Social emotional learning 101
Kyla Trammell introduces how connectedness can spark learning in this video from CASEL.
Social and emotional learning (SEL) is how all of us develop the skills for goal setting, emotional management, empathy, and collaboration. Strong relationships are key to our well-being and success, and social and emotional skills are the tools we use to establish and maintain those relationships. Explicit instruction of social and emotional learning has well-documented benefits for student futures and for classroom communities as a whole.
Students engaged in SEL programming have
- Improved academic performance[1],[2]
- Increased high school graduation rates[3]
- Higher rates of college completion
- More positive attitudes about themselves, their peers, and their school
Teachers with high levels of social competence have
- Improved emotional resilience and retention
- Increased longitudinal impact on student success[4]
- Growth mindset for both their students and their teaching practice
[1] Child Development (July 2017). “Promoting Positive Youth Development Through School-Based Social and Emotional Learning Interventions: A Meta-Analysis of Follow-Up Effects”
[2] Durlak, J.A., Weissberg, R.P., Dymnicki, A.B., Taylor, R.D., & Schellinger, K. (2011) The impact of enhancing students’ social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development: 82 (1), 405-432.
[3]Damon E. Jones, Mark Greenberg, and Max Crowley. Early Social-Emotional Functioning and Public Health: The Relationship Between Kindergarten Social Competence and Future Wellness. American Journal of Public Health: November 2015, Vol. 105, No. 11, pp. 2283-2290.
[4] Birch, S. H., & Ladd, G. W. (1998). Children’s interpersonal behaviors and the teacher-child relationship. Developmental Psychology, 34, 934–946
Social and emotional learning as a tool for equity
Self-awareness and relationship skills are dependent on respecting diverse identities and experiences. Supporting students in reaching their full potential requires a practice that is rooted in the explicit goal of promoting educational equity.
Examine the intersections of SEL framework and equity before moving to the next unit.