Supporting educators’ capacity to nurture social-emotional development in Black children: evaluation of a pre-post and 2-month follow-up uncontrolled pilot training

Abstract Background Black children experience disproportionate barriers and biases in early years and education settings, which can negatively impact their mental health. Fostering social-emotional capacities (e.g., emotion regulation, empathy) can promote mental health, and educators are integral in fostering these capacities. However, there are limited social-emotional trainings tailored to support educators’ knowledge of and capacity to promote Black children’s social-emotional development. The aim of this pilot study was to test the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a social-emotional training for educators that was adapted to be tailored to the social-emotional strengths and needs of Black children using a community-based participatory approach. Method Forty-seven educators working with Black children ages 3–8 years participated in a virtual training over 3 weeks. Participants completed pre‑, post‑, and 2‑month follow‑up questionnaires evaluating their satisfaction with the training, use of training strategies, knowledge of social‑emotional concepts, cultural competency, and mental health. Results After the training, educators reported high satisfaction and high use of training strategies. Their knowledge of social-emotional concepts increased pre- to post-training, and these knowledge gains were sustained at the 2-month follow-up. Increases in educators’ knowledge were associated with improvements in their cultural competency and mental health. Conclusions Results highlight the preliminary feasibility of tailoring educator training initiatives and can inform future training adaptation initiatives.