Pre-service and Practicing Teachers’ Commitment to and Comfort with Social Emotional Learning

Authors

  • Lauren Denise Goegan University of Alberta
  • Amanda K. Wagner
  • Lia M. Daniels University of Alberta

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.11575/ajer.v63i3.56284

Keywords:

Key Words, social-emotional competence, social-emotional learning, Prosocial Classroom Model, sense of efficacy for classroom management, social engagement with students, Mots clés, compétence socio-affective, apprentissage socio-affectif, modèle e clas

Abstract

Although teachers’ beliefs about social-emotional learning have become a topic of interest, understanding how they relate to teachers’ own social-emotional competence is unknown. We used a predictive correlation design to examine how Canadian pre-service (n=138) and in-service (n=276) teachers’ beliefs about social-emotional competence relate to their comfort with and commitment to social-emotional learning, and how both sets of beliefs are related to their perceived efficacy for classroom management and engagement with students. Regression analyses revealed that comfort with social-emotional learning significantly predicted both outcomes for both groups whereas commitment to social-emotional learning did not. Perceived social-emotional competence also played an important role. Pre-service teachers felt more committed to social-emotional learning, whereas in-service teachers felt more comfortable and believed they had higher levels of social-emotional competence themselves. Implications for supporting the development of teachers’ own social-emotional competence and suggestions for future research are provided.

Si les croyances des enseignants relatives à l’apprentissage socio-affectif suscitent beaucoup d’intérêt, on ignore le lien entre celles-ci et la compétence socio-affective des enseignants eux-mêmes. Nous appuyant sur une conception de corrélations prédictives, nous avons examiné le lien entre les croyances des stagiaires (n=138) et des enseignants en exercice (n=276) relatives à la compétence socio-affective d’une part, et l’aise et l’engagement dont ils font preuve face à l’apprentissage socio-affectif, d’autre part. De plus, nous nous sommes penchés sur la mesure dans laquelle les croyances des participants sont liées à leur perception de l’efficacité de leur gestion de classe et de leur engagement avec les élèves. Des analyses de régression ont révélé qu’un sentiment d’aisance avec l’apprentissage socio-affectif prédit de manière significative les deux résultats pour les deux groupes alors que ce n’était pas le cas pour un engagement face à l’apprentissage socio-affectif. La perception de la compétence socio-affective a également joué un rôle important. Les stagiaires avaient un sentiment d’engagement plus fort envers l’apprentissage socio-affectif, tandis que les enseignants en exercice se sentaient plus à l’aise et croyaient que leur niveau de compétence socio-affective était plus élevé. Nous présentons quelques implications d’appuyer le développement de la compétence socio-affective des enseignants et des suggestions pour la recherche à l’avenir.

Author Biographies

Lauren Denise Goegan, University of Alberta

Lauren D. Goegan is a Doctoral Student in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta. Her research interests include academic engagement, academic success, students transitioning from high school to post-secondary education, motivation and accessibility.

Amanda K. Wagner

Amanda K. Wagner is a graduate of the University of Alberta's Educational Psychology Master's program. Her interests in social emotional competence and motivation have led her to build a business focused on consumer behaviour and work with retailers to enhance the overall customer experience.

Lia M. Daniels, University of Alberta

Lia Daniels is an Associate Professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Alberta. Her research interests include understanding relationships between student and teacher motivation and emotions.

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Published

2017-12-11

How to Cite

Goegan, L. D., Wagner, A. K., & Daniels, L. M. (2017). Pre-service and Practicing Teachers’ Commitment to and Comfort with Social Emotional Learning. Alberta Journal of Educational Research, 63(3), 267–285. https://doi.org/10.11575/ajer.v63i3.56284

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Section

ARTICLES