Global Pathways to Self-Regulation: Integrating Science, Community Practice, and EdTech Innovation to Advance Global Learning

This panel brings together four complementary projects that examine how children develop self-regulation within diverse ecological, educational, technological, and cultural contexts across the globe. Self-regulation, fundamental to learning, well-being, and adaptive behavior, is shaped by structural supports (schools, health systems), relational networks (teachers, families, communities), and culturally grounded practices. Yet approaches to strengthening self-regulation remain fragmented across sectors and unrepresentative of global diversity in cultural practices founded in traditional knowledge. Drawing on innovations from educational technology, international development, cross-cultural developmental science, and knowledge brokering, this panel addresses the shared question: How can we integrate science, community practice, and technology to build equitable, culturally informed foundations for children's self-regulation and school readiness?

Across four abstracts, the panel examines:1)How educational technology can leverage culturally meaningful practices to support social emotional awareness and regulatory skill building; 2)How global school-feeding, nutrition, and health programs provide the foundations for self-regulated learning; 3) How cross-cultural assessment of children's behavior and academic skills illuminates universal and context-specific developmental pathways; and 4) How knowledge brokering ecosystems bridge evidence and practice by creating shared problem spaces among scientists, educators, policymakers, and community practitioners. Collectively, these contributions advance SBCC themes by strengthening Connection and Relationships across sectors, deepening Knowledge and reconsidering the value of Evidence regarding global learning systems, identifying Action and Impact pathways through technology and community programs, and promoting Inclusion and Equity by foregrounding Global South perspectives and cultural diversity.