied to have a positive impact on the individual and those around them. Motivation is essential for this application. In this chapter, three well-known motivation constructs are presented as playing a role in promoting positive social and emotional outcomes: social goals, growth mindsets, and autonomous motivation. Then, attention is narrowed down to an in-depth consideration of autonomous motivation and its role in a recently developed conceptual model that articulates the instructional, motivational, and behavioral factors and processes implicated in social and emotional development (Collie, 2020). The conceptual model highlights that instructional practices promote students' perceptions (of autonomy, competence, and relatedness) and, in turn, their autonomous motivation and enactment of socially and emotionally competent behaviors. The chapter concludes with implications for practice and research.

The purpose of this paper is to focus on two research questions. First, what are the emotional and social intelligence competencies that distinguish outstanding from typical urban principals? Second, how do outstanding and typical urban principals conceptualize and adapt differently to their external organizational environment?

A criterion sample of 12 outstanding and eight typical principals was identified from a large Midwestern urban school district. Data from critical incident interviews and written questionnaires were collected. The quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed to identify the key characteristics that describe differences between the two performance groups.

Significant differences are found in both areas of inquiry. Outstanding principals demonstrate a broad and deep repertoire of competencies related to emotional and social intelligence. Twelve of the 20 competencies studied significantly differentiate outstanding and typical principals. In addition, the study found differences in how outstanding and typical principals conceptualize and adapt to their external organizational environment. Outstanding principals interact with a broader range of external groups and utilize a wider spectrum of boundary‐spanning strategies.

A field sample from one urban school district limits the generalizability of the results.

Usefulness of the findings for school districts and universities is explored including the implications of a competency assessment and development approach for the recruitment, selection and preparation of principal candidates as well as leadership training for incumbent principals.

This study suggests that emotional and social intelligence is a critical factor in effective principal performance and is an important framework to examine in future research. The study provides a methodology that can be easily replicated in other urban districts.

The quality of students' relationships with their teachers plays a significant role in their success in school. Social and emotional learning (SEL) curriculums show great promise for supporting student development. However, quality implementation requires that teachers recognize and understand how their behavior and interactions with students impact the development of these skills. The Prosocial Classroom Model proposes that teacher social and emotional competencies (SECs) play a critical role in creating and maintaining a classroom where everyone feels safe, connected, and engaged in learning. In this chapter, we extend the understanding of SEC to include leadership styles as defined by evolutionary motivational systems theory. We argue that a critical dimension of effective SEL instruction and teacher SEC is effective leadership that skillfully applies an understanding of the social and emotional dimensions of classroom interactions that promote motivation, engagement, and learning. Implications for educational theory, policy and practice, and research are discussed.

This paper investigates and reports on the study abroad experiences of 22 teacher candidates from the Southeast region of the USA (n=22). The purpose of this paper is to examine the teacher candidates’ development of social and emotional learning through their international teaching experiences.

The study is framed by Critical Cosmopolitan Theory, which is a theoretical lens for a critical understanding of the development of global competencies for critical consciousness. The paper uses a case study research design (Yin, 2008), which included data collected via artifact analysis, participant interviews and participant observation through field notes.

The study found how the study abroad and international teaching experiences were instrumental in aiding in the teacher candidates’ social and emotional learning. This included the adoption of culturally responsive teaching practices, development of reading the world and enactment of taking action to rewrite the world.

One of the limitations is the relatively small sample size. This is due, in part, to the high cost associated with study abroad. The high cost of study abroad can be a barrier for students to access the cross-cultural experiences afforded by study abroad. The hefty price tag of study abroad often limits the number of teacher candidates at public institutions who can go on study abroad (Malewski and Phillion, 2009). A future research agenda is needed about ways to help off-set the costs in order to make study abroad more affordable and equitable.

The practical implications of this paper are that it provides an instructive lens for how to integrate social and emotional learning within a study abroad experience. At the same time, the paper connects socio-emotional learning (SEL) with the development of global competencies and global citizenship.

The social implications relate to the practical implications in that the paper illustrates how SEL is connected to the development of global citizenship development. The study weds the critical cosmopolitan framework with SEL to show how learners develop empathy through reading and rewriting the world.

The case study presented in this paper highlights the possibilities of study abroad in tandem with international teaching experiences to help prepare teachers with SEL features like fostering empathy, developing culturally responsive practices, and becoming critically conscious and cosmopolitan. The study fills a gap in the literature regarding the development of SEL among elementary education teacher candidates through study abroad and international teaching experiences.