Going to school is important not only for learning, but about building social relationships, collaborating and interacting with other students, as well. It is about learning how develop social skills. School students need opportunities to develop social-emotional learning (SEL) skills that not only improve academic performance, but also increase empathy, reduce depression and stress during these tough times of social isolation and are highly effective in addressing initiatives like anti-bullying, diversity and inclusion, and special education.   

Maintaining the engagement of children is critical. However, schools often struggle to find ways to integrate SEL skills enhancement into their e-learning curricula. The common practice in most countries is to use all possible delivery modes with the infrastructure that exists today, such as learning management tools, video calls, forums etc., to ensure that learning materials, videos, tutorials, and other resources are available to students. However, TV, games, mobile phones and social networks could provide a new effective approach to remote learning in terms of maintaining the social relationships and peer-to-peer interactions.