Emotional smarts key to navigating life’s challenges

From stories in The Wall Street Journal to appearances on Oprah, the experts are offering tips for surviving the tough economic climate we face this year.

Almost all of these coping tips focus not on fiscal advice or economic choices, but on social and emotional skills. What’s the link between coping with economic hard times and social and emotional skills? It’s the fact that what guides people through this or any other crisis in their lives is emotional intelligence.

Brain science has given us a whole new understanding of how intellect and emotions work together. We now know that everyone needs emotional intelligence to thrive, whether navigating playground politics or the ups and downs of Wall Street. Emotions —- and our ability to use them to be effective, not merely reactive —- play a vital role in determining how successful and happy people will be.

Do you know what to do to calm down when panic rises over the drop in your 401(k) account? How do you guard against risky decision-making when your fears overcome reason? Are you able to stop yourself from taking out your anger on friends and family when feeling helpless? Can you maintain a sense of optimism in spite of losing your job? Regardless of whether you have enough money to live comfortably, can you sympathize with those less fortunate and reach out a helping hand?

The coping skills and strategies that we all need right now are the same fundamental capabilities that social and emotional learning programs teach to children in the elementary school years. Such well-designed, evidence-based programs help children develop confidence, empathize with others, motivate themselves and gain a sense of optimism about their future. Research in thousands of classrooms has demonstrated that with systematic instruction, these skills can be gradually developed with feedback and reinforcement in a supportive classroom or after-school program.

For years, people have said that teaching social and emotional skills would come at the expense of academics. But a growing body of research shows that strengthening these capabilities actually improves academic performance. A summary analysis by the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning looked at hundreds of studies conducted by independent researchers of effective social and emotional learning programs. CASEL’s analysis showed multiple benefits for both regular-education and higher-needs students, including an average gain of 11 percentile to 17 percentile points on achievement test scores.

We need to inoculate many more children with a comprehensive social and emotional education so that they can cope more effectively with the challenges of school and of life. It’s time for policy-makers at the state and federal level to invest in research-based program models that offer effective instruction with measurable outcomes. More resources for training and professional development will improve the teaching of social and emotional skills. Leadership from school superintendents and principals will help convince education stakeholders that these programs will improve the lives of children.

We must do more to ensure that children leave school with a strong foundation of social and emotional capabilities. Emotional intelligence provides a compass with which to navigate life’s challenges, financial and otherwise.

It’s the missing piece of education.

> Ginny Deerin is founder and CEO of Charleston, S.C.-based WINGS for kids, developing social and emotional skills through after-school programs. Roger Weissberg, an LAS distinguished professor of psychology at the University of Illinois at Chicago, is president of CASEL, the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning.