Essentials of Social Emotional Learning (SEL). Donna Lord Black

one’s strengths and limitations with a well‐grounded sense of confidence and purpose.

      Examples:

       Integrating personal and social identities

       Identifying personal, cultural, and linguistic assets

       Identifying one’s emotions

       Demonstrating honesty and integrity

       Linking feelings, values, and thoughts

       Examining prejudices and biases

       Experiencing self‐efficacy

       Having a growth mindset

       Developing interests and a sense of purpose

      Self‐management

The abilities to manage one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different situations and to achieve goals and aspirations. This includes the capacities to delay gratification, manage stress, and feel motivation and agency to accomplish personal and collective goals.

      Examples:

       Managing one’s emotions

       Identifying and using stress management strategies

       Exhibiting self‐discipline and self‐motivation

       Setting personal and collective goals

       Using planning and organizational skills

       Showing the courage to take initiative

       Demonstrating personal and collective agency

      Social awareness

      The abilities to understand the perspectives of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds, cultures, and contexts. This includes the capacities to feel compassion for others, understand broader historical and social norms for behavior in different settings, and recognize family, school, and community resources and supports.

      Examples:

       Taking others’ perspectives

       Recognizing strengths in others

       Demonstrating empathy and compassion

       Showing concern for the feelings of others

       Understanding and expressing gratitude

       Identifying diverse social norms, including unjust ones

       Recognizing situational demands and opportunities

       Understanding the influences of organizations and systems on behavior

      Relationship skills

      The abilities to establish and maintain healthy and supportive relationships and to effectively navigate settings with diverse individuals and groups. This includes the capacities to communicate clearly, listen actively, cooperate, work collaboratively to problem solve and negotiate conflict constructively, navigate settings with differing social and cultural demands and opportunities, provide leadership, and seek or offer help when needed.

      Examples:

       Communicating effectively

       Developing positive relationships

       Demonstrating cultural competency

       Practicing teamwork and collaborative problem solving

       Resolving conflicts constructively

       Resisting negative social pressure

       Showing leadership in groups

       Seeking or offering support and help when needed

       Standing up for the rights of others

      Responsible decision making

      The abilities to make caring and constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions across diverse situations. This includes the capacities to consider ethical standards and safety concerns, and to evaluate the benefits and consequences of various actions for personal, social, and collective well‐being.

      Examples:

       Demonstrating curiosity and open‐mindedness

       Identifying solutions for personal and social problems

       Learning to make a reasoned judgment after analyzing information, data, and facts

       Anticipating and evaluating the consequences of one’s actions

       Recognizing how critical thinking skills are useful both inside and outside of school

       Reflecting on one’s role to promote personal, family, and community well‐being

       Evaluating personal, interpersonal, community, and institutional impacts

      Source: From CASEL with permission. ©2017 CASEL. All rights reserved. Learn more at www.casel.org.

      The degree to which teachers have knowledge and skills in these competencies is an area where concern is warranted, given that teacher‐preparation programs traditionally have not incorporated SEL into their curriculum. Likewise, many state certification requirements do not include knowledge and skills in SEL.

A recent study of teacher preparation programs in the United States was conducted by the University of British Columbia’s Department of Educational and Counseling Psychology and Special Education. The study scanned teacher education programs in colleges of education throughout the United States. The purpose of the scan was to examine what states require teachers to know about SEL for certification and what institutions of higher education actually teach these teachers. Results of the study showed that while all states require some level of SEL knowledge and skills for teacher certification, none of the states require knowledge and skills in all five of the SEL competencies. Greater than half of the states require teachers to have knowledge in teaching three of the SEL competencies—self‐management, relationship skills, and responsible decision making—but less emphasis was placed on the SEL competencies of self‐awareness and social awareness. While most pre‐service programs fell short of providing comprehensive training in SEL, there were three exemplary programs identified in the report (Schonert‐Reichl, Kitil, & Hanson‐Peterson, 2017). These are described in Rapid Reference 1.2.

Rapid Reference 1.2 Exemplary Programs Where SEL Content Is Included in Pre‐service Teacher Preparation*

Academy for Social‐Emotional Learning in Schools (Academy for SEL), College of Saint Elizabeth and Rutgers University

      The Academy for SEL is a partnership between the College of Saint Elizabeth and Rutgers University. It offers an online credentialing program designed to help school professionals develop the competencies needed for successfully implementing social emotional learning, character development, and positive culture and climate initiatives schoolwide. Students earn a certificate in social emotional learning and character development with a concentration in either school leadership or classroom instruction. Participants in the program benefit from exclusive access to an online professional learning community (PLC), which provides resources, online discussion forums, access to a secure resource library, and access to program mentors. The program’s faculty and mentors include highly experienced teachers, principals, district leaders, superintendents,