Brain science reveals that there are two periods of heightened plasticity, a time when the brain is especially prone to change: The first period is from birth to age 3; the second is during adolescence. The author, Laurence Steinberg, suggests that this finding should stimulate interest in secondary education as an opportune time to intervene to…

This article discusses social and emotional competence and its importance in young children's development. Foundations for children's social and emotional competence are developed during the early years and are linked with school success and later-in-life well-being. We discuss three factors affecting children's social and emotional interactions…

Despite growing attention to the importance of grit and other character traits for achievement, developing them in students rarely finds its way into secondary school curricula. Authors Barbara Cervone and Kathleen Cushman investigate the exceptions, telling the stories of five high schools with a national reputation for infusing rigorous…

Research suggests that attending high quality, formal early childhood education (ECE) is associated with stronger cognitive and social-emotional skills, especially for low-income children. Yet at current funding levels, federally-funded programs like Head Start cannot serve all eligible children. Thus, state-level policies governing the…

Although several non-randomised case studies have shown that nurture groups have a positive impact under trial conditions, the outcomes of nurture group provision have yet to be compared with any other psychosocial interventions. By comparing teacher-completed SDQ (Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire) scores pre- and post- provision with…

During this inquiry, I describe my journey as a beginning arts-based researcher, using this methodological approach to explore the "peak experiences" of five, second-grade gifted students in a general classroom. Concerned with collecting valid data from young children through traditional interviewing techniques, I turned to Arts-Based…

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide a critical perspective on the international evidence on promoting young people's social and emotional well-being in schools. The challenges of integrating evidence-based interventions within schools are discussed and the need for innovative approaches to research and practice are considered in order…

This study examines the effectiveness of the Lions Quest Program: Skills for Growing by employing a quasi-experimental design with a control group. The experimental and control group each comprises two primary schools--one public, one private. One classroom at each grade level, 1 through 4, in each school was selected by random sampling for a…

Positive youth development (PYD) deserves more empirical attention, particularly among children of diverse racial-ethnic backgrounds. Given the need among families for monitoring and supervision during out-of-school time, community-based afterschool is a potentially promotive ecological setting. This study explores the quality of afterschool…

The article draws on experience of teaching, teacher education and qualitative research related to an impartial approach to inclusive religious education (including pupils from families who identify with or do not identify with religion or belief groups), in publicly funded schools in England. Such religious education is considered to be…

Apert syndrome is a rare condition, with a birth prevalence of approximately one in 65,000. This article provides an up-to-date review of the literature on Apert syndrome from a variety of perspectives, ranging from surgical management to personal accounts. The purpose of the review is to provide a holistic description of the syndrome which should…

The physical, social and temporal dimensions of the classroom environment have an important role in children's learning. This study examines the level of support for child-centred learning, and its associated beliefs, that is provided by Hong Kong's pre-service early childhood teachers. Two hundred and seventy-five students from a pre-service…

Although evidence-based practices for students' social, emotional, and behavioral health are readily available, their adoption and quality implementation in schools are of increasing concern. Teachers are vital to implementation; yet, there is limited research on teachers' openness to adopting new practices, which may be essential to successful…

Social skills training programs are often used as a behavioural intervention with elementary school-aged children; however, many students with high-functioning autism do not receive diagnoses until they reach adulthood. There is therefore a strong need for social skills training programs that can be provided as part of students' accommodations in…

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine what beliefs, knowledge, skills, and early childhood education teachers should acquire to effectively teach and work with children who exhibit challenging behaviors. A significant body of literature demonstrates a connection between behavioral difficulties for children and negative academic,…