Math anxiety is commonly known as negatively associated with math performance among students. Per the Cognitive-Attentional theory, a high anxiety level impedes recall and the working memory capacity, subsequently leading to lower performance. Using a large sample, Yu and colleagues conducted a study to examine whether the math anxiety-achievement link depends on gender. They hypothesized that the difference may be explained by emotional susceptibility which is the ability to experience and be influenced by emotions. Females are more sensitive to negative emotions, while males are more composed and less vulnerable. Moreover, neuroimaging indicates different emotional processing modes between genders. The study involved 28,129 grade 4 and grade 8 students from 489 primary schools and 238 secondary schools in Qingdao, China. The researchers measured the students' math anxiety using an abbreviated Math Anxiety Rating Scale and math performance using a researcher compiled multiple set of tests in May 2018. The results...

A recent quasi-experimental study was conducted by Shi and Cheung to evaluate the effect of an author developed and scripted a social emotional learning program, which based on the Collaborative Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) framework, on Chinese primary students. Participants were 366 students (boys = 197) from 8 fifth grade classrooms in one primary school in Northern China (4 intervention, 4 control). Outcome measures included five competencies for social emotional skills, namely, self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making. The Strength and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) scales was used to identify strength and difficulties of children’s behavior, emotions, and relationships. All scales assessed through self-reported questionnaire. Students in treatment group attended 12 40-min lessons in fall semester of 2021. After controlling baseline scores and students’ characteristics, results of MANCOVA showed: Compared to students in control group, students in treatment group scored significantly higher in self-awareness (ES=+0.37),...

Strategies that teach self-regulated learning in the context of other academic domains have been found to support academic achievement. In response to these findings, Nuñez and colleagues conducted an experimental study to evaluate the effectiveness of the paired reading and writing activities for “Yellow’s Trials and Tribulations,” a story from The Rainbow Program. The intervention consisted of guiding students to work through activities about characters who must use self-regulated learning strategies to progress through the story and meet their goals. Study participants were children in grades 3 and 4 in state-funded and charter schools in Spain. Eighteen classes were assigned to the treatment (N=403), and 16 were assigned to a business-as-usual control condition (N=355). Treatment teachers attended four 3-hour professional development sessions focused on embedding self-regulated learning strategies in reading comprehension instruction. Researchers randomly audited lessons to evaluate the implementation fidelity and found that teachers implemented the intervention according to...

Friendships play an important role in shaping children’s developmental outcomes. For instance, research has shown that children who have friends and those have no friend differ in various aspects, such as peer group status and academic performance. Chen, along with collaborators, conducted a one-year longitudinal study using an action-partner interdependence model (APIM) to explore the role of friendship in the development of academic achievement and depression for same-domain as well as cross-domain effects, i.e., the associations between academic performance and depression in one member of a friendship dyad and later the academic performance and level of depression of the partner member. Academic achievement and depression are considered as two domains, thus, an association between antecedent academic results and later academic achievement indicates same-domain effect, while cross-domain refers to an association between academic achievement and depression. The effect within the same individual from Time 1 (T1) to Time 2 (T2) is...

Early peer experiences have impacts on children’s academic and social developmental trajectories, and successful peer experiences are important in kindergarten because it sets the foundation for future peer interactions and friendships. Though numerous factors can affect peer experiences, language skills and expressions may influence a child’s ability to initiate, engage, and sustain social activities with their peers.  As it is likely that language skills influence children’s classroom-based friendships, a recent study by Chow and his colleagues explored the difference between children at risk for special language impairment (SLI) and their typical peers regarding friendship centrality and reciprocity in kindergarten classrooms using social network analysis. Data from a sample 419 children (53% boys, average age = 6.8 years) from 21 kindergarten classrooms in four elementary schools in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States were collected. Children at risk for SLI (n=190) were identified using scores of the screening tools of...

Studies have indicated that high levels of anxiety could undermine adolescents’ peer interactions and academic performance and could increase the risk of other mental health issues. Positive psychology intervention (PPI) was found to prevent mental illness and enhance positive mental health. A randomized controlled trial by Kwok and colleagues examined whether a multicomponent positive psychology intervention (MPPI) would enhance gratitude and emotional intelligence, which in turn would reduce anxiety and increase happiness in adolescents. First, four secondary schools were selected randomly in Hong Kong and grade 8 and grade 9 students of those four schools undertook the anxiety subscale of the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). Second, of those identified as probable anxiety cases according to HADS scores, half were randomly assigned to the experiment group (n=46) and the other half to the control group (n=46). The experimental group attended a 7-session intervention which lasted for 7 weeks with...

Given the already complex nature of the responsibilities of teachers, the anti-COVID-19 pandemic measures placed on teaching and learning activities raised further challenges and difficulties in the lives of teachers in Hong Kong. Evidence shows that the COVID-19 crisis negatively impacted teachers’ mental health resulting in outcomes such as stress and depression. Datu and colleagues conducted a randomized control trial to examine the impact of a PROSPER-based intervention on psychological outcomes among preschool teachers in Hong Kong. As an organizing tool for the implementation of Positive Education, the PROSPER framework nominates seven key elements which contribute to psychological well-being: positivity, relationships, outcomes (accomplishments), strengths, purpose, engagement, and resilience. The PROSPER-based intervention in this study was considered relevant to preventing maladaptive psychological states among teachers who are experiencing intense levels of stress during the pandemic crisis. A total of 76 participants was randomly assigned to an intervention group (n=36) and a...

A recent meta-analysis by Zhang and colleagues evaluated the effectiveness of school-based mental health interventions on depression and anxiety outcomes. The meta-analysis included 29 studies evaluating 32 programs implemented in kindergarten through 12th grade. Most studies took place in Australia (41%) and the United States (28%). The study found that: Overall, interventions reduced depression and anxiety (ES=+0.24, p=0.002). Interventions administered in secondary schools had statistically significant mean effect sizes of +0.42 (p=0.006), while those administered at the elementary level did not produce significant results (ES=+0.06, p=0.547). Interventions with cognitive behavioral therapy elements significantly reduced the outcome of interest (ES=+0.33, p=0.002). Cognitive behavioral therapy can be implemented in clinical and school settings to help individuals learn to shift thinking and behavior patterns to better cope with issues such as depression and anxiety. With a growing need to address the mental well-being of youth, the findings from this study suggest programs that...

Mindsets or implicit theories are terms which refer to various subconscious beliefs about the malleability of human attributes (e.g., intelligence and emotion). Huang and colleagues recently conducted a pilot experiment to examine the effect of a growth mindset intervention on students’ implicit theory of intelligence, intrinsic motivation, and academic achievement. The authors extended the intervention to establish a belief about the malleability of emotion so that students can regulate their emotion and thereby enhance their sense of self-determination, which is likely to reinforce their intrinsic motivation for learning. Students of 11 primary and middle schools across 48 classes from 2 cities in Guangdong Province, China, were recruited to sign up to the program. Participating students were randomly assigned either to the intervention group or the placebo-control group. The final sample consisted of 194 students (mean age = 11.3 years) in the intervention group and 213 students (mean age = 11.5...