What does it stand for?
It is an abbreviation, combining 6 important elements, which we in FUNtazia believe have a core role in developing emotional intelligence and social skills.
'F' for FILING
SEL assessment. Putting into notes/diary information, that has been collected through observation, through different periods of times,. When it is written down many times – it is easier to find patterns of behaviors, to analyze them, to develop or end them. It is a continuous process of self-knowledge or social awareness giving you the opportunity to assess not only at the moment – but through time.
'A' for ATTENTION
High level of observation of different situations, people, reasons, reactions, etc., with the purpose of gathering as much information as possible, to see when we go in and out of certain behavioural patterns and untipical behaviour starts.
'C' for COMMUNICATION
Sharing, communicating the information with the purpose of creating thrust in the relationships, finding different perspectives and seeing multiple truths. It is an open two-way process – we share, but we also let others share – this is what communication stands for. It is made of listening and understanding, too.
'T' for TEAMWORK
Everything meaningful in life is a result of a well-organized collaboration. That’s
why we believe this is an important part of our approach. Collaboration is the only way of achieving healthy envioronment, where everybody has a clear role, visions for Future are combined, and everybody’s work is important – no one made less. Yes, appreciation for efforts of everyone stands here, too. What we are going to do in the next activity today – is a teamwork.
It is not a process for finding a winner, it is not a competition. It is not being the best of all. It is being the best of yourself for all and everyone that matters.
ACT
SEL is not only words, or using methodologies. We’ve been into many schools, and universities and we have seen students who are open to communicate, and students staying quiet and unwilling to look up, to talk, to share. This is not SEL, no matter how good is the approach you are using – if this is happening – it is not SEL.. This is not safe and healthy environment. Act stands for the intentional acting against polarization and discrimination. creating a safe, healthy environment and relationship.
Practicing fACT Approach we are using something called “the Keys”– in order to give examples of different types of intentional act.
We named them “Keys” – because they can either lock, or unlock potential for creating or solving problems.
In our SEL activities, participants learn that each one of this “Keys” is not a constant solution, but a variable we should search. And together we’re searching for the one unique universal “Key” – working for every single situation.
FACT
Our perception of the environment is based on proven facts, not on biases, not on assumptions – it stands for the Multiple TRUTHS in every single situation, it stands for the constant effort to find the truth, instead of misjudging.
This is only possible if other elements of the approach are used correctly, because they are interdependent.
For example – you cannot expect free from biases space – if you missed the “Assessment” part. If the environment is poisoned with unhealthy relationship – you cannot expect communication, or teamwork. With no teamwork – how can there be achieving of common goals and etc.
fACT Approach does not consider the emotion itself, but the result of it.
What is the influence it had on different people, in various situations, in different sociums, combined with different circumstances. It considers situations and people (Filing). It inspects reactions under the influence of different emotions – are they typical, or not typical (Attention).
We thought of our approach that way, because we wanted it not to describe the person, but to define his potential forward in time. It is an approach in development in time – it seeks for wide adaptability.
The approach aims to show that a person can be different in every next moment, because every single moment is a place a person has never been… And what happens there is a whole new universe of knowledge for one self, others…life.
That’s why the approach does not define a person, it aims to provoke the person to LEARN – from himself, from his experience, from the surroundings, from other people, from practice, from every next minute of living.
We believe that this makes a person indefinable, because he has the freedom to CHOOSE himself – every single minute of his life.
These 6 important elements of the fACT approach, combined, and used together – build the habit to constantly think, instead of putting things and people into frames.
It provokes a person to constantly search for explanations and different, better options, considering the important things in his life… having in mind the state of being he is in every different moment.
That makes the model so accurate, and in the meantime – so flexible. Because it frees you from conceptions, from biases. It gives you knowledge for yourself, through getting to know others…and this creates connections.
The so called Outrospection is behind this approach. It creates relationships, based on empathy. More of that – it is based on the idea of creating cognitive empathy – having more complete and accurate knowledge about the contents of another person’s mind, including how the person feels.