Promoting Students’ Well-Being by Building Their Social & Emotional Skills
Presenters: Drs. Sara Prewett and Jennifer Robitaille, Aperture EducationA live one-hour webinar event on Wednesday, October 30 from 3-4PM EST (12PM PST) on Zoom
Description: There has been an increase over the past decade in the number of students with mental health concerns (CDC, 2021; Kalin, 2020; WHO, 2022). If left untreated, these concerns can cause significant social, emotional, academic, and behavioral impacts for students, and particularly for students with disabilities (Al-Yagon, 2015; McMillian & Jarvis, 2013; Thomson et al., 2019). To exacerbate this issue, not all students have access to the mental health support or treatment that they need (Reinert et al., 2021). As a field, it is essential that we re-evaluate how we are supporting students. Specifically, interventions should address mental health concerns and promote students’ well-being (Greenspoon & Saklofske, 2000; Suldo & Shafer, 2008), and school psychologists are uniquely positioned to support the provision of these services (NASP, 2021). One avenue to consider supporting students’ mental well-being (i.e., purpose and experience of positive emotions; Diener, 1984; Renshaw et al., 2014) is by building their social and emotional skills. Approximately 90% of schools report supporting the development of their students’ social and emotional competencies (Duschesneau, 2020) making this a viable method to consider. This webinar will emphasize the importance of promoting students’ well-being when intervening to support students’ mental health. This webinar will illustrate how school psychologists can support their students’ mental well-being by building protective factors such as emotional regulation, relationship skills, optimistic thinking, and problem solving (CDC, 2023; Cherewick et al., 2023; Ciarrochi et al., 2003; Domitrovich et al., 2017). Attendees will learn how they can integrate strategies focused on building these skills using a tiered support framework. Implications from this webinar will be applicable to all attendees.
Learning Objectives
- Explain the importance of social and emotional skills for promoting mental health and well-being.
- Describe the importance of promoting student wellness in addition to addressing their mental health concerns.
- List at least one strategy that they can use to promote the well-being of their students.