Supportive Social Learning

In their article, "Supportive Social Learning," which is the basis for the Exchange Out of the Box Training Kit by the same name, Ellen Hall and Jennifer Kofkin explain the Boulder Journey School's efforts to create classroom communities that care.  For example, they describe...

"When one child acts out against another, it can be tempting to assign blame and interact with the children, not as unique individuals but in their roles as victims or perpetrators.  This often entails a focus on the feelings of the victim.  The feelings of the perpetrator may not be similarly honored.  In SSL (supportive social learning), teachers recognize that the child who acts out is hurting as well.  The Boulder Journey School teachers talk of the 'two-armed hug,' a hug that embraces victims and perpetrators alike.

"Too often, efforts to hold a misbehaving child accountable for his or her actions alienate that child from the social group....  In more extreme cases, children may be suspended or even expelled.  These practices may exacerbate problems.  For example, conflicts often occur when a child attempts to enter a social group.  If a teacher intervenes by removing either the child seeking to enter the group or a child who rejects these advances, this does not help and likely hinders the children's ability to negotiate such situations more effectively in the future....

"An unwillingness to condemn children does not mean that all behaviors are viewed as acceptable.  A child who acts against another is held responsible for righting the wrong, but this is done in a way that brings the children together.  In a situation where one child pushes another, for example, the teacher might say to the aggressor, 'When you knocked this child down he hurt his knee and that made him cry.  Would you like to help get some ice for that sore knee?'"

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