This action research investigates how Cecily O'Neill's process drama fosters a dual-helix trajectory of social-emotional learning (SEL) and expressive language among 27 Taiwanese kindergarteners aged 5-6 in a mixed-age class. Grounded in Vygotsky's sociocultural theory, Bruner's narrative mode, and the CASEL SEL framework, the study conceptualizes SEL and language as complementary strands spiraling around process drama as the pedagogical core. A 12-week continuous curriculum transformed selected picturebooks into emotionally rich fictional worlds. Teacher-in-Role and Mantle of the Expert strategies positioned children as "emotion detectives" and "friendship consultants," prompting negotiation of conflicts, decision-making, and in-role reflection.Multi-method data included pre/post-SEL ratings (CASEL competencies), audio-transcribed interactions for MLU, TTR, and emotion word density, double-blind observations (κ>0.80), and parent logs of at-home SEL language transfer.Preliminary findings project significant gains in SEL—particularly self-awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making—paralleled by utterance length, lexical diversity, and emotionally nuanced vocabulary growth. Qualitative corpus analysis reveals heightened questioning, negotiating, and perspective-taking, evidencing mutual scaffolding between SEL and language in dramatic contexts.The study proposes a "Process Drama Dual-Helix Model" that analytically and visually maps SEL-language co-development over time, offering early childhood educators a replicable arts-integrated framework for Asian contexts prioritizing SEL alongside language goals.

Authors:
Hui Man Chen, National Taiwan University of Arts, Taiwan

About the Presenter(s)
Chen Hui-Man, M.A. candidate at NTUA Arts & Humanities Education, substitute kindergarten teacher. Interests: Handcrafts. Current project: Process drama dual-helix model for SEL & child language development.

See this presentation on the full schedule – Saturday Schedule

Bookmark