Social Emotional Learning
Chapter I
Introduction
Social-emotional learning is an essential part of assisting students with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)to achieve academically. According to Schonert-Reichl (2017), social-emotional learning is a methodology that teachers and parents can use to assist students with autism to comprehend their emotions, show empathy for other people and achieve the full limits of these emotions. When teachers engage with children with autism, they establish a reciprocal relationship that helps them benefit from the social and emotional development techniques. Even though there are varying social-emotional learning techniques that can be applied by teachers, a targeted and universal approach to autistic children would lead to fewer children needing intensive intervention, leading to minimum time spent and reduced cost of intervention (Schonert-Reichl, 2017).
Selbst (2017) examines social-emotional learning and how it helps students with ASDimprove academically, using a pyramid model to demonstrate how social-emotional approaches enhance children’s emotions. According to Selbst, 2017, the pyramid model is a healthcare framework to which healthcare professionals and other care systems can align and execute evidence-based practices and approaches that aid in supporting children emotionally and socially. Early care teachers should implement the model in a supportive environment to establish nurturing, responsive, and reciprocal relationships between students with autism, their teachers, and peers. Students with autism often suffer skill deficits, including reading nonverbal cues, maintaining eye contact, initiating interactions, responding to turn-taking and understanding the other people’s perspectives (Stauch et al., 2018). Techniques supporting social-emotional development – which include academic, behavioral, and social strategies (Murray, 2015) – are beneficial to address skill deficits which harm social learning for students with autism. As outlined by Solomon (2020), children with ASD have to struggle with social phobia, avoidance behavior, and excessive worry in cases when the skills deficit is not addressed.
Children with ASD may sometimes show behavior that might be troubling and thus being more difficult to understand the problems around them. According to Dieleman et al., 2018, students with ASD may act out since they cannot comprehend their surroundings vividly, such as what other people are communicating non verbally. In that case, they may have a hard time expressing themselves and thus can become frustrated. Selbst (2017) asserts teachers and caregivers of students with autism should view students with ASD generally characterized negative behaviors as uniquely possessed skills; children with autism may act in a given manner in the absence of prerequisite skills to understand expectations or to properly communicate regarding a particular behavior. Additionally, SEL positively impacts class attendance, enhances autistic students’ academic performance, and boosts confidence, minimizing disruptive behavior (Morales, 2020). Levine (2021) asserts that students with ASD may reduce skill deficits when teachers, parents, social workers, education directors, and other caretakers apply the pyramid model with fidelity.
In conclusion, this research is reliable when studying autism and academic achievements. However, it only focuses on one model, the pyramid model. The author cites various studies to support his point of view, making it a reliable source. The author gives a better approach to understanding the topic profoundly, which even suits every learner who has ASD. A universal study focusing on behavioral, academic, and social models would be beneficial for general conclusions.
Definitions of Terms
Autism Spectrum Disorder: a developmental disability that leads to communication, behavioral and social challenges (Bond and Chapman, 2015).
Social-Emotional Learning: a process aiming to help children and adults make responsible decisions, achieve positive goals, show empathy, and acquire and apply appropriate skills, knowledge, and attitudes that help manage and understand emotions (Selbst, 2017).
Research Questions
What are the social strategies that teachers can apply to improve autistic students’ academic achievement?
What behavioral social-emotional learning strategies are more effective for students with autism?
Other than the pyramid model, what academic approaches would ensure that social-emotional learning is effectively achieved in students with autism?
What impact does the learning environment have on students with autism?
Chapter II
Review of Literature
Achieving social-emotional learning requires that teachers understand their students and apply strategies that will produce a desirable outcome. According to Grenierand Yeaton (2019), teachers can implement various social strategies to assist students with autism in achieving the desired academic outcome . Social interaction in students with autism is an essential part of every teacher’s plan when dealing with autistic students. These students normally desire to interact with their peers but lack the appropriate engagement skills, or sometimes they may find the social interaction too overwhelming to manage (Gentles et al., 2020). The study further suggests that some students with autism understand their social deficit and avoid interactions even though they need them. Barnett (2018) argues that some students with autism may establish attention-seeking behavior to ensure they have a connection with their peers as they develop interaction skills. Teachers can establish several social strategies to assist these students in achieving academically, such as effective communication, timing and attention, and sensory interaction to ensure that students are interested in interaction and social competence.
Social Strategies
The social strategies applied by teachers aim to ensure that students with autism achieve academically and socially. For example, Gurbuz, Hanleyand Riby (2019) suggests that teachers can apply the behavior-specific praise approach, where every time the student with autism shows a desirable social behavior, the teacher aims at reinforcing the behavior and shaping it to assist the student in interaction with their peers or their teachers. In addition, the study suggests that teachers can pair students with autism with those who show strong social skills to learn from their peers during class assignments or physical activities that would require teamwork. While there are several social strategies we will look further into only two.
Social Stories
According to D’Amico and Lalonde (2017), art as a Social Stories Strategy can effectively assist students with autism in achieving academically and socially. This Social Stories Strategy was developed by Carol Gray in 1989, where a parent or a professional such as teachers are required to communicate information to students with autism, explaining a concept, context, or skill in a way that students with autism would find meaningful (Anagnostopoulou, 2020). This strategy will help the teachers assist the students in understanding class activities and boost the social interactions skills that would enable them to learn from their teachers and ask questions in areas they face challenges. Similarly, teachers can use stories during regular teaching classes, when introducing new routines to students with autism, when elaborating on their new academic skills, social skills, or explaining behaviors of other students. Use of social storiesare beneficial for both the teachers and students because they create social interaction and enhance students’ understanding of concepts and ideas (Anagnostopoulou, 2020). Additionally, Boşnak and Turhan (2020) add that stories’ effectiveness requires that they are told from the student’s perspective. Therefore, the teachers should ask the students to show the appropriate behavior as they read the stories.
Teaching the students essential social rules
Suppose the teacher assists the student with autism in understanding the basic rules concerning classroom rules. In that case, it may help the students adapt to certain social contexts, possibly leading to a decline in undesirable coping behaviors or anxiety among the students (Stauch et al. 2018). Some of the essential social skills that teachers may introduce to studentswith autisminclude taking turns, where through the social stories students are given photos to use as cues(Stauch et al. 2018). Sometimes teachers may rehearse with the students turn-taking activities to understand the context and concepts. In addition, the teachers may teach the students how to initiate a conversation or activity. For example, Boşnak and Turhan (2020) suggest that photographs and social stories can be used to educate the students on how to ask for something, say hello, get into a game, approach others, and solve conflicts. These aspects of the strategy may enhance students’ self-confidence and ensure that their academic outcome is desirable. Further, teachers can socially assist the students in improving academically by supporting their friendship development through assistance to join school clubs, encouraging students to sign up for group plays, and using peer support.
Effective social-emotional learning strategies for students with autism
Students with autismhave challenges in communication and socialization and require effective assistance from their teachers to meet their needs (Murray, 2015). To assist them in social interaction, teachers need to establish social-learning strategies that would produce the most desirable behaviors.Gardner, Wong, and Ratcliffe (2021) note that the most effective social-emotional learning strategies are social, behavioral, and academic strategies that can be implemented to assist students with autism get desirable outcomes. According to Murray (2015), approximately 30-50%of students with autism have the minimal verbal ability when they join the school. In addition, the students are at risk of suffering from depression, anxiety. Therefore, schools, acting as the social environment, should be an effective place where students with autism can learn and overcome their challenges. Even though each student may have unique needs, these strategies may apply to all. Murray (2015) further states that communicative, behavioral, and social impairments have a significant impact on the student’s academic achievements; therefore, these students need support that can be effectively achieved through the following strategies:
Academic Strategies
An academic strategy is a teaching strategy that helps students to learn the desired course content. The academic strategies may include implementing technological teaching modes, where the teacher presents the learning materials to students using easy-to-understand technologies (Murray 2015). Further, Kuder andAccardo (2018) note that computers may effectively teach students with autism academic skills because studies have proved that computers motivate such students to achieve academically. In addition, Murray (2015) argues that computers have visual effects that minimize the student’s stress and present a sense of predictability that improves the students’ self-confidence and emotional control. This strategy is significant because it establishes a structured learning environment, leading to improvement in students’ social interaction, academic achievements, and self-confidence.
Social Strategies
Social strategies are those that aim at improving the student with autism’s social skills. D’Amico and Lalonde (2017) suggest that students with autism have a challenge in understanding the social cues and difficulty in social interactions and need to be taught. According to Murray (2015), teaching social skills in a natural environment is more effective, especially when demonstrationed, because the students can understand the expectations and imitate what they see in the setting. Similarly, Gardner, Wong and Ratcliffe, B. (2021) adds that this strategy is essential and effective because it recognizes the students with autism’sinability to contextualize skills in varying settings. Murray (2015) adds that teachers and peer models play a significant role in helping students with autism’sskills. Anagnostopoulou (2020) suggests that teachers introduce playful imitation for students with autismand effectively enhance their social skills. The study further states that this strategy is effective because observation is the best approach for learning when targeting developing children. Murray (2015) adds that social strategies are most effective because they help students with autism imitate, mimic and copy their teachers, leading to desired actions and behaviorsSimilarly, Barnett (2018) adds that technology has led to significant contributions towards social strategy because teachers use computers to encourage peer learning, group work, and effective communication, leading to desirable outcomes.
Behavioral Strategies
According to Ostmeyer and Scarpa (2012), students with autism may sometimes exhibit challenging behaviors that may interrupt their learning or other students’ learning. Therefore, behavioral strategy, such as following verbal prompts,is an effective approach because it minimizes failure to follow instructions, poor listening, and law-breaking. When teachers implement behavioral strategiesfor such students, they are encouraged to participate in their studies, leading to desirable academic outcomes (Murray, 2015). Murray argues that when teachers implement the behavioral strategy, repetitive undesirable behavior is limited.
Academic approaches to Social-emotional learning
Professionals in the academic sector, especially teachers, play a significant role in supporting students with autism to develop and apply skills, knowledge, and attitude that are essential in managing their emotions, showing empathy to other people, establishing and maintaining relationships, and making responsible decisions (Coskun, 2019). Also, a study by Durlak et al. (2011), using a sample of 213 students, concludes that most students with autism, after getting quality academic social-emotional learning, improved in their academic outcome, where they got 11% higher than students that had not received academic social-emotional learning instructions. Furthermore, Durlak et al. (2011) suggests that academic approaches of social-emotional learning in students with autism improve their attitudes, minimizes negative behavior, and significantly minimizes emotional distress such as anxiety and depression among autistic students. Some of the academic approaches include: the collaborative approach, school friendly plus model, mindup approach and second step model.
The Collaborative Approach suggest that social-emotional learning should focus on the student with autism’s relationship skills, responsible decision making, social and self-awareness, and self-management (McCormick et al., 2015). Similarly, teachers can implement the School Friendly Plus model, an anti-bullying approach originating from Australia, where students with autism are protected from bullying behavior (Stockley, 2010). Teachers can also implement the MindUp approach, where students with autism are taught social-emotional learning focusing on positive psychology, mindful awareness, and cognitive neuroscience. The primary focus for this approach is to ensure that students with autism can regulate their behavior and improve their academic success while also solving conflicts, showing empathy, and eliminating bullying behavior Maloney et al. (2016). Finally, the teachers can also apply the Second Step model where students with autism are taught to manage their friendships, emotions and effectively solve problems. This approach uses brain game builders, reinforcing weekly theme activities, and home links to ensure that students achieve desired outcomes academically and behaviorally (Chatton, 2015).
Similarly, teachers can implement the CASEL 5 that focuses on relationship skills, self, social awareness, self-management, and responsible decision making. According to Gresham et al. (2020), this approach aims at creating an equitable learning environment, community partnerships, collaborative classroom activities, and supportive student-teacher engagement. This approach is effective because it creates a desirable behavior and involves the parents and communities supporting students with autism.
Impacts of Learning Environment
Dautenhahn (2000) claimsthat students with autism thrive in a predictable and structured environment, where routines are consistent so that students can understand their expectations. The teacher can create learning environments that are conducive to students with autism and that warn them of impending change. Murray (2015) adds that a learning environment where teachers use visuals such as photographs improves the students with autism’s academic outcome because visuals make learning easy, enables the students to imitate actions and relate with what they are taught. Using pictures accompanied with texts helps students visualize what they are taught, creating a desirable learning environment for the student and the teachers. Also, encouraging students to practice what they see in the photographs presented to them by teachers enhances their attitude towards learning, leading to improved social and academic outcomes from the students (Murray, 2015). Armstrong (2014), suggested teachers and parents should collaborate to understand the challenges that the students with autism face at home so that the teachers can reinforce the essential skills that would ensure the students succeed both at home and school because when the school environment is desirable while there is conflict at home, the students are likely to produce a low academic and behavioral outcome.
Further, Armstrong (2014) claims that the school architectural environment opportunity for students with autism to repeat activities. Classes having adequate space where students can play and interact freely allows small and large groups of socialization so that students with autism can learn from their peers and boost their self-confidence. Mostafa (2018) suggests that the learning environment should have desirable temperatures, effective lighting, and unnecessary materials removed to minimize students’ confusion of contexts and concepts, especially in class. Also, Mostafa (2018)states that the teacher should use a positive tone most of the time to encourage students towards learning. For example, they should use short and précises sentences to understand what is expected of them easily. Gurbuz, Hanleyand Riby (2019) argue that a learning environment with positive reinforcement like recognitions, certificates, and words of affirmation is likely to produce desirable behavior from students with autism and improve their academic outcomes. On the contrary, a learning environment where teachers or employees are yelling at students or experiences conflicts is likely to produce undesirable academic and behavioral outcomes. Sometimes, students may drop out of school due to low self-esteem and stress (Barnett, 2018).
A learning environment that considers each student individually is likely to produce a desirable social, behavioral and academic outcome (Gentles et al., 2020). Students with autism have different challenges and abilities; therefore, assisting each student individually will likely produce a desirable outcome even though the process may take longer. Teaching social skills, using simple language, and providing the students with little sensory content while teaching may create a desirable learning environment because students with autism may have the capacity to memorize a small quantity of class content, encouraging them to continue learning. A study by D’Amico and Lalonde (2017) suggests that teachers should implement visuals and a desirable classroom social environment through group work and group games to enhance the student with autism’s social learning interaction skills, conflict management, and self-management. Generally, an environment that uses simple language, visuals, and predictable is likely to produce desirable outcomes. In contrast, an unpredictable environment may lead to low academic outcomes and undesirable social behaviors.
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