Social Justice Humanitas Academy is a teacher-led community school that advances student learning and development through its mission to support students on their journeys toward self-actualization, social justice, and postsecondary success. The school centers whole child practices, cultivates a supportive and inclusive learning environment, engages students in social and emotional development and student-centered pedagogical strategies, and provides access to integrated systems of supports that enable learning and well-being.
Teachers created Social Justice Humanitas Academy (SJ Humanitas) envisioning a school that would “not only be a place of learning, but also a resource for the community.” Thus, they designed a community school that would bring together local resources, incorporate collaborative structures, and support students. The practices implemented at SJ Humanitas support whole child education to advance outcomes and support student well-being in alignment with the science of learning and development.
"Brain breaks" and other tools and strategies to promote students’ awareness of their emotions and help them to learn important self-regulation skills are part of Lakewood Elementary School’s comprehensive approach to integrating social and emotional learning alongside academic instruction. Throughout the school year, and especially in the first six weeks of school, teachers spend time directly teaching social-emotional skills using separate lessons. These strategies are then reinforced throughout the day and year.
Well-implemented programs designed to foster social and emotional learning (SEL) are associated with positive outcomes, ranging from better test scores and higher graduation rates to improved social behavior. This LPI study examines San Jose State University's successful teacher preparation program and a California school district's in-service program that incorporate SEL instruction in an effort to inform policymakers, practitioners, and teacher educators about the components of strong, SEL-focused teacher preparation and development systems.
