Measures for Social-Emotional
Education for 5–6-Year-Old Preschool Children in The Context of Digital Transformation in Early Childhood
Education
Vũ Thị Phương Thảo
Master of Education, Thai Nguyen University of Education, Vietnam
Hoàng Trung Thắng
Doctor of Education, Thai Nguyen University of Education, Vietnam
Abstract
Social-emotional competence plays an essential role in
the holistic development of preschool children, particularly in the context of
digital transformation in early childhood education. This study aims to propose
measures for social-emotional education for 5–6-year-old preschool children
through learning activities supported by digital technologies. Using document
analysis and synthesis, the study identifies the potential of digital
storytelling, interactive multimedia, and technology-enhanced learning
environments in promoting children’s emotional awareness, social interaction,
and behavioral regulation. Based on theoretical and empirical evidence, several
measures are proposed, including digital storytelling, interactive digital
activities, multimedia integration, and teacher-guided digital interaction. The
findings highlight that integrating digital technologies into learning
activities can enhance the effectiveness of social-emotional education and
support children's holistic development in early childhood education.
Keywords:
social-emotional education, digital transformation,
preschool children, learning activities, early childhood education
Introduction
Social-emotional
competence is a fundamental domain of early childhood development that
influences children’s learning, behavior, and long-term well-being. During the
preschool years, particularly at ages 5–6, children rapidly develop emotional
understanding, self-regulation, and social interaction skills, which are
closely related to school readiness and later academic success. Research
indicates that children who demonstrate strong social competence in
kindergarten are more likely to achieve positive outcomes in education,
employment, and mental health in adulthood (Jones et al., 2015). In recent
years, social-emotional learning has gained increasing global attention as an
essential goal of early childhood education. International organizations
emphasize that integrating social-emotional learning into early education
enhances children’s resilience, well-being, and lifelong learning capacity
(UNESCO, 2024). At the same time, rapid technological advancements are
transforming early childhood education. Digital transformation involves
integrating digital technologies into teaching and learning to enhance
educational quality and accessibility. In preschool settings, digital tools
such as multimedia, educational applications, and digital storytelling create
opportunities to support children’s emotional awareness and social interaction.
These technology-enhanced environments provide meaningful contexts for children
to recognize emotions, practice social behaviors, and engage collaboratively
with peers. However, the integration of digital technology into social-emotional
education for preschool children remains limited. Many teachers continue to
prioritize cognitive development, while social-emotional learning is
implemented inconsistently. In addition, educators often lack guidance on
effectively incorporating digital tools into social-emotional learning
activities. This situation highlights the need for systematic research on
measures for social-emotional education in the context of digital
transformation. Therefore, this study aims to propose measures for
social-emotional education for 5–6-year-old preschool children in the context
of digital transformation in early childhood education, contributing to
improving educational quality and supporting children’s holistic development in
the digital era.
Results
The
review and synthesis of previous studies indicate that social-emotional
education for preschool children is most effective when implemented through
structured, interactive, and developmentally appropriate learning activities.
In the context of digital transformation, technology-enhanced learning
environments provide additional opportunities to strengthen children's
emotional awareness, social interaction, and behavioral regulation. The results
of this study are presented across three main aspects: the effectiveness of
social-emotional interventions, the role of digital technologies in supporting
social-emotional development, and the proposed measures for implementing
social-emotional education for 5–6-year-old children. First, evidence from
previous empirical studies confirms that social-emotional interventions
significantly improve preschool children’s emotional and social competence. A
meta-analytic review of 48 studies involving 15,498 preschool children found
that universal social-emotional learning interventions produced small to
moderate positive effects on social-emotional skills (g = .34) and reduced
behavioral problems (g = .32). Targeted interventions demonstrated even
stronger effects, with overall effect sizes reaching g = .48 for improving social-emotional
competence (Murano et al., 2020). These findings indicate that structured
educational measures implemented in early childhood classrooms can
significantly enhance children’s emotional regulation, peer interaction, and
social behavior. Similarly, a more recent meta-analysis examining 25 preschool social
skills intervention studies reported an overall effect size of 0.54, suggesting
that early social-emotional interventions have a substantial positive impact on
children’s emotional and behavioral outcomes. The study also identified
curriculum integration and consistent implementation as key factors influencing
intervention effectiveness (Dong et al., 2023). These results highlight the
importance of designing systematic and structured learning activities for
social-emotional development in preschool settings. Second, the integration
of digital technology into early childhood education has been shown to support
children’s social-emotional learning through interactive and engaging
experiences. Digital storytelling, for example, has emerged as an effective
pedagogical approach in early childhood education. Research indicates that
digital storytelling combines images, sound, and narrative to create meaningful
learning experiences, allowing children to explore emotions, social situations,
and interpersonal relationships. This approach promotes emotional expression,
empathy, and communication skills among preschool children (Rahiem, 2021). In
addition, digital storytelling encourages collaborative learning, enabling
children to discuss characters’ emotions and develop social understanding
through guided interaction.
Further evidence suggests that interactive digital tools
also support children's social engagement and communication. A study examining
digital storytelling in early childhood classrooms found that children actively
participated in collaborative storytelling activities, which enhanced peer
interaction and social communication skills (O’Byrne et al., 2018). These
findings demonstrate that technology-enhanced learning environments can
effectively support the development of social-emotional competencies in
preschool children when appropriately designed and implemented. Based on the
synthesis of theoretical foundations and empirical evidence, this study
proposes four key measures for social-emotional education for 5–6-year-old
preschool children in the context of digital transformation. The first measure
involves using digital storytelling to develop emotional awareness and empathy.
Teachers can present digital stories illustrating social situations such as
sharing, cooperation, and conflict resolution. Children are encouraged to
discuss characters’ feelings and propose appropriate behavioral responses,
thereby enhancing emotional recognition and empathy. The second measure
focuses on implementing interactive digital learning activities to promote
social cooperation. Educational applications and interactive multimedia can be
used to organize group-based activities requiring collaboration and
communication. Through these activities, children practice teamwork,
problem-solving, and social interaction. The third measure involves integrating multimedia
resources into structured learning activities. Teachers can incorporate videos,
animations, and digital images into learning activities to illustrate emotional
expressions and social behaviors. These resources help children better
understand abstract emotional concepts and apply them to real-life situations. The fourth
measure emphasizes teacher-guided digital interaction to support emotional
regulation. Teachers play a critical role in facilitating children's
discussion, guiding reflection, and encouraging appropriate emotional
responses. Research indicates that teacher-mediated interaction enhances the
effectiveness of social-emotional learning activities, particularly in
technology-supported environments (Luo et al., 2020). Overall, the results
indicate that integrating digital technology into social-emotional education
provides meaningful opportunities to enhance preschool children’s emotional
competence and social interaction. However, the effectiveness of these measures
depends on purposeful design, teacher guidance, and developmentally appropriate
implementation. These findings support the integration of digital
transformation strategies into early childhood social-emotional education to
promote holistic child development.
Discussion
The
findings of this study highlight the important role of integrating digital
transformation into social-emotional education for 5–6-year-old preschool
children. The proposed measures, including digital storytelling, interactive
digital activities, multimedia integration, and teacher-guided digital
interaction, align with current theoretical and empirical research emphasizing
the importance of intentional, developmentally appropriate social-emotional
learning in early childhood education. These results support previous studies
demonstrating that structured social-emotional learning interventions can
significantly enhance children's emotional competence, social interaction, and
behavioral regulation. First, the findings reinforce the importance of early social-emotional
education for preschool children. At the age of 5–6 years, children experience
rapid development in emotional awareness, empathy, and peer relationships. The
results of this study are consistent with the work of Denham et al. (2012), who
found that preschool children’s social-emotional competencies, including
emotional understanding, self-regulation, and prosocial behavior, were
significant predictors of early school success. Similarly, Jones et al. (2015)
reported that children with strong social competence in kindergarten
demonstrated better educational, social, and mental health outcomes in
adulthood. These findings confirm that social-emotional education during
preschool years is critical for children’s long-term development and supports
the importance of implementing structured educational measures in early
childhood classrooms. Second, the discussion of digital transformation in early childhood
education highlights the growing potential of technology to support
social-emotional learning. The results suggest that digital storytelling and
multimedia resources provide opportunities for children to explore emotions and
social situations in meaningful contexts. This finding is consistent with
previous research indicating that digital storytelling enhances children’s
emotional engagement, empathy, and communication skills by combining narrative,
visual, and auditory elements (Rahiem, 2021). Additionally, interactive digital
activities allow children to collaborate and engage in social interaction,
which supports the development of communication and cooperation skills.
Research by O’Byrne et al. (2018) also found that digital storytelling
activities promoted collaborative learning and improved children’s social
interaction in early childhood settings. However, while digital technologies provide
valuable opportunities, the findings also emphasize the essential role of
teachers in facilitating social-emotional learning. Technology alone does not
guarantee effective learning outcomes. Instead, teacher guidance is necessary
to support children’s reflection, discussion, and emotional understanding. This
conclusion aligns with research suggesting that teacher-mediated interaction
enhances children's engagement and learning outcomes in technology-supported environments
(Luo et al., 2020). Teachers play a critical role in selecting appropriate
digital resources, organizing collaborative activities, and guiding children’s
emotional responses. Therefore, professional development for preschool teachers
is essential to ensure effective integration of digital technologies into
social-emotional education.
Furthermore, the results indicate that integrating digital
technologies into social-emotional education supports child-centered learning
approaches. Digital tools allow children to actively participate in learning
activities, express emotions, and collaborate with peers. These findings are
consistent with contemporary early childhood education frameworks emphasizing
active learning and child participation. According to the Collaborative for
Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning, social-emotional learning is most
effective when implemented through active, engaging, and supportive learning
environments (CASEL, 2020). Digital learning environments can support these principles
by creating interactive and meaningful learning experiences. Despite these
promising findings, several challenges should also be considered. Limited
access to digital resources, insufficient teacher training, and concerns about
excessive screen time may affect the implementation of digital social-emotional
education in preschool settings. Therefore, digital technologies should be used
as supportive tools rather than replacements for direct social interaction and
play-based learning. Overall, this study contributes to the growing body of research on
social-emotional education in early childhood by emphasizing the integration of
digital transformation strategies. The proposed measures provide practical
guidance for preschool teachers to implement social-emotional education
effectively in technology-enhanced learning environments. These findings also
support the need for further empirical research to evaluate the effectiveness
of digital-based social-emotional interventions for preschool children in different
educational contexts.
Conclusion
In
conclusion, social-emotional education plays a crucial role in promoting the
holistic development of 5–6-year-old preschool children, particularly in the
context of digital transformation in early childhood education. The integration
of digital technologies into learning activities provides meaningful
opportunities to enhance children's emotional awareness, social interaction,
communication skills, and behavioral regulation. Digital tools such as
multimedia resources, interactive applications, and digital storytelling create
engaging learning environments that support children’s active participation and
collaborative learning. The proposed measures, including digital storytelling,
interactive digital activities, multimedia integration, and teacher-guided
digital interaction, contribute to improving the effectiveness of
social-emotional education and fostering children’s comprehensive development.
These measures also support child-centered learning and align with contemporary
early childhood education approaches. However, further empirical research is
needed to examine the effectiveness of these measures, as well as teacher
readiness, technological infrastructure, and contextual factors influencing the
implementation of social-emotional education in digitally enhanced preschool
environments.
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