TOW #9 - Teaching Peace in Elementary School

Mental health is a subject that I observed has been addressed frequently, which it should be. Just as mental health affects physical health, the text "Teaching Peace in Elementary School" from the New York Times describes a learning program that strengthens mental health and social skills in children to improve their academic achievements and overall wellness. As a proponent of the S.E.L. (Social and Emotional Learning), journalist Julie Scelfo uses common, relatable experiences, quotes professionals, and uses certain examples of SEL that provokes pathos in order to promote a mental health-based learning style for elementary school children.
Scelfo, in the beginning of her text, asks questions in order to make the reader relate to certain situations. She asks, "Feeling left out? Angry at your mom? Embarrassed to speak out loud during class? Proponents of S.E.L. say these feelings aren't insignificant issues to be ignored in favor of the three R's" (Scelfo 3). Mentioning certain situations that almost everyone experienced develops a connection with the reader, and including the 'three R's' that almost every child has learned establishes ethos. By connecting such experiences to S.E.L., Scelfo attempts to persuade readers into thinking that S.E.L. can be a beneficial teaching tool.
In addition to establishing pathos by making the readers relate to the situation, Scelfo also quotes authority figures to establish credibility. She includes a research where, "...researchers from Penn State and Duke looked at 753 adults...evaluated for social competency...while in kindergarten: Scores for sharing, cooperating and helping other children nearly always predicted whether a person graduated from high school on time, earned a college degree, had full-time employment... or had been arrested or held in juvenile detention" (11). Penn State and Duke are credible universities where their researches can be trusted. Because she is not a researcher herself, she makes her points valid through quoting such figures. By including reliable facts on the impact of social competency and mental health, she makes her readers more leaned in favor of S.E.L.
She wraps up her essay through an emotional ending. She sets up an image in the reader's heads, where "the hallway outside a third-grade classroom is decorated with drawings made by students showing their aspirations for the current school year. One child hopes 'to make new friends.' Another wants to 'be nice and help.' And as for Leo...wrote: 'My hope for myself this year is to get better at math.' If S.E.L. strategies work, he will be better equipped to reach that goal" (20). Such a setting evokes pathos by imagining hopeful little third-graders whose innocent and helpful dreams should be met. Although there was a lot of research-based data in the middle, ending the text with this image in the reader's heads provokes their soft side, and that the feelings of third graders should be protected through programs such as S.E.L.
By connecting her readers to the text, using credible resources to back her argument, and wrapping it up with a sentimental and therefore powerful ending, Scelfo calls for the use of S.E.L. or other education formats that emphasize social skills and mental health in children. Scelfo has reached high academic skills, and she promotes social skills and mental health through these skills.