David Smith, PhD University of Ottawa Contact: david.smith@uottawa.ca Teaching with Acceptance and Commitment: Relationship skills for bullying prevention

SECs and bullying prevention School effectively prevent bullying Positive School climate: “the norms, values, and expectations that support people feeling socially, emotionally, and physically safe” (Cohen et al, 2009) Positive Classroom climate: teacher attuned, students engaged, effective classroom management Teacher-student relationships: warm, caring, supportive, positive expectations for success Teacher social-emotional competencies and well-being

SECs and “burnout cascade”* Teacher with low SECs Students off-task and disruptive Classroom climate deteriorates Teacher demoralized and burns-out emotionally; negative attitudes toward students and teaching Teacher is emotionally reactive, uses punitive classroom management strategies causing more disruption Jennings & Greenberg (2009)

SECs: What are they?* Self-awareness recognize and understand one’s thoughts, feelings self-knowledge: strengths, limitations Self-management regulate emotions, thoughts, behaviours control impulses and self-motivate Responsible decision-making make constructive choices in consideration of ethical, safety and social norms *Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL, 2016)

SECs: What are they? perspective taking, empathy Social awareness perspective taking, empathy sensitivity to human diversity Relationship skills build and maintain healthy, fulfilling relationships communicate clearly, navigate conflict effectively

Teachers’ SECs go MIA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIJqbSkb5Jk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1jCxY4kAmWA

Teaching with Acceptance and Commitment (TAC) An adaptation of ACT (Acceptance and Commitment Therapy) * combines ideas from mindfulness and behaviour therapy Used in counselling, executive coaching, organizational development Observe difficult thoughts and feelings and respond to them thoughtful and intentionally guided by values *For a readable overview of ACT, see Harris (2006)

The Triflex* Be present Psychological Flexibility Open up Make contact with inner experience Psychological Flexibility Open up Make room for all thoughts and feelings without resistance Do what matters Values-guided action *Harris, R. (2009). ACT made simple. Oakland: New Harbinger

Open up Accept (be with) my experience without judgment: Be present Open up Do what matters Psychological Flexibility Open up Accept (be with) my experience without judgment: human minds produce all manner of thoughts and feelings Allow feelings that show up in my experience to flow freely through Unhook, detach, step back from difficult thoughts: see thoughts as just thoughts, not the literal truth

Be present Contact with the present moment: Be here now Open up Do what matters Psychological Flexibility Be present Contact with the present moment: Be here now Engaged with what I’m experiencing right now The observing self: the self as pure awareness Vs. the thinking (or conceptualized) self

Do what matters Know what is important to you: Be present Open up Do what matters Psychological Flexibility Do what matters Know what is important to you: What do you want to stand for as a teacher? What do you want your teaching to be about? Use values to determine your goals Take action to achieve goals Act intentionally, not automatically

Psychological flexibility Be present Open up Do what matters Psychological Flexibility Psychological flexibility Being fully open to experience without defense as it is, not what it is says it is, and acting deliberately on basis of one’s values

Additional resources http://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_teachers_need_social_emotional_skillshttp://greate rgood.berkeley.edu/article/item/why_teachers_need_social_emotional_skills Jennings & Greenberg (2009). The prosocial classroom: Teacher social and emotional competence in relation to student and classroom outcomes. Review of Educational Research Spring, 79(1), 491–525. Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL 2016). What is SEL? Retrieved from: http://www.casel.org/what-is-sel/ Harris, R. (2006) Embracing your demons: An overview of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Psychotherapy in Australia. 12(4), 2-8. Retrieve at: http://www.livskompass.se/wp- content/uploads/2012/11/Russ_Harris_A_Non-technical_Overview_of_ACT.2006.pdf