Within U.S. public schools, achievement is not equal. Some groups of students have historically achieved greater academic success than others. There have been two major federal initiatives aimed at education reform over the last twenty years. These reforms have had either little or no effect towards creating equitable achievement among all students. One major feature missing from these federal education policies is social-emotional learning (SEL).
Students who participate in SEL benefit in many ways, including improved social skills, higher school engagement, and increased academic achievement. SEL is an important component that complements rigorous academic learning. It also provides students with strategies for dealing with strong emotions, such as anxiety, frustration, and joy that occur during the school day. In addition to daily emotions at school, SEL also provides students, who have recently returned to in-person learning, with strategies to manage any stress or trauma associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.
Jefferson Elementary School (pseudonym) has two SEL curriculums. The primary curriculum is TRAILS to Wellness and the supplementary curriculum is MindUP. During the study period of October 2022 to January 2023, Students at Jefferson experienced lessons from the primary curriculum, TRAILS to Wellness. Teachers did not cover the MindUP lessons, but they did include some of its components, such as mindful breathing and utilization of a break space.
Ethnographic data show that students benefited from the TRAILS to Wellness curriculum. The primarily Latinx population had success frequently discussing their emotions and learning specific strategies through movement. Initial data show that the animal characters used primarily in the K–2 curriculum, however, causes some confusion and further study in this area is warranted.
Interviews of students and teachers show that Latinx students have also gained social-emotional skills. In the areas of self-awareness, students more accurately identify their emotions and utilize more specific language to describe how they are feeling. Students are also better at self-management as they have specific strategies that they use during the school day to deal with strong emotions. Data for social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making is less conclusive. Approximately half of the students interviewed reported skills in these areas, but data from teachers is more limited.
In terms of academic achievement, data showed that students reported using their SEL strategies during academic instruction, which puts them in a better position to succeed academically. Additionally, some students reported higher engagement with school.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/46197 |
| Date | 14 May 2023 |
| Creators | Smith, Gregory M. |
| Contributors | Weintraub, Robert J. |
| Source Sets | Boston University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
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