Youth Voice

Pursuing Social and Emotional Development Through a Racial Equity Lens: 5 Strategies for System Leaders to Take Action

The Aspen Education & Society Program's recommended strategies for pursuing social, emotional, and academic development through a racial equity lens.

TAGS cultural competence school board anti-bias board policies equity integrate with district priorities district SEL expertise SEL leadership family and community engagement youth voice

SEL Trends: Empowering Youth Voice

From CASEL's SEL Trends series, this issue describes ways that Chicago, Cleveland and Washoe County school districts have recognized students as experts of the school experience and built structures for students to better influence school and district decisions and practices.

TAGS social studies SEL partnerships student leadership youth voice

Teaching Restorative Practices with Classroom Circles

San Francisco's guide focused on the use of Circles as a proactive measure to build trust and community in a classroom. Includes sample activities and lesson plans for introducing students to restorative practices.

TAGS teacher tool toolkit reading lists - staff culturally responsive teacher training restorative practices advisory/homeroom instructional practices classroom level culture and climate building community professional learning youth voice

Cleveland Classroom Meetings resource page

Classroom Meetings in Cleveland are used daily for community building and classroom level problem-solving and decision-making. This resource page has activities, best practices, handouts, samples that show integration with academic content, and other tools to help plan a larger scale rollout of class meetings.

TAGS teacher tool toolkit advisory/homeroom middle school grades high school grades instructional practices classroom level culture and climate building community youth voice

Chicago School Climate Standards and Self-Assessment

The Chicago Public Schools' School Climate Standards includes 17 key indicators organized into four domains: School-wide Environment and Leadership, Physical and Emotional Safety, Relational Trust, and Teaching and Learning. This document also includes a self-assessment to support school-level continuous improvement and resources to include student voice assessing school climate.

TAGS define SEL metrics implementation monitoring culture and climate youth voice

Chicago Public Schools Student Voice Committees

Student Voice Committees (SVCs) are designed to form crucial student-adult partnerships to help address the issues schools and students are facing. Through engaging students in the decision making process, SVCs seek to improve school culture and climate and develop youth leadership skills.

TAGS student leadership youth voice

SEL in Practice (video)

Oakland's video on how SEL is integrated with and enhances academic learning. A teacher describes her class' morning routine, students share, and the teacher models reflection for the class.

TAGS SEL and Academic Integration english/language arts math social studies videos teacher training advisory/homeroom middle school grades elementary school grades instructional practices classroom level building community

Giving Students a Voice in their Education (video)

This video from Education Week features Washoe County School District's practices to promote student voice and agency in shaping policies and decisions that impact education. Youth voice and leadership is a central part of the social and emotional learning approach in the district.

TAGS videos student leadership youth voice

SEL In Action In A Classroom (Video)

5th grade students and their teacher speak about what SEL means to them and how it plays out in their classroom through everyday practices and interactions.

TAGS SEL and Academic Integration videos teacher training model SEL schools elementary school grades instructional practices classroom level culture and climate building community youth voice

Lifting Our Voices – Sacramento City (video)

Video featuring high school students telling their stories -- their stressors, ways they know their teachers care, and aspirations for the future. Ends with a challenge to viewers to cultivate spaces where students' stories can be heard.

TAGS anti-bias videos teacher training advisory/homeroom middle school grades high school grades building community youth voice