Social and Emotional Learning - Graduate Certificate

The certificate in Social and Emotional Learning provides practicing teachers with requisite background knowledge, understanding and preparation so as to engage students in transformative social and emotional learning. In order for teachers to enable students to become more aware and understanding of their own and others’ emotions, teachers need to understand their own emotions as well.

The arena of social and emotional learning is a new, growing and much needed public school curricular domain. During the last three decades, public schools have focused almost exclusively on cognitive academic outcomes. While some progress has been achieved, the consensus seems to be that a renewed emphasis on the whole student needs to be restored. At the same time teachers’ professional work conditions have deteriorated. Teachers new to the field are leaving the profession at greater rates than in the past. Teacher “burnout” is a recognized and acknowledged public education phenomenon.

Students who wish to take classes and separately complete certificates without enrolling in the full MA program should see the Teacher Leadership program graduate certificate pathway.

Requirements

In order to earn a certificate, students must receive a minimum grade of a C or higher in each course. The cumulative GPA for certificate courses must be 3.0 or higher.

Learning Outcomes

By the completion of the program, students will be able to:

• Critically reflect on the role of emotions in teaching and learning in oneself and one's students.
• Analyze the distinct features and curricular approaches of transformative SEL.
• Explore the relationship between transformative SEL and restorative practices for discipline.
• Examine the intersections of culturally sustaining pedagogy and transformative SEL as complementary pedagogical lenses.
• Develop a project that incorporates transformative SEL and culturally sustaining pedagogy for a class, school or community.