The secondary school curriculum largely aims to prepare students academically, often
overlooking the holistic development of the learner. The benefits of socio-emotional
learning (SEL) to student behaviour and academic attainment are gradually
acknowledged and discussed, but teachers may find it hard to integrate SEL into their
subject ...
The secondary school curriculum largely aims to prepare students academically, often
overlooking the holistic development of the learner. The benefits of socio-emotional
learning (SEL) to student behaviour and academic attainment are gradually
acknowledged and discussed, but teachers may find it hard to integrate SEL into their
subject knowledge. This paper draws on the findings of a novel pilot project, that
aimed to integrate socioemotional oriented teaching into the secondary school
curriculum. It employs a lesson study (LS) approach to actively involve teacher
trainees in curriculum development that introduces SEL in the context of physical
education (PE). The project was conducted in partnership with one mainstream
secondary school in the Southwest of England for a period of two months during the
summer term 2021-2022. Two teacher trainees and one qualified PE teacher designed,
evaluated and planned a sequence of 4 research lessons focusing on integrating
socioemotional oriented teaching in PE. Data collection involved 4 focus groups and 6
in-depth evaluation interviews. Our findings provide insights into the tensions,
challenges and significance of explicitly introducing socioemotional oriented teaching
into a secondary curriculum subject raising questions about the place of emotions in
education. It also highlights the potential of a lesson study approach in empowering
teachers’ involvement in curriculum development. Evidence suggests that teacher
trainees might be more motivated to draw on SEL teaching when it is integrated in their
subject topic. Practical implications for teacher training and professional development
are discussed.