Social and Emotional Skills for Better Lives

Kudus (Indonesia)

This site note provides an overview of how social and emotional skills are distributed among different student groups and how they relate to students’ health, well-being, educational outcomes, and future aspirations in Kudus. It draws on data from the Survey on Social and Emotional Skills (SSES) 2023.

Kudus is a city in the Central Java province of Indonesia.

SSES 2023 measured the following skills among 10- and 15-year-old students in Kudus:

• Task performance skills (persistence, responsibility, self-control and achievement motivation)

• Emotional regulation skills (stress-resistance, emotional control and optimism)

• Engaging with others skills (assertiveness, sociability and energy)

• Open-mindedness skills (curiosity, creativity and tolerance)

• Collaboration skills (empathy and trust)

Results for Kudus in this note are compared to the average across participating sites. This average includes:

• Sites that participated in SSES 2023 in all analyses: Bulgaria, Bogotá (Colombia), Chile, Delhi (India), Dubai (United Arab Emirates), Emilia-Romagna (Italy), Gunma (Japan), Helsinki (Finland), Jinan (China), Kudus (Indonesia), Peru, Sobral (Brazil), Spain, Turin (Italy) and Ukraine

• The following cities that participated in SSES 2019, where possible: Daegu (Korea), Houston (United States), Istanbul (Türkiye), Manizales (Colombia), Ottawa (Canada), and Suzhou (China)

Data for achievement motivation between 2019 and 2023 are not comparable, therefore analyses for this skill only include SSES 2023 sites.

The OECD collaborated with Djarum Foundation as the national project partner to implement the SSES in Kudus.

For further analysis and information, refer to ‘Social and emotional skills for better lives: Findings from the OECD Survey on Social and Emotional Skills 2023’ and the Survey on Social and Emotional Skills 2023 Technical Report (forthcoming).

How are students’ social and emotional skills distributed across socio-demographic groups in Kudus?

Differences in skills between boys and girls

• In Kudus, 15-year-old girls reported lower levels of emotional regulation skills (stress resistance, emotional control, optimism) as well trust, energy, and sociability than 15-year-old boys, on average. Gender differences in trust in Kudus were larger than the average across sites, while those in stress resistance, emotional control and energy were smaller than average.

• In Kudus, 15-year-old boys reported lower levels of achievement motivation, tolerance, curiosity, and persistence than girls, on average. Gender differences in tolerance in Kudus were smaller than on average across sites. In addition, unlike in Kudus, there were no significant gender differences in either curiosity or persistence on average across sites.

• At age 10, girls in Kudus reported lower levels of stress resistance than boys, while boys reported lower levels of task performance skills (achievement motivation, persistence, responsibility, self-control), open-mindedness skills (curiosity, creativity, and tolerance) and empathy than girls, on average.

Figure 1. Largest gender differences in skills in Kudus

Standardised differences between the scores of 15-year-old girls and boys in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Note: The five skills with the largest gender differences in Kudus are included, ordered from the largest to smallest difference. Standardised differences between boys and girls that are significant at a threshold of p < 0.05 are coloured, non-significant coefficients are outlined. Differences in Kudus that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B2.4

Differences in skills between advantaged and disadvantaged students

• Disadvantaged 15-year-olds in Kudus reported lower levels of open-mindedness skills (tolerance, creativity, curiosity), engaging with other skills (assertiveness, sociability, energy) and optimism than their advantaged peers. Disadvantaged 10-year-olds reported lower levels of tolerance, but higher levels of trust than their peers, on average.

• In Kudus, differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students in tolerance were larger than the average across sites, while differences were smaller in sociability at age 15.

• The skills with the largest differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students in Kudus at age 15 were for open-mindedness skills, assertiveness, and optimism.

Figure 2. Largest differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students in skills in Kudus

Standardised differences between the scores of 15-year-old advantaged and disadvantaged students in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Note: The five skills with the largest differences by socioeconomic background in Kudus are included, ordered from the largest to smallest difference. All standardised differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students are statistically significant with a threshold p < 0.05. Differences in Kudus that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B2.5

Differences in skills between 10- and 15-year-olds

• 15-year-olds in Kudus reported lower levels of most skills than 10-year-olds, on average: engaging with others skills (assertiveness, sociability, energy), trust, optimism, creativity, stress resistance, achievement motivation, responsibility, tolerance and persistence. Age differences in assertiveness and creativity were larger in Kudus than on average across sites, while those in energy, responsibility and persistence were smaller than average. On average across sites, 10-year-olds reported lower levels of tolerance than 15-year-olds, whereas the opposite was found in Kudus.

• 10-year-olds in Kudus reported lower levels of self-control and empathy than 15-year-olds, on average. Age differences in empathy were smaller in Kudus than on average across sites. In addition, while 10-year-olds reported lower levels of tolerance than 15-year-olds on average across sites, the opposite was found in Kudus.

Figure 3. Largest age differences in skills in Kudus

Standardised differences between the scores of 10- and 15-year-old students in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Note: The five skills with the largest age differences in Kudus are included, ordered from the largest to smallest difference. All standardised differences between advantaged and disadvantaged students are statistically significant with a threshold p < 0.05. Differences in Kudus that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B2.3

How are students’ social and emotional skills linked to their educational outcomes and career prospects in Kudus?

Levels of absence and tardiness and students’ ambitions for the future

• In Kudus, 27% of 15-year-olds had skipped classes at least once in the two weeks prior to the SSES assessments, slightly below the average across sites (29%), while 21% had skipped at least one day of school, below the average across sites (31%). The proportion of 15-year-olds in Kudus who had arrived late for school at least once in the prior two weeks was similar to average (49% compared to 48%).

• A smaller proportion of 15-year-olds in Kudus expect to complete tertiary education than the average across sites (64% compared to 84%). However, the same percentage of students expect to have a managerial or professional job when they are 30 compared to the average across sites (57% for both).

Relationships between social and emotional skills and academic outcomes

• In Kudus, 15-year-old students with higher levels of curiosity, persistence, achievement motivation and responsibility tended to achieve better grades in maths, reading and arts, while 15-year-old students who reported higher levels of assertiveness, energy, tolerance, and empathy tended to have higher grades in mathematics and reading. Students with higher self-control, creativity and optimism had higher grades in either mathematics or reading. However, the relationship between skills and grades tended to be smaller than on average in Kudus compared to the average across sites for many skills.

• In Kudus, higher levels of all social and emotional skills were associated with students reporting being late and skipping school less often. These relationships were larger than the average across sites for most skills, including persistence, responsibility, emotional control, energy, assertiveness, optimism, trust, empathy, and creativity.

Figure 4. Relationships between students’ social and emotional skills and grades in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Standardised regression coefficients of individual skills on maths and reading grades among 15-year-olds in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Note: Significant coefficients at a threshold of p < 0.05 are coloured, non-significant coefficients are outlined. Coefficients in Kudus that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Tables B4.1 and B4.4

Relationships between social and emotional skills and students’ ambitions for the future

• In Kudus, 15-year-old students with higher levels of open-mindedness skills (curiosity, creativity tolerance), task performance skills (achievement motivation, persistence, responsibility, self-control) as well as empathy, energy and optimism were more likely to expect to complete tertiary education and to have a managerial or professional job at age 30. Additionally, higher levels of assertiveness were associated with higher expectations of completing tertiary education, while greater emotional control was related to higher expectations of having a managerial or professional job.

Figure 5. Relationships between students’ social and emotional skills and their future aspirations in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Standardised regression coefficients of individual skills on students’ expectations to complete tertiary education and have a managerial or professional job in the future among 15-year-olds in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Note: Significant coefficients at a threshold of p < 0.05 are coloured, non-significant coefficients are outlined. Coefficients in Kudus that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by the asterisk against each skill.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Tables B4.19 and B4.30

How are students’ social and emotional skills linked to their health and well-being outcomes in Kudus?

Students’ health behaviours

• 15-year-old students in Kudus reported higher frequencies of two unhealthy behaviours: 55% reported exercising only once a week or less, compared to 31% on average across sites, while 52% did not eat fruit or vegetables most days, compared to 35% on average.

• On the contrary, 15-year-olds in Kudus reported slightly lower frequencies of getting less than 8 hours sleep most nights (55%, compared to 57% on average across sites), and having ever smoked or drunk alcohol (9%, compared to 17% on average) compared to other sites.

Figure 6. Percentage of students engaging in unhealthy behaviours in Kudus compared to the average across sites

Note: Frequencies of each behaviour that are significantly different to the average across sites are indicated by an asterisk against the behaviour.

Source: OECD, SSES 2023 Database Table B3.3

Gender differences in health and well-being outcomes

• On average across sites, girls reported lower levels of all health and well-being outcomes (health behaviours, current psychological well-being, life satisfaction, relationship satisfaction, body image and test and class anxiety) than boys. Girls in Kudus reported poorer levels of current psychological well-being, health behaviours and body image than boys. Girls also reported greater test and class anxiety than boys, while there were no gender differences in relationship satisfaction or life satisfaction.

• Gender differences in Kudus were smaller than the average across sites for current psychological well-being, health behaviours, body image and test and class anxiety.

Relationships between social and emotional skills and students’ health and well-being outcomes

• In Kudus, 15-year-old students with higher levels of social and emotional skills tended to have healthier behaviours, a better body image and higher current psychological well-being. They also tended to have less test and class anxiety and to be more satisfied with their lives and their relationships. This was the case for all skills.

• The relationships between social and emotional skills and students’ health and well-being outcomes were larger than the average across sites in Kudus for many skills, especially for creativity, assertiveness, and curiosity as well as for empathy.

Key features of SSES 2023

What is the Survey on Social and Emotional Skills?

The Survey on Social and Emotional Skills (SSES) is an international survey designed by the OECD’s Centre for Educational Research and Innovation to improve understanding of social and emotional skills among 10- and 15-year-old students. The Survey aims to understand how levels of these skills differ among students with different characteristics; how these skills matter for important student outcomes; and how students’ school and home environments influence skill development.

Which social and emotional skills are covered in the Survey?

The 15 skills measured in the Survey were selected to provide a comprehensive coverage of those that are relevant for children’s and adolescents’ success and well-being. Further information on why and how these skills were selected can be found in the SSES assessment framework (Kankaraš and Suarez-Alvarez, 2019[1]).

How were these skills measured?

All students complete a questionnaire where they indicate the extent to which they agree or disagree with a series of statements. Examples of statements include: ‘I keep working on a task until it is finished’, ‘I stay calm even in tense situations’ and ‘I am able to defend my interests when they are challenged’.

Who participated in the Survey?

All sites in SSES 2023 surveyed 15-year-olds and surveying 10-year-olds was optional. Students in sixteen sites – six countries and ten sub-national entities - participated in SSES 2023. Data from seven sites who participated in the first round of SSES in 2019, but not in 2023, are also included in analyses in this report wherever possible to expand the coverage of the international average.

Some 18,000 10-year-old and 52,000 15-year-old students took the SSES assessment in 2023, representing about 630,000 10-year-olds and 3 million 15-year-olds in the schools of the 16 participating sites. In Kudus approximately 3,400 10-year-old and 3,500 15-year-old students completed the assessment, representing about 13,700 10-year-old and 10,500 15-year-old students.

References

[1] Kankaraš, M. and J. Suarez-Alvarez (2019), “Assessment framework of the OECD Study on Social and Emotional Skills”, OECD Education Working Papers, No. 207, OECD Publishing, Paris, https://doi.org/10.1787/5007adef-en.