Time devoted to SEE: implicit versus explicit provisions

The most common reply as to how SEE was taught by most teachers was that social and emotional aspects of learning were considered for all subjects, rather than being a separate subject or taught as part of another module. This was true for both primary and secondary school teachers, though it was more likely in Spanish preschool and primary schools (66%), then secondary and upper secondary (41%).

Table 3.22. How is social and emotional education (SEE) taught in your school and/or classroom? (N: 706)

Preschool and Primary Greece Spain Sweden UK

Own subject 8% 11% 7% 29%

Part of other subject 24% 18% 19% 32%

Considered but not

taught 53% 66% 67% 38%

Not considered 16% 5% 7% 1%

Total 38 148 27 140

Secondary and Upper Greece Spain Sweden UK

Own subject 1% 13% 11% 20%

Part of other subject 19% 31% 23% 36%

Considered but not

taught 51% 41% 56% 34%

Not considered 29% 14% 11% 10%

Total 101 90 75 87

The second most common method by which SEE was taught was as part of another subject such as religious education, health or citizenship studies. Again, this was true for both primary and

secondary teachers, except for Spanish secondary school which was much more likely to have SEE as part of another subject (31%) than in primary school (18%). The UK was the most likely to teach SEE as its own subject - both primary teachers (29%) and secondary

teachers (20%) - said that they had time dedicated to teaching SEE exclusively throughout the school year.

Three points need to be made regarding the time devoted to SEE. Firstly, aside from SEE not being considered in schools altogether, how much time was dedicated to SEE did not influence teacher satisfaction with the provision overall. The time devoted to SEE was only found to significantly influence teacher satisfaction in Spain, with teachers who taught SEE exclusively as its own subject more likely to agree that enough attention was devoted to SEE in their school compared to teachers who taught it as part of another

subject (p < 0.01, d = .61 suggested a moderate practical

significance). No difference was found between teachers who taught SEE exclusively, and those who considered SEE but did not

exclusively teach it, and this was true in all four countries. In other words, teacher satisfaction with SEE provision did not increase based on if it was taught explicitly or not.

Secondly, unlike teacher satisfaction with SEE provision, the time dedicated to SEE was found to influence other variables. In the case of the UK it was in regards to how teachers felt about

expressing their emotions in class. UK teachers who taught SEE exclusively as its own subject were more likely to agree that they felt comfortable expressing their emotions in the classroom compared to both teachers who taught SEE as part of another subject, or

considered it for every subject (p < 0.05, d = .37 suggested a small to moderate practical significance). This finding is all the more

interesting considering that no other demographic variable - bar the age of teachers’ students in the UK and Spain, and gender in Greece - influenced the responses in the questionnaire regarding teachers’ self-expression of emotions.

And thirdly, time dedicated to SEE was found to improve teacher-student relationships according to the teachers. In the case of Spain, the time spent on SEE impacted teacher-student

relationships with teachers who taught SEE exclusively being more likely to agree that their relationship had improved with students compared to teachers who taught SEE as part of another subject (p < 0.01, d = .66 suggested a moderate practical significance), and

compared to teachers who considered SEE but did not teach it

exclusively (p < 0.05, d = .40 suggested a small to moderate practical significance). No comparisons could be made in Greece and Sweden as not enough teachers taught SEE exclusively in these countries to make a valid comparison.

When SEE was taught exclusively it was found to positively correlate with teacher satisfaction with SEE provision and improved teacher-student relationships in Spain, and teachers feeling more comfortable in expressing their emotions in the classroom in the UK. Where teaching SEE exclusively was not possible, SEE being

considered for every subject but not taught exclusively was still preferable to including it as a secondary module as part of another subject (e.g., religious education, health, citizenship studies).

Nevertheless, whether SEE was taught as its own subject, as part of another subject or considered for every subject but not taught

exclusively only made a statistically significant difference in teacher satisfaction in Spain.

So how was it more likely for SEE to be taught as its own exclusive subject? The highest likelihood found in the study was if the relevant policy was introduced (be it with or without teacher involvement). The least likely means by which SEE was taught as a separate subject was if teachers introduced SEE into their schools by themselves. Considering that teacher dissatisfaction with SEE

provision was at its highest when it was introduced by policy alone as discussed above, this highlights an important consideration for the development of future SEE provision. If SEE was introduced

exclusively by teachers into school it was more likely that they would develop a SEE provision that considers social and emotional aspects of learning for all subjects, but did not have time to devote to the subject exclusively. Yet this kind of SEE provision was not found to have the same positive correlations as when it was taught exclusively (e.g., an improvement in teacher-student relationships in Spain and teachers feeling more comfortable to share their emotions in the classroom in the UK). In terms of SEE practice being discontinued in schools after it had been introduced, the introduction of SEE

provision solely by senior leaders or solely by teachers had similar likelihoods that it would later no longer be considered.

Table 3.23. How SEE was introduced in schools compared to the time devoted to SEE in each school (N: 584)

SEE