Children who received social-emotional learning (SEL) at age 7 were 23% more likely to complete high school and 26% more likely to attend university—not from higher test scores, but from better self-regulation and reduced impulsivity. This episode explores how micro schools can deliberately develop the "soft skills" that form the operating system for all academic learning. We examine meta-analyses spanning 575,000+ students showing SEL programs produce 0.23 standard deviation gains, why teacher-delivered programs outperform specialists by 3x, the evidence for explicit instruction plus integration, and practical protocols for morning meetings, calm-down corners, and mixed-age SEL delivery. Read the full research report at https://research.yuda.me/podcast/episodes/building-a-micro-school/ep5-soft-skills-curriculum/report.md
Key Sources:
• Durlak et al. (2011) - Meta-analysis of 213 school-based SEL programs (270,034 students): https://casel.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/PDF-3-Durlak-Weissberg-Dymnicki-Taylor-Schellinger-2011.pdf
• Cipriano et al. (2023) - Updated meta-analysis of 424 programs (575,361 students)
• Taylor et al. (2017) - 15-year longitudinal follow-up study showing 23-26% better life outcomes
• CASEL Framework - Five core competencies for social-emotional learning: https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/
• Prenda & Acton Academy - Micro school implementation case studies
