Classwide social skills training: Elementary school

The present study examined the effects of classwide social skills training (CSST) on children's social skills. In an experimental class and a control class, 75 fourth-grade children answered a self-report social skills scale and a self-report checklist on 5 target social skills. Their teachers rated the children on the same scales. The social skills scales consisted of 3 behavioral dimensions: aggression, prosocial skills, and withdrawal. In each class, 10 children who were defined as not having enough social skills compared to the others in their class were the focus of classwide social skills training. These children's scores on a re-test on the self-report scale did not show any change. On the other hand, in the experimental class, the teacher rated those 10 children as having improved on all 3 behavioral dimensions. Both the skill of how to ask questions and the skill of refusing showed a significant change. In short, the effects of the classwide social skills training were found only in the teacher's ratings. Practical implications of the findings were discussed.