Brackett, Crowe, and Rivers will examine the relationship between supportive classroom environments and positive youth development. They will analyze the extent to which informants (students, teachers, and observers) differ in their perceptions of classroom environment and how these differences relate to student academic and social development across early adolescence. The investigators will use a subsample from a previous Foundation-supported study that evaluated the RULER approach, a standardized, curriculum to improve emotional learning and development. In the randomized control trial, schools either implemented the standard English language arts (ELA) curriculum or integrated RULER into their ELA instruction. Brackett’s analytic sample will include 128 economically and ethnically diverse fifth grade classrooms from 45 schools in Brooklyn and Queens, NY. This study will utilize assessments of classroom social and academic support as reported by students, teachers, and classroom observers five times over a 30-month period.
The investigators will examine the relationship between supportive classroom environments and positive youth development and analyze participants’ perceptions of classroom environment and how the differences relate to student academic and social development across early adolescence.
