SEL
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL)
What is SEL in Education?
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) is a methodology that helps students of all ages better comprehend their emotions, feel those emotions fully, and demonstrate empathy for others. These learned behaviors are then used to help students make positive, responsible decisions; create frameworks to achieve their goals, and build positive relationships with others (National University, 2021).
There are five components to social-emotional learning:
Self-awareness – To recognize your emotions and how they impact your behavior; acknowledging your strengths and weaknesses to gain confidence in your abilities.
Self-management – Taking control and ownership of your thoughts, emotions, and actions in various situations and setting and working toward specific goals.
Social awareness – The ability to put yourself in another person's shoes from a different background, culture, or identity. To act with empathy and in an ethical manner within your home, school, and community.
Relationship skills – The ability to build and maintain healthy relationships with people from a diverse range of backgrounds. This component focuses on listening to and communicating with others, peacefully resolving conflict, and knowing when to ask for or offer help.
Making responsible decisions – Choosing how to act or respond to a situation based on learned behaviors such as ethics, safety, weighing consequences, and the well-being of others, as well as yourself (National University, 2021).
Why is SEL important?
Research shows the positive effects of classroom-based SEL programs for students. However, there's also broad recognition that benefits are even greater when students experience SEL throughout their day, home, school, out-of-school time environments, and throughout developmental stages. SEL can build stronger communities and support inclusive, equitable learning when implemented with a coordinated, community-wide approach (Second Step, n.d.).
"The emotional climate of a classroom has shown to be the best predictor of student engagement, student performance, and student behavior" (Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, n.d.), Marc Brackett, Ph.D., founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, professor in the Child Study Center at Yale University, and the lead developer of RULER, an evidence-based approach to social and emotional learning.
SEL Programs Implemented by the SUESD Counseling Team
Character Strong
Character Strong is more than a set of lessons. It is a curriculum aligned with the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) competencies. More importantly, it is a partnership between schools and families to create a place where students feel like they belong and learn skills that will help them be the best they can be!
Character Strong has three main goals for students: Be Kind, Be Strong, and Be Well.
Be Kind
Social skills like listening, friendship, solving conflicts, and leadership.
These skills are taught alongside Empathy, Respect, & Cooperation
Be Strong
Skills that help students focus, stay organized, and set goals.
These skills are taught alongside Responsibility, Courage, & Perseverance
Be Well
Skills that help students handle their emotions and deal with stress.
These skills are taught alongside Gratitude, Honesty, & Creativity
You can read more about Character Strong HERE - https://characterstrong.com
Inner Explorer
Inner Explorer is an audio-guided mindfulness program in Education and one of the few in the field that is Formatted on the Mindful Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) protocol.
MBSR is a very specific pathway that has been rigorously researched for nearly 40 years, with thousands of published scientific studies demonstrating proof of efficacy.
Aligned with MBSR, Inner Explorer provides daily mindfulness practice that moves from concrete to more abstract concepts while building attention, self-awareness, and emotional regulation skills.
You can read more about Inner Explorer HERE - https://innerexplorer.org/
RULER
RULER is an evidence-based approach to teaching emotional intelligence that focuses on improving classroom and school climate—and, in turn, students' capacity to fully benefit from the educational experience.
RULER is an acronym for the five skills of emotional intelligence. The development of these five RULER skills relies on four core tools:
Charter
Mood Meter
Meta-Moment
Blueprint.
RULER approach provides strategies for understanding context, working with bias, and customizing for context. This includes activities that focus on individual, cultural, social, and contextual differences in the experience and expression of emotions. Additionally, educators learn strategies to recognize their students' emotions and adjust their instructional practices using mood-congruent instruction (Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence, n.d.).
You can read more about RULER HERE - https://ycei.org/
Second Step
Second Step is a "Universal, classroom-based, social-emotional learning curriculum for Kindergarten-Grade 5 that nurtures children's social-emotional competence and foundational learning skills."
Second Step is a well-established, evidence-based program from Committee for Children, a non-profit organization focusing on SEL curriculum and research. Second Step focuses on topics such as skills for learning, identifying emotions, empathy, and problem-solving.
You can read more about Second Step HERE - https://www.secondstep.org
Sources:
CharacterStrong. (n.d.). CharacterStrong. https://characterstrong.com/
National University. (2021, August 24). Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) & Why It Matters for Educators. https://www.nu.edu/resources/social-emotional-learning-sel-why-it-matters-for-educators/?utm_source=pocket_mylist
Second Step. (n.d.). Second Step. Retrieved October 9, 2021, from https://www.secondstep.org
Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. (n.d.). Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Retrieved March 16, 2022, from https://ycei.org/