How to foster social and emotional skills?

Policy makers, teachers and parents can play an important role in improving children’s social and emotional skills. These skills, together with cognitive skills, are key ingredients of individual well-being and societal progress. Social and emotional skills can be reliably measured within a cultural and linguistic boundary. Policy makers can use this information to improve their understanding of the skill gaps and to better design policies to address them, while teachers and parents can widen the notion of children’s skill needs and create positive learning environments. Social and emotional skills can be raised and mobilised for improving the life chances of children and society. This report identified the types of skills that matter and the ongoing policies, practices and interventions aimed at fostering them. This concluding chapter evaluates the gap between “what works” and “what happens in practice” in order to develop better strategies to enhance the skills that matter for children’s lifetime success and for the well-being and progress of societies.