SEDL in Action - New York County
Approaches:
- Outreach to and engagement of families and community
- Attention to school - classroom environment and relationships
- Skill acquisition through sequenced social - emotional learning opportunities and standards-based instruction
- After school, out-of-school, extra curricular and service learning and mentoring
- Alignment of district and school personnel, policies, and practices to support students
- Collaboration between school district and community-based service providers
- Staff development for administrative, instructional, student support staff and willing partners
- Culturally Competent and Responsive SEDL
1. Outreach to and engagement of families and community
The Harlem Children’s Zone
The Harlem Children’s Zone combines educational, social and medical services. If you offer a new
program you want the neediest students but how do you get those parents to apply? HCZ “knocked on
the door of every apartment in a 21-story building on 118th Street, looking for parents with children under
4, leaving fliers under the doors if no one answered… In addition to the door-to-door approach, recruiters
visit laundromats, supermarkets and check-cashing outlets to look for new mothers.”
The HCZ pipeline begins with a series of workshops for parents of children ages 0-3. Attending with
parents were familiar faces from the community: administrators of the pre-kindergarten programs, leaders
of tenant and block associations, volunteers from a group that donates children’s books to parents, a
hospital representative inviting parents to enroll in a home-visiting program, another from the Public
Library. “The goal of HCZ is to create a "tipping point" in the neighborhood so that children are
surrounded by an enriching environment of college-oriented peers and supportive adults, a counterweight
to "the street" and a toxic popular culture that glorifies misogyny and anti-social behaviour.”
Tough, 2004, 2008.
2. Attention to school environment and student-adult relationships
There are no programs listed for this approach.
3. Skill acquisition through sequenced social - emotional learning opportunities and standards-based instruction
HS drama program during and after school
ENACT uses the drama techniques of writing, movement, and performance to promote social and
emotional development skills that help students thrive in class and beyond the classroom. The 9th grade
program provides three workshops, one in-school and two after school per week. The after-school
program is led by a drama therapist who works closely with self-selected ninth grade students. In a safe
space students develop an original script, rehearse, and receive feedback from peers that leads to a
public performance.
An example of one student’s social and emotional growth centers on “Tasha.” Her participation initially
was guarded and withdrawn and often Tasha passed on activities. Through involvement in the program’s
structured activities, she began to express her feelings and expand her emotional range. Such practice
conveys to young people social-emotional attributes of self awareness, social awareness, self
management that inform responsible decision making. Tasha had a central role in the final city-wide
performance. ENACT finds that its program helps students acquire important skills that equip them to
thrive both in and out of the classroom.
enact.org/Home/index.php
4. After school, out-of-school, extra curricular and service learning and mentoring
Groove With Me, New York, New York
Groove With Me is a dance program for Harlem girls, 4 to 18 years old that meet every day after school
and Saturdays at a neighborhood dance studio above the hustle and bustle of East Harlem's 3rd Avenue.
It serves approximately 300 girls and young women each year. The program uses a youth development
model to provide the young women a holistic experience that builds their social and emotional skills.
Dance classes are offered by volunteers who dance professionally or as a hobby. Classes include ballet,
jazz, tap, hip hop, and others that appeal to young people and are organized by age.
Each class begins with Circle Time which provides the girls and their instructors an opportunity for them to bring up issues of importance, e.g., what is going on in school, concerns about friends, quandaries that they may be facing at home, etc. Over time the girls come to trust the members of their classes and even the initially shy and non-communicative youngsters begin to share their thoughts and experiences. Youth of all ages participate in this activity and come to expect it as a part of their routine. Once the discussion time is completed, the girls move on to their regular dance class with open hearts and open minds.
5. Alignment of district and school personnel, policies, and practices to support students
There are no programs listed for this approach.
6. Collaboration between school district and community-based service providers
Supporting a Full-Service School Environment: The Children's Aid Society
New York City schools with which the Children's Aid Society has partnered are based on the belief that
children can succeed academically only when all of their health, nutrition, emotional, and developmental
needs are met. Healthier kids, a safer school, and improved academic achievement are some of the
positive effects of this unique partnership between New York City schools and The Children's Aid Society.
10 minute video www.edutopia.org/childrens-aid-society-video
7. Staff development for administrative, instructional, student support staff and willing partners.
There are no programs listed for this approach.
Culturally Competent and Responsive SEDL
The Metropolitan Center for Urban Education Technical Assistance Center on Disproportionality
(funded by NYSED’s Special Education Office) offers culturally responsive professional development in:
- Curriculum & Instruction,
- Building Student Engagement,
- Building Home & School Connection,
- Assessment, and
- Leadership.
Among the training modules are “Principles of Culturally Responsive School Environments & Teaching;”
“Creating Inclusive Classrooms;” “Reaching Out to Male Students;” “Racial /Ethnic Disparities in Special
Education Assessments;” and “Self-Assessing Culturally Responsive Policies, Practices, and Beliefs,”
among others.
steinhardt.nyu.edu/metrocenter/tacd
The Harlem Children’s Zone
Geoffrey Canada: “Culture is very strong around child rearing practices. A lot of families we work with
think good kids are quiet. If you’re a good parent your child listens to you and if you’re a bad parent, your
child doesn’t. Well the problem is no two–year old listens to a parent. But no one has ever explained that
to a lot of our parents. So you see a parent smacking a two–year old’s hand saying, “Didn’t I tell you not
to do that?” … It helps to understand how much of what you’re doing is just a custom. We want our
parents to have the same information the rest of America has.” (p. 80, Tough, 2008).