UNESCO Launches 'Transformar nos' manuals to enhance socio emotional skills in educational communities in the region

The series of publications, part of the Transformar-nos initiative, titled "Training for the Promotion of Socio-Emotional Transformation in Educational Exclusion Contexts," was launched at Betania School in the La Granja commune, Santiago, Chile. The first publication in the series is the Participant's Building Manual, and the second is the Facilitator's Manual. Both documents are the result of a cooperative partnership between UNESCO's Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean and the Súmate Foundation, part of the Hogar de Cristo organisation.

The launch event at Betania School, run by the Súmate Foundation, was attended by UNESCO authorities and specialists, Chile's Ministry of Education representatives, and the school's students.

Paula Klenner, National Education Officer at UNESCO's Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean, explained the purpose of each manual during the event. The Facilitator's Manual is designed as a guide for education professionals, offering innovative pedagogical strategies to strengthen the socio-emotional skills of facilitators. Meanwhile, the Participant's Building Manual provides practical activities, reflections, and self-awareness tools to help develop essential socio-emotional skills, promoting healthier relationships and more inclusive and respectful educational environments.

Both manuals align with the Transformar-nos framework's broader goal: to create collective processes of transformation through socio-emotional learning, with a focus on making educational centres key players in fostering a more supportive, diverse, and inclusive society. This approach enhances the socio-emotional skills of educational communities across Latin America and the Caribbean.

"The synergy between both manuals reflects our belief that socio-emotional transformation is not a one-way process but a collective construction that involves all actors in the educational ecosystem," said Klenner. She added that UNESCO firmly believes that "by strengthening the socio-emotional competencies of both facilitators and participants, we lay the foundation for an education that not only transmits academic knowledge but also shapes more conscious, supportive individuals committed to society."

Claudia Lagos, Undersecretary for Early Childhood Education at Chile's Ministry of Education, highlighted: "Well-being is an essential condition for comprehensive learning. This translates into integrating learning objectives into the curriculum that enhance opportunities for children to explore, express, and communicate their feelings, foster a sense of security, and progressively develop the skills and attitudes needed to participate with their peers in social spaces. It's vital that education systems promote the socio-emotional dimension as a driver of transformation."

UNESCO Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean's expert in teaching, Denisse Gelber, presented both manuals, explaining their content and stressing that "when socio-emotional learning is developed holistically, it can lead educational institutions towards true educational transformation."

At the end of the event, students and attending authorities participated in a practical activity from the Participant's Building Manual. The exercise involved recognising their personal strengths through self-reflection, writing them down, and sharing them in pairs.

Download:

• Formación para el impulso de la transformación socioemocional en contextos de exclusión educativa: Manual facilitador.

• Formación para el impulso de la transformación socioemocional en contextos de exclusión educativa: Manual de construcción para participantes.

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