1. Social and Emotional Learning for School and Life Success: SEL 101
Roger P. Weissberg
CASEL
University of Illinois at Chicago
The Melissa Institute for Violence Prevention and Treatment
May 2, 2008

2. Objectives What is social and emotional learning (SEL)? Why SEL?
What are the latest research advances?
What are the latest practice advances?

3. Reflection Question:
What qualities or characteristics do we want young people to possess by the time they graduate from high school? 3

4. Essential Questions Each Community Must Answer
What do we want our children to know and be able to do when they graduate?
How can the entire community be organized to ensure that all students reach the stated goals?

5. Risky Youth Behaviors and Attitudes: Prevalence
Issues:
Physical fight at school (12 months): 14%
Carried a weapon (30 days): 19%
Bullied at school (past 6 months): 28%
5 or more drinks in a couple of hours (30 days): 26%
Seriously considered attempting suicide: 17%
Sexual intercourse with > 3 people: 14%
Chronically disengaged from school: %

6. Typical Approaches by Schools
AIDS Education
Bullying Prevention
Career Education
Character Education
Civic Education
Delinquency Prevention
Dropout Prevention
Drug Prevention
Family Life Education
Health Education
Law-related Education
Mental Health Promotion
Multicultural Education
Nutrition Education
Physical Injury Prevention
Sex Education
Suicide Prevention
Truancy Prevention
Violence Prevention
Transition into need for coordinated school framework to address the various initiatives we have in place in schools to address the various needs of our students
Evidence of Fragmentation
2001 study – schools have an average of 14 activities and/or strategies in place to prevent problem behavior and promote safe learning environments
Many of these are short-term or unrelated efforts
Limited resources, fragmented, minimal targeted outcomes 6

7. Social and Emotional Skills and Attitudes: Prevalence
Assets:
How people you know well would rate you on:
Thinking through the results of your choices, planning ahead
Caring about others’ feelings, feeling sad when a friend is unhappy, being good at making and keeping friends
Respecting the values/beliefs of people of different races/cultures
My school provides a caring, encouraging environment
29%
45%
43%

8. What’s Needed? Moving from here:
Categorical fragmentation in addressing learning barriers…
Coordination of:
Among categorical programs
Between instructional programs and mental health services
Between school and family/community interventions
Between classroom and after-school
Common language that bridges programs with similar goals and addresses common risk and protective factors
Coordination problems:
Need for a common language across caregorial programs
Consistent messages to students across programs
Cohesion between lessons – do they reinforce each other 8

9. SEL as a Coordinating Framework
To here:
A coordinated approach to promoting students’ academic and life success
SE competencies are the “mechanism of action” that leads to effective prevention programs
SE competencies can be the lens to assess and coordinate all the schools activities focused on prevention, positive youth development, health
It also means coordinating all the various prevention programs a school may already be offering. SEL can be a lens for evaluating and deciding about these various programs to eliminate duplication and more effectively provide universal programming for all students, and enhance outcomes
SEL as a coordinating framework is a lens to focus on students’ social and emotional development (SED); a way to examine everything that is going on in a school; it provides a framework to: coordinate across programs, reduce duplication, improve outcomes, etc.
promotion, etc. 9

10. Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL): Mission and Goals
Mission: To make social and emotional learning (SEL) an essential part of education
Goals:
Advance the science of SEL
Expand integrated, evidence-based SEL practice
Strengthen the field and impact of SEL
Universal prevention for all students
District policies – August 31, 2004
ISBE plan and standards December 31, 2007
2 big implications for schools:
Regards SEL as integral to the mission of schools
Take action to support student’s SED
Illinois is the first state to mandate SEL learning standards 10

11. What is SEL?

12. CASEL Defines the Field of SEL (Elias et al., 1997)

13. Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
SEL is the process whereby children and adults develop essential social and emotional competencies to:
Recognize and manage emotions
Handle oneself and tasks effectively
Develop care and concern for others
Establish positive relationships
Make responsible decisions
SEL is the process through which children enhance their ability to integrate thinking, feeling, and behaving to achieve important life tasks.
SEL provides schools with a framework for preventing problem behaviors and promoting students’ well-being and success. (Safe and Sound)
These competencies provide the foundation for positive health practices, engaged citizenship, academic achievement, and life long learning.
SEL focuses on explicit skills instruction and creating learning environments that support social and emotional development and learning 13

14. 5 Core Social and Emotional Competencies
Self
Other
Decision-making
Self-awareness
Social-awareness
Responsible Decision-making
Self-management
Relationship Skills
Recognizing one’s emotions and values as well as one’s strengths and limitations
Managing emotions and behaviors to achieve one’s goals
Showing understanding and empathy for others
Forming positive relationships, working in teams, dealing effectively with conflict
Making ethical, constructive choices about personal and social behavior
Standards, Benchmarks and Indicators

15. Social and Emotional Learning
A Framework for SEL Programming to Enhance Student Success in School and Life
Social and Emotional Learning
Learning Environment
SE Skills Instruction
Positive Outcomes = +
Competent *
Confident
Caring
Connected
Contributing
Engaged 15

16. Social and Emotional Conditions for Learning
Safe & well-managed
Respectful & supportive relationships
High expectations and challenging
Participation and leadership opportunities
Rigorous, relevant curriculum and engaging instructional practices 16

17. SE Skills Instruction Explicit SE Skills Instruction
Self-awareness
Self-management
Social awareness
Relationships skills
Responsible decision-making
Opportunities to practice
Modeling of skills
Reflection and acknowledgment
Evidence-based programs 17

18. Positive Outcomes Academically successful
Mentally and physically healthy
Positive social relationships
Prepared to join the workforce
Engaged citizenship 18

23. Why Social and Emotional Learning?

24. Why Implement SEL in Schools?
Relationships provide a foundation for learning
Emotions affect how and what we learn
Relevant skills can be taught
Positive effects on academic performance, health, relationships, and citizenship
Demanded by employers
Essential for lifelong success
A coordinating framework to overcome fragmentation of prevention and youth-development programs

25. What are the Latest Research Advances?25

26. Durlak, Weissberg et al. (2008) Meta-analysis: Enhancing SEL Promotes Success in School
Coordinated School, Family, and Community Programming
Positive Social Behavior
SEL
SE Skill Aquisition
Learning Environment
Conduct Problems
Improved Attitudes
Emotional Distress
SE Skills Instruction
Academic Success 26

27. Durlak, Weissberg et al. (2008) Meta-analysis: Core Questions and the Answers
Does school-based SEL programming positively affect students? – YES
Do the impacts on student functioning endure over time? – SOMEWHAT
Are SEL programs conducted by existing school staff effective? – YES
Do training practices and the quality of implementation affect student outcomes? - YES
10 years later there are enough studies in the field to conduct a meta-analysis.
Meta-analysis is a statistical technique for amalgamating, reviewing, and summarizing findings from previous quantitative research.
It is a labor-intensive and time-consuming task – Find studies, two raters code studies reliably, analyze data – Every time an interesting question come up you have to code 207 research articles!
We asked 4 key questions.

28. Durlak, Weissberg et al (2008) Meta-analysis: Inclusion Criteria
School-based interventions that promote social and emotional competencies
K to 12th-grade students
Reported by June 2007
Employed a control group design
Assessed outcomes related to students’ behavioral adjustment or school performance
Social and emotional competencies – identifying and expressing feelings; self-control; stress management; empathy; problem-solving; conflict-resolution; responsible decision making.

29. Sample of SEL Intervention Studies
Pre to post = 207 studies
Number of students: 288,221
Since 1990 = 75%
Randomized = 45%
Elementary (56%), middle (31%), and high school (13%)
Urban, suburban, and rural
< 1 year (76%), > 1 year (24%)
207 studies
Almost 300,000 students
Most studies since 1990, and the numbers are increasing each decade.
Randomized experiments.

30. Social and Emotional Learning: How is it Taught?
Teacher- or researcher-led SEL instruction
Guided practice opportunities with feedback and reinforcement
A supportive classroom context
Multi-component with school-wide and family collaboration

31. Does SEL programming positively affect students?
Percentile Imp & (ES)
Outcomes
Social-emotional skills
Attitudes
Positive social behavior
Conduct problems
Emotional distress
Academic performance
23 (.60)
9 (.23)
9 (.24)
9 (.22)
10 (.25)
11 (.28)
We expected some results and were quite astounded by others.
Improvement Index - Change of the percentile rank for an average control group student if the student had received the intervention – For social and emotional skills, this means that 73% of the intervention group scored above the control group mean (of 50).
Feel better about self – Feel better about teachers and school – Better social relations – Less misconduct – Less anxiety and depression.
But you are taking away from academic time – No effects on academics or lower academics – but the opposite it true! academics improve – a twofer.
Impact of SEL on achievement is twice as high as class size.

32. SEL Improves Academic Outcomes
Improvements in:
Attitudes
Motivation, commitment
Behaviors
Participation, study habits
Performance
Grades, subject mastery
Source: Zins, Weissberg, Wang, & Walberg (2004). Building Academic Success on Social and Emotional Learning (SEL): What Does the Research Say?
Attitudes (motivation, commitment):
Stronger sense of community
Higher academic motivation and educational aspirations
Better understanding of consequences of behavior
Better ability to cope with school stressors
More positive attitudes toward school and learning
Behaviors (participation, study habits):
Participate in class more
Demonstrate more pro-social behavior
Have fewer absences and improved attendance
Show reductions in aggression and disruptions
Are on track to graduate and are less likely to drop out
Are more likely to work out their own way of learning
Performance (grades, subject mastery):
Improved math, literacy, and social studies skills
Higher achievement test scores and grades and no decreases in standardized test scores
Improved learning-to-learn skills
Better problem solving and planning ability
Use of higher level reasoning strategies
Improvements in reading comprehension
SEL addresses the affective and social dimensions of learning
Emotions affect what and how we learn
Learning is a social process 32

33. Do Impacts on Student Functioning Endure over Time?
Follow up: 6 months to many years.
SEL students showed significant improvement on all 6 outcome areas.
The effects were smaller than at post.
SEL is beneficial but not a permanent inoculation.

34. What Influences Positive Student Outcomes?
School staffs
SAFE programming
Sequenced development of skills
Active instruction (e.g., behavioral rehearsal)
Focused on SE skills
Explicit targeting of specific SE skills
Implementation

35. Implications for Practice & Policy
SEL works
Multiple positive outcomes including academic achievement
Across grade levels
In all contexts
SEL is doable
Good results from programs run by existing school staff
SEL needs support
Evidence-based training procedures are better
Implementation matters
Supported by federal and state policies, leadership, and professional development
3 P’s – policy, principals, and professional development

36. What are the Latest Practice Advances?

37. 5 Core Social and Emotional Competencies
Self
Other
Decision-making
Self-awareness
Social-awareness
Responsible Decision-making
Self-management
Relationship Skills
Recognizing one’s emotions and values as well as one’s strengths and limitations
Managing emotions and behaviors to achieve one’s goals
Showing understanding and empathy for others
Forming positive relationships, working in teams, dealing effectively with conflict
Making ethical, constructive choices about personal and social behavior
Standards, Benchmarks and Indicators

38. Safe and Sound: An Educator’s Guide to Evidence-based SEL Programs
Safe and Sound provides educators with objective information about nationally available SEL programs for the classroom that promote social and emotional learning. SEL skills, such as the ones we brainstormed in our previous activity, can be taught and they contribute to the achievement of many important educational outcomes, such as preventing risky and problem behaviors, promoting good health and citizenship, being a contributing members of one’s school and community, and academic achievement. As such, these skills provide a common framework for overcoming the fragmentation that schools often experience in implementing separate activities to address all these outcomes.
Programs designed to address various kinds of problem or risky behaviors (e.g. drug and violence prevention programs), to promote principled behavior based on moral values (character education), to promote involvement in one’s community and the political process (citizenship and civics education), to promote healthy decision-making, and to enhance achievement in academic learning areas such as language arts and social studies can be considered to be SEL programs if they provide students with consistent opportunities to learn, practice, and apply SEL skills.
Safe and Sound details the costs, the grades covered, which have a rigorous evidence base, which most effectively teach core social and emotional skills, and which provide high-quality staff development and support. The guide offers information on these and dozens of other factors in a clear and easy to read format, along with narrative descriptions of each of the programs. If your school or district is beginning to work in this area, Safe and Sound will help in your planning and selection of a strong, evidence-based program that best serves your students’ needs.
Safe and Sound also makes clear CASEL’s fundamental philosophy about evidence-based SEL programs. Evidence-based SEL programs are critically important to the success of any schoolwide SEL initiative. However, the programs must be imbedded in a three-to-five year planning process that incorporates social and emotional learning into the school curriculum and culture. Therefore, the choice of an evidence-based SEL program must fit with the school’s vision, address the needs revealed in the data collection, be part of the school’s improvement plan, and be implemented and integrated into the curriculum and all aspects of school life over a three-to-five year period. 38

39. Three main things to notice about the organization of the ratings table: (1) the rows list in alphabetical order the names of 80 programs reviewed by CASEL; (2) the column headings indicate criteria CASEL used in scoring these programs (the columns are organized into five categories of criteria with names such as “program design” and “sound SEL instructional practice”); (3) the cells created by the intersection of rows and columns indicate the ratings received by reviewed programs on specific criteria. The key to the symbols used in designating ratings (i.e., fully darkened circles, half-darkened circles, etc.) is located in the lower right-hand corner of each page of the ratings table. Although these symbols are uniform throughout the table (“strength,” “ promising,” “marginal,” and “weakness,”), the meaning of these descriptors varies by criterion. (Program ratings are explained in greater detail below.)
The ratings table can be used in two main ways: (1) one can identify a specific program’s strengths and weaknesses by reading across the page from that program’s listing to find its ratings on CASEL’s criteria; (2) one can compare two or more programs on any of the specified criteria by reading down the page from the column heading for that criterion.
The skills that participants generated in the opening exercise map on very well to the five columns in the ratings table in the category called “sound SEL instructional practice.” The items they generated in response to what supports educators would need to teach these skills map on very well to the column categories called “implementation supports” and “safe and sound learning environments.”
© CASEL 2008 39 39

40. 22 “SELect” Programs
Outstanding SEL Instruction of five SE competencies
Evidence of Effectiveness with at least one rigorous study demonstrating positive SEL outcomes for students
Outstanding Professional Development that provides training and ongoing follow-up support

41. Three-level Prevention/Intervention Services
SEL is for ALL Students
Three-level Prevention/Intervention Services
Few
Treatment:
Provide intensive interventions for a few children
Early Intervention:
Intervene early for some children
Some
Make the point that SEL is for all students
Safe, Supportive and Successful Schools
Most efficient and cost-effective way to improve school discipline, safety, and academic achievement
Universal:
District, school and classroom –wide interventions for every child
Prevent risk factors
Build foundation for efficacy and effectiveness of early and intensive interventions
Early Intervention:
Services/supports to eliminate or address risk factors and build/strengthen protective factors for those at risk
Intensive interventions:
Coordinated, comprehensive, intensive, sustained, culturally appropriate services/supports for students with intensive needs
Universal Prevention:
Focus on SEL skill instruction and learning environment
All Students
Adapted from Osher, Dwyer, Jackson (2004) 41

42. What Does Schoolwide SEL Look Like?
Parent/teacher conferences
Playground
Hallways
Front Office
Teacher’s Lounge
Bus
SEL School
Lunchroom
Sporting Events
Purpose: Participants will discuss what SEL school-wide looks like, sounds like and feels like.
Materials: Markers, chart paper labeled with one of these aspects of schoolwide SEL.
Directions: On chart paper, participants will note specific behaviors you would see in this particular domain if SEL was alive and well in a school (4 min brainstorm; approximately 10 min report-out)
Possible participant feedback:
Classrooms: Class management, Posted Expectations, Group Work
Front Office: Smiling faces, Greeting everyone
Lunchroom: Mutual respect, Safe environment, Students sitting together, No adult yelling
Sporting Events: Positive Cheering, Special Needs Students embraced, Overall good sportsmanship.
Bus: Greeting each child, Know names, establish relationships
Extra Curricular: Community members involved, Diversity, Shared leadership
Playground: Everyone is playing, Role models, Cooperative games.
Hallways: Greeting each other, orderly
Teacher’s Lounge: Positive support, talking with students in a positive way.
Student Bathrooms: No graffiti, students report feeling safe
Parent/teacher Conferences: Student-led
** Break: 10:30 – 10:45 **
Classrooms
Afterschool/
Extracurriculars
Bathrooms

43. Integrated Schoolwide SEL
An Integrated Schoolwide Model for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning
Planned, systematic classroom-based SEL instruction and a supportive school climate
Coordinated mental health and health services that reinforce SEL instruction
To do SEL well, we need to integrate our efforts to promote the social, emotional and academic achievement of all students by coordinating all the school’s activities, including classroom instruction, mental health services, out-of-school programs and partnerships with family and community
School-Family-Community partnerships to enhance social, emotional, and academic competence
After-school and community activities that are coordinated with SEL efforts 43

44. Schoolwide SEL
CASEL’s Sustainable Schoolwide Social and Emotional Learning (SEL): Implementation Guide and Toolkit
3 Phases
10 steps
7 Sustainability Factors

45. 3 Illinois Social & Emotional Learning Goals
Self
Other
Decision-making
SEL Goal 31
Develop self-awareness and self-management skills to achieve school and life success.
SEL Goal 32
Use social-awareness and interpersonal skills to establish and maintain positive relationships.
SEL Goal 33
Demonstrate decision-making skills and responsible behaviors in personal, school, and community contexts.
Recognizing one’s emotions and values as well as one’s strengths and limitations
Managing emotions and behaviors to achieve one’s goals
Showing understanding and empathy for others
Forming positive relationships, working in teams, dealing effectively with conflict
Making ethical, constructive choices about personal and social behavior
Standards, Benchmarks and Indicators 45

46. Summary
SEL is the process whereby children and adults develop essential social and emotional competencies.
SEL improves school-related attitudes, behaviors, and academics and provides the foundation to life success.
Well-designed, well-implemented SEL programming produces the best outcomes.
Sustainable, effective schoolwide SEL requires 3 Ps: Policy, principals, and professional development.