TEACHING FEELINGS 101

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Some parents bristle at such squishy, New Agey techniques. At its worst, they say, emotional learning verges on therapy sessions for third-graders. "I don't want my children talking about my family's problems in the classroom," a Highland Park father said at a school meeting. But EQ gurus such as Professor Roger Weissberg of the University of Illinois in Chicago say students in the best programs have shown not just "more positive attitudes about ways to get along with people" but also improvements in critical- thinking skills. And in New Haven, teenagers say they're witnessing less violence, toting fewer guns and having sex later. Admittedly, better behavior does not ensure academic achievement. But American schools will take good news where they can find it.

--Reported by Emily Mitchell/New York, Andrea Sachs/New Haven and Janet I-Chin Tu/Seattle