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mornar et al. ■ students’ social, emotional and intercultural competencies ...
choices about personal behaviour and social interactions based on a con-
sideration of ethical standards, safety concerns, social norms, the realistic
evaluation of the consequences of various actions, and the well-being of
self and others (Bridgeland, Bruce and Hariharan, 2013).
With respect to (empirical) evidence, more than 500 evaluations of
various SEL programmes can be found in the literature (Weissberg et al.,
2015). Most programmes involve school-based interventions, but one can
also find programmes that extend beyond the school context, including
parents and after-school programmes. Two large meta-analyses provid-
ed evidence of the positive effects of programmes for the social and emo-
tional learning for students’ well-being, attitudes about self, others, and
school, and other positive outcomes. Results of a meta-analysis by Durlak
et al. (2011) indicate that students who were included in school-based uni-
versal intervention programmes for social and emotional learning demon-
strated enhanced social and emotional skills, attitudes, and positive social
behaviours following intervention compared to students not included in
such programmes. Students who participated in SEL intervention pro-
grammes also showed fewer behavioural problems and lower levels of
emotional distress. Further, SEL interventions have also had a significant
impact on the students’ academic performance. A more recent meta-anal-
ysis (Taylor et al., 2017) also shows that students who participated in SEL
programmes demonstrated better results in social and emotional skills,
attitudes, and other indicators of well-being, compared to students in the
control group, even in follow-up measurements 6 months to 18 years post
intervention. Benefits were similar regardless of the students’ race, socio-
economic background, or school location, revealing the universal nature
of the relevance of social and emotional skills for students’ well-being.
We argue that the development of intercultural competencies and
intercultural understanding can also be conceptualised as being built on
the grounds of the CASEL (2003) model, by e.g. being aware of and reg-
ulating one’s emotions (prejudice), thoughts (stereotypes) and behaviour
(discrimination), as well as by taking the perspective of and empathis-
ing with others from diverse backgrounds. However, intercultural com-
petencies also include important elements that stem outside the domain
of social and emotional competencies, and outside of the CASEL (2003)
model. One of these is the critical dimension, which acknowledges how
established social and mental structures (Bourdieu, 1984) shape our cur-
rent behaviour. The critical dimension’s importance is supported by re-
views of emerging school-based approaches for developing students’ in-
tercultural understanding (Walton, Priest and Paradies, 2013). According
to this line of research (Zirkel, 2008), long-term changes in attitudes and
119
choices about personal behaviour and social interactions based on a con-
sideration of ethical standards, safety concerns, social norms, the realistic
evaluation of the consequences of various actions, and the well-being of
self and others (Bridgeland, Bruce and Hariharan, 2013).
With respect to (empirical) evidence, more than 500 evaluations of
various SEL programmes can be found in the literature (Weissberg et al.,
2015). Most programmes involve school-based interventions, but one can
also find programmes that extend beyond the school context, including
parents and after-school programmes. Two large meta-analyses provid-
ed evidence of the positive effects of programmes for the social and emo-
tional learning for students’ well-being, attitudes about self, others, and
school, and other positive outcomes. Results of a meta-analysis by Durlak
et al. (2011) indicate that students who were included in school-based uni-
versal intervention programmes for social and emotional learning demon-
strated enhanced social and emotional skills, attitudes, and positive social
behaviours following intervention compared to students not included in
such programmes. Students who participated in SEL intervention pro-
grammes also showed fewer behavioural problems and lower levels of
emotional distress. Further, SEL interventions have also had a significant
impact on the students’ academic performance. A more recent meta-anal-
ysis (Taylor et al., 2017) also shows that students who participated in SEL
programmes demonstrated better results in social and emotional skills,
attitudes, and other indicators of well-being, compared to students in the
control group, even in follow-up measurements 6 months to 18 years post
intervention. Benefits were similar regardless of the students’ race, socio-
economic background, or school location, revealing the universal nature
of the relevance of social and emotional skills for students’ well-being.
We argue that the development of intercultural competencies and
intercultural understanding can also be conceptualised as being built on
the grounds of the CASEL (2003) model, by e.g. being aware of and reg-
ulating one’s emotions (prejudice), thoughts (stereotypes) and behaviour
(discrimination), as well as by taking the perspective of and empathis-
ing with others from diverse backgrounds. However, intercultural com-
petencies also include important elements that stem outside the domain
of social and emotional competencies, and outside of the CASEL (2003)
model. One of these is the critical dimension, which acknowledges how
established social and mental structures (Bourdieu, 1984) shape our cur-
rent behaviour. The critical dimension’s importance is supported by re-
views of emerging school-based approaches for developing students’ in-
tercultural understanding (Walton, Priest and Paradies, 2013). According
to this line of research (Zirkel, 2008), long-term changes in attitudes and
119
