Fostering Social Competencies in Deaf Children

Fostering Social

Competencies in Deaf Children

Cindi Sternfeld, Ed.S. March 16, 2013

• Researchers and Teachers of deaf students across the country are using standardized and home-grown programs to work with Deaf students & they are getting results.

Who’s on the case?

Who’s looking at the work? Asiah Mason, Ph.D. , Laurent Clerc National

Deaf Education Center, Gallaudet Diane Morton, Ph.D., Gallaudet University Dorie Noll, Washington University School of

Medicine Maria Suarez, University of La Laguna, Spain

3/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

Helping Children to survive and thrive in today’s social landscape

Survive – To not die or disappear, to live through something

vsThrive – to grow vigorously and healthily, to do well


Alphabet SoupCASEL – Collaborative for Academic and Social Emotional Learning

SEL = Social Emotional Learning

EI – Emotional Intelligence

EF – Executive Function

Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning, CASEL

CASEL works to advance the science of social and emotional learning, expand integrated evidence-based SEL practice and to advance the field of Social Emotional Learning.

Founded by Daniel Goleman & Eileen Rockefeller-Gorwald in 1994◦Researches SEL curricula◦Develops list of evidence based SEL programs

◦Evidence Based SEL Practice…….what does this mean for our population?


Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process of developing social and emotional skills in the context of safe, caring, well managed and engaging learning environments.

CASEL, 2006

From MindUp: Creating the optimistic classroom –

Remind students not to talk over you or each other and to give everyone a chance to be heard.

Always….Pause for a moment before calling on students to answer questions.

Give students the option of answering with “I need to think about that some more” and then schedule a time to return to the discussion.

Encourage students to take a moment to write notes before group discussions.

Allow students to formulate follow-up questions after they have had time to digest learning.


Social Emotional Learning CASEL

“So, what’s this got to do with Math?”


Instruction in SEL has been found to improve:

◦Promote positive youth development

◦Attitudes – Motivation & Commitment

◦Behavior - Participation and Study Habits

◦Performance – Grades and Subject Mastery

◦Learning-to-learn skills◦Adaptability◦Develops skills employers want

Zins, J., Weissberg, R., Wang, M., and Walberg, H. (Eds.) (2004). Building Academic Success on Social and Emotional Learning: What

Does the Research Say? New York: teachers College Press3/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

CASEL’s SEL 5 Core Areas 1. Self-Awareness2. Self-Management3. Social Awareness4. Relationship Skills5. Responsible Decision Making

As we examine the components of each, make notes of the specific skills that your children….

…would be really good at…would really struggle with

Why? 3/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

Emotional Intelligence Being able to motivate

oneselfBeing able to persist in the

face of frustrationsTo control impulseTo delay gratificationTo regulate one’s moodsTo keep distress from

swamping the ability to think to empathize to hope 3/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

SEL Core Areas

Self-Awareness

Self-Management

Social Awareness

Relationship Skills

Responsible Decision Making

Ability to:Self motivatePersist - even when

frustrated Control impulsesDelay gratificationRegulate moodKeep distress from

swamping ◦ the ability to think ◦ to empathize ◦ to hope

E.I. Skills


Suarez and others have observed social learning delays among Deaf children in:

EmpathySocial

PerceptionSocial Problem

SolvingSocial

Attribution

Communication

Role-taking ability

Moral Development

Impulse Control


Suarez found that Deaf children, given SEL instruction showed gains in several areas:

Emotional adjustment Social adjustment Self image Problem solving More effective social

behavior

Assertiveness Increased control

over behavior Ability to stop and

think in order to avoid impulsive behavior

Maria Suarez, Promoting Social Competence in Deaf Students; The Effect of an Intervention Program. University of La Laguna, Spain. 2000 3/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

Asiah Mason, Ph.D.

Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center Early (language-based)

skills that support EI development: Self RegulationAttachmentEmotional ExpressionSocial PragmaticsFeelings of Belonging


Language Competence enables us to:Interact with othersAcquire informationQuestion informationForm own opinionsBe a thinkerBe independent

Diane Morton, Ph.D., Gallaudet University


Being competent in a language is the key to social and emotional

success and well being.

Diane Morton, Ph.D., Gallaudet University

What the research shows: Deafness does not preclude one’s

ability to develop Social Emotional Competence.

Deaf children from Deaf families consistently score on par with hearing children from hearing families.

Children who lack ongoing access to experiences mediated through language, and lack expressive and receptive skills to be a full participant in their worlds will have significant social difficulty.

In the brain, social difficulty begets social difficulty.


Self AwarenessAccurately assessing one’s feelings, interests, values and strengths; maintaining a well grounded sense of self confidence.

CASEL, 20063/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

Self-Management Regulating one’s emotions to handle stress, control impulses, and persevere in overcoming

obstacles;Setting and monitoring progress

toward personal and academic goals

Expressing emotions appropriately


From MindUp: Creating the optimistic classroom –

Remind students not to talk over you or each other and to give everyone a chance to be heard.

Always….Pause for a moment before calling on students to answer questions.

Give students the option of answering with “I need to think about that some more” and then schedule a time to return to the discussion.

Encourage students to take a moment to write notes before group discussions.

Allow students to formulate follow-up questions after they have had time to digest learning.


Amygdala

Hippocampus

Prefrontal Cortex


Social AwarenessBeing able to take the

perspective and empathize with others; recognizing and

appreciating individual and group similarities and differences;

recognizing and using family, school and community resources


Relationship SkillsEstablishing and maintaining

healthy and rewarding relationships based on cooperation; resisting

inappropriate social pressure; preventing, managing, and

resolving interpersonal conflict; seeking help when needed.


Responsible Decision Making

Making decisions based on consideration of ethical

standards, safety concerns, appropriate social norms, respect

for others, and likely consequences of various actions; applying decision-making skills to academic and social situations; contributing to the well-being of one’s school and community.


And then there’s Executive Function…


Executive Functioning Refers to our ability to be able to: make and carry out plansdirect our attention focus & control our internal statesour impulses & emotions switch from one task to anotherIt is involved in processes such as

planning, cognitive flexibility, abstract thinking, rule acquisition, initiating appropriate actions & inhibiting actions, and selecting relevant information.


Ross Greene “Lost At School” Behind every challenging behavior is an unsolved problem or lagging skill.Challenging behavior often occurs when the demands being placed on a kid exceed his capacity to respond adaptively.One needs to determine what thinking skill the child is lacking so that the thinking skill can be taught.One needs to determine the triggers/antecedents: the what, who, when, and where.The goal is to develop a plan with the child that resolves the problem in a realistic and mutually satisfactory manner.

Slide by: Dr. Caren Baruch-Feldman

New Information = New Possibilities

Technology is teaching us how to strengthen social function


What is a Neural Network and how can it support improved social

function? Neurons that fire together, wire

together. Every time you repeat a behavior, you

strengthen the neural structure of that behavior, creating more potential for more of the behavior.

Using Neurology, Psychology and Contemplative Practice to increase happiness.

The importance of a “happy” brain… 3/16/2013 C.Sternfeld

Recognizing “The Brain on Emotions”

Limbic System◦Amygdala◦Hippocampus

Prefrontal CortexSympathetic Nervous System ResponseParasympathetic Nervous System

ResponsePotentiating Neural Networks

◦Positive Experiences ◦Negative Experiences


SEL Programs to check out…

MindUp (Hawn Foundation)Nurtured Hearts PATHS – Promoting Alternative

Thinking Skills The Responsive ClassroomPeaceWorksSocial Decision Making, Social

Problem Solving


SEL Programs MindUp http://thehawnfoundation.org/mindup/

The Nurtured Heart http://www.childrenssuccessfoundation.com/ PATHS: Promoting Alternative Thinking Strategies http://www.channing-bete.com/prevention-programs/

paths/paths.html The Responsive Classroom http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/ Peachmaking Skills for Little Kids by Peaceworks http://www.peaceeducation.org


Information from works of: Asiah Mason, Ph.D. , Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education

Center, GallaudetEmotional Intelligence: The Implications for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Students Diane Morton, Ph,D, Professor, Department of Counseling.

Gallaudet UniversitySOCIAL-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF DEAF CHILDREN SAME OR DIFFERENT? Dorie Noll, Washington University School of MedicineActivities for social skills development in deaf children preparing to enter the mainstream, 2007 Maria Suarez, University of La Laguna, Spain Promoting Social Competence in Deaf Students: The Effect of an Intervention Program, 2000 Zins, J., Weissberg, R., Wang, M., and Walberg, H. (Eds.)

(2004). Building Academic Success on Social and Emotional Learning: What Does the Research Say? , New York: teachers College Press

Dan Goleman, 1996: Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, Bantam Books

Ross Greene 1998: The Explosive Child. Harper 2009: Lost At School, Scribner


Please feel free to contact me at:

[email protected]

Cindi Sternfeld4 South Union Street, Suite DLambertville, NJ 078530

(609) 510-6092

Fostering Social Competencies in Deaf Children

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