Chinese students' perspectives on teachers' and parents' behavioral readiness for social and emotional learning

Introduction China demonstrates increasing readiness for social-emotional learning (SEL); however, significant implementation challenges persist. The report identifies behavioral challenges among SEL program facilitators, specifically teachers and parents. This study addresses these challenges by investigating students' perspectives on the behavioral readiness of teachers and parents to support SEL in China. Methods A behavioral model was constructed, and corresponding hypotheses were developed. Quantitative data were obtained from 150 respondents and analyzed using SmartPLS 4.0. Results The results indicate that the model is both reliable and valid. The hypotheses are statistically significant and supported by the data. The findings revealed the components of students' social-emotional skills as self-awareness, responsible decision-making, relationship skills, and self-management. Students characterized teacher behavioral readiness as including open communication, prompt responses to student inquiries, engagement with parents, and encouragement of students. Parental readiness was perceived as involving an accommodative parenting style, monitoring of academic performance, and addressing children's anxiety. The findings reveal that teacher behavioral readiness has a greater impact on SEL than parental readiness. Also, the findings show that teacher readiness influences parental readiness. Discussion The research advocates for strengthening behavioral readiness. Beyond the training programs, the study recommends integrating Confucian values into the roles of teachers and parents to foster inclusive learning environments.