The Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence is pleased to announce an open position at the postdoctoral level, available immediately. Individuals who have a Ph.D. in special education, education, developmental psychology, or a related field are encouraged to apply. Ideal applicants will have experience in special education, strong writing, presentation, and communication skills, exceptional project management and leadership abilities, and competence in qualitative methods such as content analysis and coding observations. Applicants with large-scale classroom data collection experience are especially encouraged to apply.
A member of the Yale RELATE project team (PIs: Susan Rivers & Christina Crowe), the postdoctoral associate will participate in all aspects of launching a large scale research project to validate an observational tool to examine social processes in special education classrooms. The primary objectives of this project are to (1) identify social processes in classrooms serving children with special education needs that are not captured by existing observational frameworks, and (2) build and validate a coding rubric for assessing the quality of classroom social processes in classrooms serving students with special learning needs. Using a mixed methods approach, the research team has constructed this new observational tool—called the RELATE Tool for Observation in Special Education—and now seeks to validate it by collecting footage from a sample of 100 self-contained classrooms serving students with emotional and behavioral challenges. Along with the PIs, the postdoctoral associate will oversee all aspects of this RELATE validation study including the collection and coding of film footage, the development of training protocols and manuals for the rubric, and determining next steps for the research.
The overarching aims of the Center’s research program are to: (1) promote optimal learning, working, and living environments for children and adults using skill-based social and emotional learning (SEL) tools and programs; and (2) evaluate the effectiveness of these tools and programs and the mechanisms by which they have their impact. Much of the scholarship on emotional intelligence was first developed at the Center, as was RULER, our approach to curricula and training programs that integrate SEL into school organizations. RULER is designed to improve educational environments as well as to enhance the content of learning. These efforts are achieved by working with the broader community of SEL practitioners, researchers, and advocates including the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), as well as with a rapidly growing network of participating educators, administrators, students, and parents.
Interested applicants should submit via email a cover letter and CV, one or more writing samples, and a minimum of two letters of reference to: Michelle Bertoli at michelle.bertoli@yale.edu. Applications will be reviewed upon receipt. Please write “RELATE Postdoctoral Application” in the subject line of your email.