Can emotional intelligence be taught? This was the topic of a recent article in the New York Times. An interesting debate that of course we have a perspective on. Not only do we think that you can teach social emotional skills, but the process of CPS lends itself perfectly to doing that naturally, that is through a relational process rather than in a formulaic way that understandably has raised criticism in this article. Like any other kind of learning, the more experiential and hands-on it is the more engaged the learner will be. Practicing social emotional skills through the process of solving problems that occur naturally during the course of the day is a far more powerful way to help kids develop skills than more didactic methods for doing so. Of course, like other approaches described in the article, implementing CPS as a vehicle for social emotional learning requires a solid plan with sufficient training and coaching to ensure its done with fidelity and effectively. While CPS is usually called upon to address urgent challenging behaviors at school, when all students and educators practice Plan B we may very well prevent behavioral difficulties from occurring in the first place by making sure that each student gets lots of practice developing their skills.
