Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) is widely recognised as essential for promoting wellbeing, cooperation and young people’s meaningful participation in their communities. SEL frameworks often assume that emotional development unfolds similarly for all learners, regardless of gender, culture or identity. Yet emotional expression and regulation are deeply shaped by social norms that define which feelings are acceptable, which are discouraged, and which must remain hidden.
Gender-transformative SEL asserts that emotional expression is neither neutral nor purely an individual phenomenon. It is socially organised. This requires educators and policy actors to work to expand the emotional repertoire available to every learner. This includes validating assertive and boundary-setting behaviours among girls and affirming vulnerability and care among boys. It also requires ensuring that gender-diverse students experience safety and recognition rather than erasure and harm.