SELMA - Social and Emotional Learning & Life Mastery in Early Childhood Education and Care

In SELMA, researchers and employees in Norwegian Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC) centers will collaborate to develop resources to promote Social and Emotional development and Life Mastery. The five core themes of SELMA derive from the Framework plan for kindergartens: Social interaction, Engagement, Love and joy, Mastery, and Acknowledgement.

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Key facts
Management

Researchers at the Centre for Learning Environment and the UiS Business School lead the project in collaboration with a highly competent advisory board of experienced national and international researchers.

Collaboration

Collaborating partners are the municipality of Sandnes and KANVAS kindergartens.

Duration

The project will run from 2021 to 2025.

Did you know that Norwegian kindergartens are required to contribute to Social interaction, Engagement, Love and joy, Mastery, and Acknowledgement? (Photo: Marie von Krogh/SELMA, Centre for Learning Environment)

This is SELMA

The goal of the research project called SELMA is to develop and evaluate an intervention to promote children’s social and emotional learning and development in Early Childhood Education and Care (ECEC). Researchers and ECEC employees will collaborate to operationalize and develop working methods that will be published through a comprehensive web resource to promote professional development in ECEC centers. Core components of the web resource are: Social interaction, Engagement, Love and joy, Mastery, and Acknowledgement.

Photo: Marie von Krogh/SELMA

Few assessments to study children's social and emotional development exist and this will be developed and piloted in the first phase of the project.

The framework plan for the kindergarten's content and tasks emphasizes respect, forgiveness, equality, diversity, community, democracy, solidarity, and social competence as central values. Letting children experience joy permeates the framework plan; centers shall contribute to children's well-being, joy, mastery, and self-worth. Children shall be supported in overcoming adversity and dealing with challenges. However, approaches for promoting children's development and experiences in these areas are only weekly described in the framework plan.

SELMA researchers and ECEC employees will collaborate to create working methods to promote children's social and emotional learning and development. Employees in ECEC have different backgrounds and there is a need for easily available resources to strengthen their common competence. A comprehensive online resource bank will be created to contribute to employees' competence. The resource bank will also contain suggestions and examples of play and activities for the children that can contribute to their social and emotional learning and development. The resources that are developed will then be tested in a large RCT-study with approximately 150 kindergartens. The project has many sub-goals, among other things related to implementation work, and the employees' own well-being. Collaborating partners in the project are Sandnes and KANVAS kindergartens. The project is run by researchers at the Center for Learning Environment and the UiS Business School and has a Scientific Advisory Board with highly competent and experienced National and International researchers. The project duration is from 2021 - 2025.

Professor
51832934
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Professor
51833721
UiS School of Business and Law
Department of Economics and Finance
Associate Professor
51832943
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Associate Professor
51832954
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Adjunct Associate Professor
51831336
New Zealand
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Associate Professor
51832947
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Professor
51831329
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Porsgrunn
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Avdeling Porsgrunn
Professor
51834522
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Associate Professor
51832917
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Associate Professor
51833771
UiS School of Business and Law
Department of Economics and Finance
Professor
51832944
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Associate Professor
51834566
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Porsgrunn
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Avdeling Porsgrunn
Assistant Professor
51832970
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Avdeling Porsgrunn
Assistant Professor
51832828
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Assistant Professor
51833103
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Porsgrunn
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Avdeling Porsgrunn
Associate Professor
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Porsgrunn
Faculty of Arts and Education
Norwegian Centre for Learning Environment and Behavioral Research in Education
Avdeling Porsgrunn
Senior Adviser
51832898
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Faculty Administration UH
Administrasjon NSLA Avd. Stavanger
Senior Adviser
51832991
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Faculty Administration UH
Administrasjon NSLA Avd. Stavanger
Adviser
51831476
Læringsmiljøsenteret, avd. Stavanger
Faculty of Arts and Education
Faculty Administration UH
Administrasjon NSLA Avd. Stavanger