Social and Emotional Learning

What is Social and Emotional Learning?

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) refers to the soft skills that are essential for your child's personal and social well-being. Having strong social-emotional competencies can improve your child's school performance.

These social-emotional competencies will help your child to:

• Develop healthy identities
• Recognise and manage their own emotions.
• Develop a sense of responsibility, care and concern for others.
• Relate to others and develop positive relationships.
• Handle challenges.
• Make responsible decisions and act for the good of self, others and the society.

These social-emotional competencies are taught and learnt through Character and Citizenship Education (CCE), within the broader context of values learning and application so that your child can understand the purpose and meaningfulness of acquiring them.

Why have SEL?

SEL is an essential part of your child's learning to help them prepare for life beyond school. It is critical that we provide a holistic education that involves the stimulation and training of both cognitive and affective domains of a child.

SEL increase our children's capacity to learn, give them the tools to navigate current and future real-world contexts and challenges, aspire them towards personal and professional achievements, enable them to experience personal satisfaction and contribute to the society.

How SEL is taught in schools

SEL is integral to our education framework for 21st century competencies and student outcomes, and is taught within the Character and Citizenship Education curriculum, which includes:

• Education and Career Guidance
• Sexuality Education
• Cyber Wellness
• Mental Health
• Family Education
• National Education

Counselling and discipline further promote positive student behaviours and support their mental health and resilience.

• Self-awareness
• Social awareness
• Self-management
• Relationship management
• Responsible decision-making

These 4 main principles guide the teaching of SEL:

• Values are at the core of SEL to guide your child's behaviour.
• Social-emotional competencies will help them face current and future challenges.
• School leaders and teachers are important role models.
• Equipped with social-emotional competencies, students will be able to demonstrate good character and citizenship.

SEL and school culture

SEL is taught in a caring, supportive and safe school environment.

Your child's school experience will be enriched through:

• A positive relationship with their teachers and peers.
• Learning and practising their social skills.
• The support of parents to reinforce the social-emotional competencies at home. Learn more about the resources available for parents.