Is "Social Emotional Learning" (SEL) the new Critical Race Theory (CRT)?
This is insane! The newest way that Marxists are using to indoctrinate students is called Social Emotional Learning or "SEL".
You might not be aware of what was in the American Rescue Plan. The website at www.whitehouse.gov sates that the plan will
"Provide $130 billion to help schools serve all students, no matter where they are learning, and
help achieve President Biden’s goal to safely open the majority of K-8 schools within the first
100 days of his Administration. These investments include set asides at the local and state
level to ensure states and districts address the learning loss and social and emotional needs of
students disproportionately impacted by COVID-19, including students of color, English
learners, and students with disabilities."
The actual text of the American Rescue Plan states in section 2001:
(e) USES OF FUNDS.—A local educational agency that receives
funds under this section—
(1) shall reserve not less than 20 percent of such funds
to address learning loss through the implementation of evi-
dence-based interventions, such as summer learning or summer
enrichment, extended day, comprehensive afterschool programs,
or extended school year programs, and ensure that such inter-
ventions respond to students’ academic, social, and emotional
needs and address the disproportionate impact of the
coronavirus on the student subgroups described in section
1111(b)(2)(B)(xi) of the Elementary and Secondary Education
Act of 1965 (20 U.S.C. 6311(b)(2)(B)(xi)), students experiencing
homelessness, and children and youth in foster care...
The red highlighting is my own and shows where they are sneaking SEL into schools. Currently, parents in Round Rock, Texas are trying to find out what is in the SEL online curriculum. The school district is trying to get around showing this to parents by stating that the online curriculum is copyrighted so it cannot be shown.
Parents need to be aware of the new danger to our children in schools...Social Emotional Learning.
First of all, what is it and what are the organizations that are pushing this in schools?
At the CASEL or Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (website) we learn that "We define social and emotional learning (SEL) as an integral part of education and human development. SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions."
Sounds good, right? Who doesn't want their children to have social and emotional learning?
But, this is a covert operation. On their website, they also tell us how SEL contributes to equity.
"In the context of SEL, equity and excellence refers to every student—across race, ethnicity, family income levels, learning abilities, home language, immigration status, gender identity, sexual orientation, and other factors—engaging in high-quality educational opportunities and environments that best promote their healthy social, emotional, and academic development."
Once they start mentioning immigration status, gender identity, and sexual orientation you know something is up! They also tell us that
"We are driven by a vision of all children and adults as self-aware, caring and connected, responsible, engaged, and lifelong learners who work together to achieve their goals and create a more inclusive, just, and equitable world. The field of SEL was born out of a desire to ensure all young people have the knowledge, skills, and competencies to succeed in school and in life.
To learn best, young people need to be surrounded by trusting relationships and environments where they feel motivated and engaged, emotionally and physically safe, and a sense of belonging among adults and peers. This requires making sure that educational policies treat students fairly and that all students have caring teachers who believe they can succeed. To fully support all students’ SEL, adults need to understand their own biases and expectations, develop awareness of students’ cultures and backgrounds, and acknowledge and challenge any inequitable practices and/or policies that can limit or harm the development of children."
So students need an "equitable" environment and teachers and other adults need to examine their own biases and expectations. Do you see where this is going and how similar it is to CRT?
Their website also invites visitors to their information about "getting started with systemic implementation". If this isn't a red flag that something is amiss, I don't what is.
Transforming Education at www.transformingeducation.org has been pushing SEL for a while. Their website states:
We believe that the education system must change.
“The US education system is one of many structures in our nation that was designed in a way that upholds systemic racism and perpetuates the cycle of racial injustice. We believe that the system must change.” – Sara Krachman, Founder & Executive Director
Their website also states that in 2013 they began a partnership with the CORE Districts (several school districts in California) to pilot SEL measures.
They are also working with "five other districts around the country that are independently designing systems to assess students’ social-emotional skills in innovative ways" including Katy ISD in Texas.
Their resources for schools and teachers include:
Webinar/Video
Resource Topic:
Educator SEL
SEL for Educators: Mini-Module 5: Orient Towards Optimism Resource Type:
Webinar/Video
Resource Topic
Educator SEL
Social-Emotional Learning in This Moment Resource Type:
Webinar/Video
Resource Topic:
SEL (General)
School Leader & Educator Self-Reflection Tools Resource Type:
Actionable Guide
Resource Topics:
Educator SEL
SEL Integration
SEL for Educators Toolkit Resource Type:
Toolkit
Resource Topics:
Educator SEL
SEL Integration
Paper
Resource Topics:
Racial Equity
Remote Learning/COVID-19
SEL Integration
Trauma-Informed SEL
Notice the topic of racial equity in the last resource!
The Wallace Foundation website says "Our mission is to foster equity and improvements in learning and enrichment for young people, and in the arts for everyone." This guide to SEL is published on their website.
NAVIGATING SEL FROM THE INSIDE OUT
LOOKING INSIDE & ACROSS 33LEADING SEL PROGRAMS:
A PRACTICAL RESOURCE FOR SCHOOLS AND OST PROVIDERS
REVISED & EXPANDED SECOND EDITION
(PRESCHOOL & ELEMENTARY FOCUS)
JULY 2021
In this guide to SEL, we are told about its emphasis on equity. (not equality, but equity)
They wrote "In order to be effective, SEL must be equitable. In other words, it must be supportive, affirming, and beneficial for students of all cultures, backgrounds, and identities and push against systems of oppression and harm that impact social and emotional development and well being. When selecting an SEL program, it is important to consider the backgrounds and experiences of students and staff, and to understand which types of training and resources programs provide to ensure that SEL is delivered in ways that benefit all students; promote safe and inclusive learning environments; support educators to examine and challenge biases in their teaching practice; and work towards respect, equality, and justice."
Note the code words of the Marxist agendas: equitable, students of all identities, push against systems of oppression, challenge biases in their teaching practices.
Also, notice that this guide has a "preschool and elementary focus". It's never too early to start.
They also wrote that some SEL approaches "transform the entire culture and climate of the learning environment via a system-wide approach that integrates norms, expectations, policies, procedures, and pedagogical approaches that support SEL into all aspects of the learning system". Notice the extreme left code words: transform, culture of the learning environment, all aspects of the learning system. Any time they want to transform the culture of something system-wide, that is a red flag that indoctrination is on the way!
They also wrote that "Culture refers to a dynamic system of shared norms, beliefs, customs,
values, and behavioral standards of a society and shapes the way people understand, interpret, and make meaning of their experience (Gay, 2018). These factors play an integral role in defining and guiding beliefs about which social and emotional skills, values, and attitudes are considered important or valuable and which behaviors are deemed acceptable or desirable, and for which individuals or groups. For example, behavioral norms and expectations around interpersonal interactions, communication, and emotional expression vary greatly across cultures, as well as within cultures by gender, age, or other aspects of identity (Jukes et al., 2018; Matsumoto, 2001; Savina & Wan, 2017)."
Notice how they divide people into groups by cultures, and teachers will of course be guided about how to define their own cultural biases. Also, what "aspects of identity" are they talking about?
The 4R's is a program for teaching SEL, and this guide from the Wallace Foundation evaluates and recommends this program saying,
Equitable and Inclusive Education
•'4Rs has a strong focus on building skills that support a sense of social justice and responsibility, including cultivating a sense of identity and respect for differences, examining assumptions and stereotypes, and understanding impact of one’s own agency, decisions, and actions.
•'4Rs’ children’s literature includes characters and stories that represent a diverse range of backgrounds, cultures, and life experiences, making them relatable and applicable to diverse student populations.
•Introductory paragraphs at the beginning of each unit include international and multicultural examples of lesson themes in action, as well as contextual and cultural considerations related to lesson themes, including information about how to incorporate and address topics like cultural dominance and power structures, emotional responses to injustice (e.g., righteous anger), and more.
Notice the extreme left code words: equitable, social justice, examining assumptions and stereotypes, cultural considerations related to theme, cultural dominance and power structures, and emotional responses to injustice.
In Texas, teachers can attend professional development at their Education Service Centers (ESC's). Let's look at some of these centers and the SEL training they are providing to public school teachers.
The Region 4 ESC is presenting a training class titled "Promoting Social Emotional Competence in Young Children"
Region 7 ESC is hosting "Social Emotional Learning Activities 21-22".
Region 8 ESC is presenting a workshop titled "SEL Series- Social Emotional Learning"
At the Region 12 ESC website, teachers and administrators can download the playbook for social and emotional learning. The websites states that "Social & emotional learning (SEL) allows learners to become engaged with one another as well as their surrounding environment, making achievement a tangible tool for their future."
So, SEL is definitely here and will probably replace Critical Race Theory as that agenda is exposed more and more for being the far left indoctrination tool that it is. The SEL movement is quickly becoming the newest, latest thing in education.
GLSEN provides SEL activities for teachers to use in their classrooms. On the GLSEN website, it states "As GLSEN was founded by a group of teachers in 1990, we knew that educators play key roles in creating affirming learning environments for LGBTQ youth."
Let's examine a lesson plan this organization provides for elementary students.
Overview
Teaching young people about major identifiers helps them to learn about their own unique identities, as well as the myriad identities in their classroom communities.
This lesson supports each student’s ability to empathize, connect, and collaborate with a diverse group of peers—skills that are of increasingly important in our multicultural, global society.
In this lesson, students will explore their own identities and personal experiences with race, culture, ability, family structure, religion or spirituality, and gender identity and expression. After individual reflection and group discussion, students will create their own identity flowers, filling each petal with words, adjectives, and/or identity terms that describe them.
Objectives:
Students will reflect on their own identity in regards to group identities.
Students will analyze storybook characters to determine fitting identity terms and adjectives.
Students will identify words, adjectives, and identity terms that describe themselves.
Students will discuss the importance of respecting people’s identity terms and descriptive words.
The lesson involves an "Identity Flower" for students to complete for themselves. Below is some information from the teacher's guide that teachers can share with their students for this SEL activity:
I would ask this question: Do you think that this lesson is appropriate for elementary students and do you agree with what they are teaching? Are there really "myriad" gender identities and should students get to decide this for themselves?
IN CONCLUSION:
So, here we see again the Marxist agenda of everyone deciding their own gender identity and how they should express it in elementary school so that they can be better prepared for a more global world. So, when are they going to have time to teach math and reading in elementary school??? Why can't they just do that? Remember, they want to indoctrinate students. SEL is the new way to do this. Is your child's school using SEL or are they making future plans to use it in your child's school? As a parent, it is your right to know, and it is your right to see the actual curriculum they are using!!! Many school districts now have a "Social Emotional Learning Department" which serves to promote this agenda.
"How can I, as a parent, find out if SEL is being taught in my child's school?"
You can
Google "Social Emotional Learning" and your school district together.
Look at teacher, instructional coach, etc. job postings for your district to see if they mention "Social and Emotional Learning" as a job requirement or duty.
Look at the website for your school district and search the website for "Social Emotional Learning".
Look at the list of departments for your school district. See if there is a dedicated department for this.
Try calling the main phone number for your school district and ask to speak to the department that facilitates Social Emotional Learning.
Look at the counselor's information and/or web pages to see if they mention "Social Emotional Learning".
On the school district's website, look at the latest news items.
On the school district's website look under school programs, learning resources, etc.
We need to get informed and get INVOLVED!
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