Non-cognitive skills, soft skills, or character skills, are involved in achieving goals, working with others, and managing emotions.
Published in Chapter:
Barriers to the Implementation of Social Emotional Learning Programs: The Point of View of Urban and Rural School Teachers
Arturas Akelaitis (Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania) and Brigita Janiunaite (Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania)
Copyright: © 2023
|Pages: 22
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-6684-5914-0.ch011
Abstract
The main research question of this chapter focusses on what peculiarities and especially barriers occur when teachers implement social emotional learning (SEL) programs in urban and rural school settings. First, this study defines SEL and introduces core social emotional competencies, explores the concept of barriers, and presents their classification. Second, the justification of the research methodology and instrument is performed. Third, the results of a quantitative study using a written survey of teachers (N=619) from different urban and rural school settings in Lithuania as well as possible solutions to reduce barriers and recommendations are presented. The present study revealed that barriers, such as students' attitudes toward SEL, resources (financial, time, and material), training and guidance, teachers' emotional well-being, and acceptance of change were predominant in the implementation of SEL programs by teachers in Lithuanian schools. The success of the implementation of SEL programs also depends on the school location and sociodemographic characteristics of teachers.