Open Discussion Forum

  • 1.  Culturally valid and reliable measures of social emotional skill areas??

    Posted 05-25-2018 02:06 PM
    Greetings, fellow early childhood educators:

    My colleagues and I are wondering whether some of you might be aware of tools for measuring SEL skills that have been validated for diverse cultural groups? We are aware of a number of measures that are being used, but do not believe any have been validated or whether any are seen as  reliable for students from other cultures, or for students from different racial/ethnic groups???. 

    Has anyone identified and/or used a measure of one or more social emotional competencies (e.g. self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, or responsible decision-making) which was created in another country or another culture? 

    We have heard about educators undertaking a "data-driven" approach to planning for social emotional learning experiences, but are concerned about whether any such approach is adequately considering the impact of cultural, racial and ethnic differences in child-rearing, values, and expectations on these skill areas? 

    Looking forward to hearing from any of you!!

    Jane Haltiwanger and colleagues

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    Jane Haltiwanger
    Dept. of Elem. and Secondary Education
    Malden MA
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  • 2.  RE: Culturally valid and reliable measures of social emotional skill areas??

    Posted 05-26-2018 07:48 AM
    Have you looked into the TPOT- Teaching PYramid Observation Tool? It is what we use for state programs in NJ.

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    Danielle Hosey
    pemberton ECEC
    Pemberton NJ
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  • 3.  RE: Culturally valid and reliable measures of social emotional skill areas??

    Posted 05-29-2018 12:15 PM
    Danielle:

    Thank you so much for your reply. We will look into this....though I wonder if the Pyramid Model targets preschool and pre-Kindergarten only? (I can't remember). 

    Do you know which ethnic/cultural groups the TPOT has  been validated for? 

    Have you used it? Do you think it targets all five areas of social emotional competency (CASEL model) or only some of them?

    Thank you again!!

    Jane

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    Jane Haltiwanger
    Dept. of Elem. and Secondary Education
    Malden MA
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  • 4.  RE: Culturally valid and reliable measures of social emotional skill areas??

    Posted 05-30-2018 09:08 AM
    Pyramid Model is not just for Preschool and PreK. There is an infant toddler component, and the tool used with it is TPITOS (Teaching Pyramid Infant Toddler observation scale.)

    I am unsure of the ethnic/cultural groups that it is validated for, but it has been around for a long time with results.

    Hope this helps.

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    Kathleen Kiblin
    Education and Training Specialist
    Child Care Resource Network
    Buffalo, New York
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  • 5.  RE: Culturally valid and reliable measures of social emotional skill areas??

    Posted 05-26-2018 09:21 AM

    Jane:

    Great questions.  And data-driven approaches are, of course, driven by the lenses and hidden biases of the data collectors and data tools, which is not to say that data collection isn't important.  I'm also looking forward to this discussion.



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    Aren Stone
    Child Development Specialist
    The Early Years Project
    Cambridge, MA
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  • 6.  RE: Culturally valid and reliable measures of social emotional skill areas??

    Posted 05-31-2018 01:57 PM
    I would love to know as well. In my white Western mind, there are skills which transcend culture. Communicating with others, making sure their actions don't result in harming others or their feelings, and feeling confident in their own abilities and likes. In my classroom, we teach both verbal and nonverbal ways to communicate and attempt to teach them all independence and self-esteem.

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    Amy Latta
    Lead NC PreK Teacher
    "All that is gold does not glitter; not all who wander are lost." --J.R.R. Tolkien
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