Building Social Problem-Solving Skills: Guidelines from a School-Based Programme (Jossey-Bass Social & Behavioral Science Series (Jossey-Bass educati) - Hardcover

Skills in social decision making and problem solving are essential to sound growth and development. This practical procedural guide shows how school-based social competence programs can improve children's self-control and social awareness, along with their skills in group participation and interpersonal decision making--helping to prepare them for their role as socially competent, responsible, and productive citizens.
Based on more than twelve years of action research with the Improving Social Awareness-Social Problem Solving project (ISA-SPS), the Elias-Clabby model provides school-based practitioners and practitioners-in-training with a framework for designing, implementing, and evaluating social competency programs. The curricular intervelations are designed for use at all grade levels and with a diverse student population.
Skill-building procedures include instruction designed to help students decide on their goals, understand their own and others' feelings, and think in terms of long-term and short-term consequences for themselves and others. An eight-step problem-solving and decision-making strategy allows professionals from a variety of backgrounds to easily grasp points and generate applications relevant to their own settings and circumstances.
Elias and Clabby include practical guidelines for selecting a school site that is ready for a social problem-solving program, as well as detailed procedures for training school staff and parents. And they address applications to some of the most difficult situations--discipline problems, inadequate academic performance, and counseling encounters. A valuable resource section includes such tools as scripted lesson materials, a listing of key social competence skills, and a skills-by-grade guide for intervention.

A child's self-control, social awareness, group participation, and interpersonal decision-making skills can be improved through school-based social competence programs. The author shows how to design and implement programs that prepare children for their roles as socially competent, responsible, and productive citizens.