In elementary school, I had a favourite teacher, Mrs. Parker. I (and my parents) requested that Mrs. Parker be my teacher for as long as possible; she taught me for three years in a row. The experience was about as good as one can get in a school: I arrived early and engaged in activities with abandon. I believe these years were rich in social and emotional learning.
This changed in high school. In grade 8 (1997), I became withdrawn and experienced mild depression. Much of this is attributable to unavoidable factors, but I also believe a lack of social and emotional supports extended and intensified my experience. Progressing upwards to Grade 12, SEL was increasingly substituted by content acquisition and competition. None of this is wrong, of course (high school is meant to prepare students for the outside world). That being said, I strongly believe the outside world needs more compassionate citizens who have a high degree of awareness of self and others. My inquiry project is intended to explore methods for creating socially and emotionally supportive senior-level classrooms, and examining links to student wellbeing, academic performance, and quality of life in adulthood.