Trending Topics in Education and How they Relate to SEL | By: Committee for Children Pop quiz! Which of the following buzzwords have you heard about lately? A. Grit B. Growth Mindset C. Mindfulness D. Resilience If you selected any of the words above and you are wondering more about them or about how they relate to social-emotional learning (SEL), keep reading. Grit “Grit” is having the disposition to pursue and achieve long-term goals with passion and perseverance. It is having the self-control for sustained, focused effort to follow through and endure through obstacles and discouragement. Growth Mindset “Growth mindset” is the idea that intelligence can be developed through effort. It is having belief in one’s individual capabilities and seeing one’s own control over the present and future. It is having confidence that abilities can improve through hard work and seeking challenging learning opportunities, viewing them as moments to learn. Mindfulness “Mindfulness” is being aware of one’s own feelings, thoughts, body sensations, and the surrounding environment. It is having a deliberate and conscious focus on the present moment by directing attention to one’s experiences without labeling or judging them in any way. Resilience “Resilience” is the ability to adapt well to change, recover from setbacks, and keep going in the face of adversity. Now let’s consider how these topics are similar to SEL: Most come from a social and/or psychological perspective. All promote teaching, modeling, reinforcing, practicing, and/or planning to facilitate a skill, technique, or way of being. Although not all are about teaching a specific skill, there is usually some sort of strategy or type of thinking to promote or support. All are not easy to measure, and there is still much discussion about how to best do so. For the most part, we know that possessing more of these skills and qualities is better. Most have research about positive impact. SEL, growth mindset, and grit have all been connected to doing better in school, and evidence shows that teaching social skills increases their use. Research about mindfulness lags behind the other topics. How are grit, growth mindset, mindfulness, and resilience different from SEL? Generally speaking, more is known about how to teach social skills than the other topics. There is still some question as to whether all of the above are fully teachable. The research on what is needed and how to teach these is varied. SEL has been studied more than mindfulness, for example. The evidence on how to have an impact on growth mindset and grit is still emerging. Not all topics are considered skill-based like SEL. Growth mindset is more of an attitude and grit is often referred to as a personality trait. You may still be wondering whether grit, growth mindset, mindfulness, and resilience are SEL. Well, that’s another blog post for another time!