tOP STORY

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)

By GREG TAYLOR with Mary Otto-Chang HBA, MES, PhD (Candidate)

“The philosophy of the schoolroom in one generation is the philosophy of government in the next.” Abraham Lincoln

Imposing the Boot-print of Governmental Overreach on Our Children’s Psyches

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) – Feelings and Empathy

We are reminded daily of social injustice, misinformation and disinformation, and the harm it causes, along with how climate change will decimate humanity. Much of this, of course, is propaganda designed to change people’s outlooks and to accept the change that is being imposed upon us.

Manipulation is the principal method by which global powers seek to change our world. Older generations are lucky, as they had an education that was based around learning key academic subjects and developing critical thinking skills. However, children and young people these days are not as lucky. Today, they are educated via a platform of consideration for feelings and empathy.

History of SEL

Over the past 20 years, education has increasingly focused on Social Emotional Learning (SEL) to bring about academic performance, improved attitudes and behaviors, and less emotional stress for children. Who would not want that for their child? Yet, as with many institutional offerings these days, things may not be as they seem. SEL is a Trojan Horse that threatens your child’s and society’s future.

The origins of SEL go back to the sixties and the work of James Comer and his belief that “the contrast between a child’s experiences at home and those in the school deeply affects the child’s psychosocial development, and that this in turn shapes academic achievement.’ By the 1980’s Comer had developed his ideas and implemented changes at two underperforming New Haven, CT, schools that quickly saw a turnaround in student achievement. SEL was born.

In 1994, Collaborative to Advance Social Emotional Learning (CASEL) was established with significant funding from the Rockefellers, with Eileen Rockefeller Growald also being a Founder. CASEL has gone on to become one of the preeminent organizations promoting SEL and a key advisor to government.

In its first year the Fetzer Institute hosted the first CASEL conference. The Fetzer Institute is a foundation established in 1962 by John E Fetzer to foster spirituality to cure social ills.

Over the past 20 years, CASEL has become the leading proponent of SEL and driven its implementation within education, both in the USA and abroad, through collaborations, most notably with UNESCO and its World Core Curriculum, that was born of the work of Dr. Robert Muller and the teachings of New Age occultist Alice Bailey.

From its early days CASEL, and SEL have had links to globalists, through the Rockefellers and also through theosophical views. That at least hints of SEL as aligned to a vision for the future with a one world government, a one world religion, and one world education.

What is SEL?

According to CASEL “Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.” SEL, we are told, is designed so that educators can create a more inclusive and empowering learning environment.

Originally, SEL was designed to help students that were, as the name suggests, struggling at school because of social issues, such as trouble in the home or lacking interpersonal skills.

SEL has developed to being a platform by which teachers supposedly can improve mental health for all children by:

Focusing on empathy and understanding others, thinking before reacting or speaking and considering how best to communicate in an effective manner without impacting others negatively.
Exploring the emotions and motivations of a character in a piece of literature.
Providing students with examples of how to show empathy, manage emotions and resolve conflicts in an effective manner.
Allowing students to decide for themselves and express opinions to develop responsibility and agency.
Including with the classroom such exercises as deep breathing and meditation to control stress.
Developing supportive relationships with students to develop trust and improve onboarding of SEL methods.

In many ways, teachers are replacing emotional support and development that was traditionally the role of parents, family, friends, and the church. They are acting as non-licensed psychologists to mentally manipulate and indoctrinate children to a future where everybody cares about everybody else. It is a form of externally placed emotional collectivism. When stressed, the veneer of empathy will crack and ultimately shatter as it has no foundation in ethics or faith.

Today’s SEL looks different with all children being involved with SEL. This is what CASEL calls

“Transformative SEL” of “tSEL.” It seeks to create a whole of society transformation to a mental wellbeing that will improve resilience to a changing world. As with many things, key words give away the true intention. “Transformative” is often a part of the neo-Marxist lexicon meaning a move towards a collectivism or communism. Our children are being groomed for a Marxist future.

Sold as a positive touchy-feely curriculum, it is actually just another example of gross GOVERNMENT OVERREACH.

Academic Achievement

It is important to remember that while mental health is an obviously important aspect of children’s development, when they are at school, they are there to learn critical thinking skills, cognition and abilities that will set them on their way for their working life. The traditional subjects of language, mathematics, sciences, history, geography amongst others, along with a viable technological skillset, must remain a priority. With SEL, we are told that the mental wellbeing of the student will achieve improved academic performance. Yet, we see student grades dropping.

According to the National Science Board (NSB) the US ranks 25^th of 37 OECD countries in terms of mathematical literacy. Despite adoption of SEL from 2007 to 2019 (i.e., pre COVID) for fourth to eight graders “there was no overall improvement in mathematics scores.”

The National Center for Educational Statistics issued a report in 2022 called the NAEP Long-Term Trend Assessment Results: Reading and Mathematics. The results were jaw dropping. “Average scores for age nine students in 2022, declined five points in reading and seven points in mathematics compared to 2020. This is the largest average score decline in reading since 1990, and the first ever score decline in mathematics.”

Fast Facts: Long-term trends in reading and mathematics achievement (38) (ed.gov)

While other factors will be at play, SEL has not demonstrated an improvement in student academic performance, at least in Mathematics and Reading. Students’ education is declining as more “enlightened” teaching skills are introduced.

So, what is SEL doing for children? Maybe it is a way of helping some children to mentally accept not being proficient in math or reading, and that is not meant facetiously.

Educational Equity

CASEL is quick to point out, in articles and their website, their desire for equity in the classroom. It is a core component of achieving mental well-being and preparing students for the future. As they explain in their “Guiding Questions for Educators: Promote Equity Using SEL in your School; When social and emotional learning (SEL) is implemented with a culturally responsive lens, educators can use SEL to cultivate equitable learning opportunities, responsive relationships, and inclusive practices. An equity lens helps educators affirm the identities, strengths, and cultures of all students; elevate their voice and agency; create a sense of belonging; cultivate curiosity and collaborative problem-solving; and more fully nurture the strengths and social and emotional development of all students.”

SEL is clearly Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for education. It will allocate resources to meet equal output, rather than build the best version of each student. SEL is not designed to encourage merit, it is designed to make all children the same. It is emotional collectivism and communism.

Critical Race Theory and Gender

Some have argued that SEL is a Trojan Horse method by which Critical Race Theory (CRT) and gender ideology can be introduced into the school room. On its face SEL is about improving a child’s mental health, whereas dig a little and you see social justice causes such as equity. Dig a little more and you will see mental health as a vehicle to indoctrinate the child into a fair and inclusive world through CRT and gender ideology.

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SEL encourages self-reflection through empathy and understanding. Students can analyze their own biases and understand how systemic racism affects different communities. Teachers can facilitate classroom discussions relating to inequalities in society. This critical self-awareness is a key component of CRT. It is similar for gender issues where teachers can help children consider their own identity and have a greater understanding of the array of genders that are so common to today’s educational environment.

In the 1970’s the work of Paulo Freire and his Critical Pedagogy did much to address inequalities that had long been the focus of Marxists via an educational platform. That in time has been built out to consider critical consciousness or wokeness. SEL seems little more than Freire 2.0 and a method by which children are conditioned to neo-Marxist thinking including gender ideology, CRT and of course equity. This is done with the full knowledge and support of the Department of Education and the major teachers’ unions.

Mental Wellbeing

There are many factors that can impact the mental health of a child. The mental issues faced by children are linked to such things as electronic device addictions, social media, lockdowns, poor diet, sedentary lifestyles, gender dysphoria and climate catastrophism.

The past 10 years have seen dramatic increases in children and young people’s mental health issues such as ADHD, anxiety, behavioral problems, and depression. According to the American Psychological Association, in their article 2023 Emerging Trends in Psychology they state; “In the 10 years leading up to the pandemic, feelings of persistent sadness and hopelessness—as well as suicidal thoughts and behaviors—increased by about 40% among young people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System.”

SEL seems to have had a negligible impact on mental health and may, in some ways, have contributed to a decline. An objective and professional approach is needed to support mental health within children. Yet, what SEL provides, are teachers who are not licensed psychologists conducting psychological programs with children to achieve educational equity.

In terms of academic performance and mental health, in the period that SEL has been prominent in education, it has not clearly demonstrated any benefit. Yet, government, unions, and educational colleges all continue to support this disastrous program. That should make it clear that SEL is not about improving and empowering children to be the best they can be. It is about brainwashing to accept collective good and communism.

Transformative SEL – The WEF and UN

If we consider the concept of transformative SEL in line with equity, we see that the process is designed to propagate an “all of society” result. That would certainly play into the World Economic Forum’s and the UN’s vision of the future.

According to the WEF, “Transformative Social and Emotional Learning (tSEL) is crucial for preparing students to navigate the complexities of the modern world. By fostering critical thinking, empathy, and resilience, tSEL helps create more inclusive and equitable societies.”

Per the United Nations, “Transformative Social and Emotional Learning (tSEL) empowers students to become active, engaged citizens. It promotes equity by ensuring that all learners develop the skills needed to thrive in diverse and dynamic environments.”

It seems that both the UN and the WEF are in lock step with the purpose of tSEL being a way to create the society that they want and a future that they are implementing through the Sustainable Development Goals and Agenda 2030.

But the UN and WEF go farther when they discuss equity. For them, equity is not just a national goal but a global objective. Are students being prepared for global equity? Will folks in the US be happy to see degrowth in the Global North as the Global South rises to achieve equity.

Below can be seen the many Globalist partners who champion SEL.

The International version of SEL is iSEL. Based on CASEL and cross-walked with other key frameworks to create an international school specific SEL Framework, this framework is available under a Creative Common License.

Frameworks used to create the International SEL or ISEL and SEL in IB Frameworks:

CASEL – Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning
ISCA (International Schools Counseling Association) Standards
Learning for Justice – Social Justice Standards
UNESCO Sexual Health and Safety Standards
OECD Global Competency for an Inclusive World
UNESCO K-12 AI Curricula
ISTE – Digital Citizenship Student Standards
A Queer Literacy Framework – Teaching, Affirming, and Recognizing Trans and Gender Creative Youth

https://www.internationalsel.com/

Spirituality and New Thought

In many ways SEL aligns very closely with New Thought, what some describe as a spiritual philosophy and others describe as a religion.

At its inception CASEL had significant help developing its program from the Fetzer Institute as mentioned earlier in this article. The New Age noted in the title of Brian C Wilson’s book “John E. Fetzer and the Quest for the New Age” refers to the New Age movement that had key proponents such as occultist Alice Bailey.

New Age is linked to New Thought, a spirituality that emphasizes a paganistic belief of greater consciousness and unity with the planet. It teaches that everything, similar to woke neo-Marxist structuring, begins in the mind, and that our outer world reflects our inner thoughts and beliefs. This philosophy sees human consciousness as interconnected with collective consciousness, suggesting that our individual thoughts and attitudes can influence the broader world. New Thought is a religion, that has at its heart neo-Marxist philosophy.

While the seminal work of the late Rupert Sheldrake, one of the centuries most innovative biologists, proved that there are energetic influences in this world yet fully understood, yet most definitely perceptible and measureable, such as in the case of Morphic Resonance, this “Me-Centric” paradigm pushed on children at the start of primary school is not doing them any favors, as they face real world things like authorities, expected social norms, and legislation. When humility is becoming a rare trait in our ever increasing egoist selfie society, fostering the blossoming of even more narcissists, is the last thing needed for “People and Planet”.

When you consider collective consciousness, you see how equity and empathy, key concepts within SEL, play a primary basis to New Thought. Equity leads to a sense of unity and shared purpose. Empathy helps people connect on a deeper emotional level, promoting understanding and cooperation among diverse groups. Together, we are told, equity and empathy help to create a more inclusive and harmonious society, where individuals are more likely to work together for the common good. This aligns with many spiritual and philosophical traditions that emphasize interconnectedness and mutual respect.

At the same time, the overlaps between New Age, New Thought, Neo-Marxism and SEL are hard to ignore. Yet, through plausible deniability, the accusation of teaching a new religion to students, will be promptly discarded as another mere conspiracy theory. SEL, they will say, is nothing more than a way to empower student achievement both academically and mentally.

https://www.truthineducation.org/

In summary, the dangers and opportunity costs, not to mention waste of time, money and energy, far outweigh any benefits which may be derived from this Neo-Marxist Government overreach. Listed below are some of the ways children and youth are damaged by SEL.

What’s wrong with schools’ teaching SEL with K-12 SEL standards?

Will place added burdens on teachers and reduce classroom instruction time.
Inevitably delves into, and may seek to change, student and family values.
Will necessitate breach of student and family privacy.
Is highly subjective, especially with young children, and will result in unreliable assessments and inappropriate “remediation”.
Even SEL proponents oppose rating schools with SEL measures
Will result in inclusion of this unreliable data in the student’s eternal digital records, thus risking exposure to breaches and misuse of the data in future years.
Will be carried out by inadequately trained personnel.
Do parents know about all that’s being implemented and taught, is there an opt out provision?
What other questions should be asked about SEL?
Whose standards or criteria will be used to decide what the right answers are for SEL questions?
Will parents have access to the assessments?
How will the state measure a bias of a child?
What behavior is “appropriate” and to what degree?
How will a child be remediated?
Will a child have to be referred for a mental-health diagnosis if he fails any assessment?
How much will it cost to implement SEL standards statewide? Where will the funding come from?

Conclusion

SEL is not the method by which children are being helped to achieve greater academic achievement, nor is it going to help a child’s mental health in a way that we currently understand. What it does, is take away the roles of the parent, family, friends and of the church, and put in their place an unlicensed psychologist in the form of a teacher. That teacher uses SEL to create the building blocks of a collective consciousness that will indoctrinate children to accept global collectivism and the global religion that the New World Order seeks for us. SEL is a Trojan Horse. What our children are being taught is what will be in government during the next generation.

Taking Action

Ask your school board if SEL is being used in your child’s school. Find out what is being taught. Ask for the professional qualifications of the professionals conducting psychological sessions with your children. If teachers have no such psychological qualification report them, the school, and the school board to the state medical licensing authority.
Talk to your child, find out what is happening in school lessons. If your child is uncomfortable with the psychological lessons being conducted, ask the school that your child be removed from such lessons.
Consider homeschooling.
Join Republic, the social media platform that puts you in charge, and join with other similarly concerned parents both locally, statewide, and nationally that share your concerns. Build up your network and use the power of unity to drive change at the heart of the educational establishment.

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