How do we collect the information about what we are already doing and what we need to do?
Most schools already have some strategies and processes already in place to enhance social and emotional learning and reduce bullying, so it is important to explore what you are already doing well and then identify any areas of need. Friendly Schools provides a variety of tools and strategies to assist teams to assesses school resources and practices to know what action to take to enhance social and emotional learning and reduce bullying. The objective of this stage is to examine what is happening in the school to inform school planning.
Survey and screening tool findings are particularly helpful for:
- a) describing the extent and nature of students’ social behaviours and actions taken by the school to address these,
- b) raising staff and other members of the school community’s awareness of these behaviours and the schools’ efforts to encourage positive social change,
- c) determining the school policies and practices that are working well, what can be improved and what is missing,
- d) making decisions, setting priorities and planning for sustainable school action (policies and practices), and
- e) benchmarking, monitoring and evaluating changes in school processes and student outcomes.