Community Schools: An Evidence-Based Strategy for Equitable School Improvement

National Education Policy Center

Community schools represent a place-based school improvement strategy in which “schools partner with community agencies and local government to provide an integrated focus on academics, health and social services, youth and community development, and community engagement.

Why Do Boys Engage in More Risk Taking Than Girls? The Role of Attributions, Beliefs, and Risk Appraisals

Journal of Pediatric Psychology

Cognitive-based factors differentiate boys from girls and contribute to sex differences in children's injury-risk behaviors.

CDC Healthy Schools: School Connectedness

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

School connectedness reflects students’ belief that peers and adults in the school support, value, and care about their individual well-being as well as their academic progress.

Social and Emotional Learning and Teachers

Northwest Journal of Teacher Education Northwest Journal of Teacher Education

This paper calls us to imagine teacher education with Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) as a cornerstone in teacher preparation programs. This article outlines the importance of SEL curriculum in preservice education and suggest a multifaceted approach to teacher preparation.

What Schools Can Learn From a Global Assessment on Creative Thinking

Education Week

he largest international assessment of creativity to date shows how classroom practices can spur students to generate novel ideas and grapple with challenging social and academic problems.

What Does the Research Say?

CASEL

The benefits of social and emotional learning (SEL) are well-researched, with evidence demonstrating that an education that promotes SEL yields positive outcomes for students, adults, and school communities.

Navigating Sel From The Inside Out

The Easel Lab - The Harvard Graduate School Of Education With Funding From The Wallace Foundation

This guide to evidence-based social and emotional learning (SEL) programs provides detailed information on 18 middle and high school programs.

Teaching social-emotional learning is under attack

American Psychological Association

Bills in at least eight states have sought to ban or limit SEL, and some parents around the country are also rallying against it

Schools and Out-of-School Time Programs Implementing Social and Emotional Learning

Wallace Foundation

The most comprehensive study of social-emotional learning (SEL) implementation to date offers early lessons for schools and out-of-school-time programs on how to carry out high-quality SEL programs.

The quality and effectiveness of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) intervention studies in Korea: A meta-analysis

PLOS

This research sought to analyze both quality and effectiveness of SEL intervention studies conducted in Korea where SEL has been investigated and applied in classroom since 2010.

Advancing SEL science & practice: The Education Collaboratory & #SELDay

Yale School of Medicine

Highlights of seven new studies to be on the lookout for in 2024 that are advancing the science and practice of SEL.

Social-Emotional Skills for Conflict Resolution

Azim Premji University

Anuja Venkataraman, in Learning Curve, highlights how schools can lay the foundation for conflict resolution by supporting social-emotional learning of students.

Supporting Parent and Family Engagment to Enhance Students’ Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning

CASEL

States and districts can utilize the ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act), in order to improve and better establish collaboration between schools and families. Strengthening parent engagement in SEL can foster better academic, social, and emotional support, which overall benefits students.

Families Are Students’ First SEL Teachers. Here’s How to Engage Them

Education Week

4 steps for building stronger family-school partnerships to enhance social-emotional learning

Beyond Academic Learning

Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD)

The OECD's Survey of Social and Emotional Skills (SSES) is one of the first international efforts to collect data from students, parents and teachers on the social and emotional skills of students at ages 10 and 15.

School Connectedness

California Department of Education

State–of–the–art practices, strategies, and programs for improving school climate. Based on current scholarship in education, school psychology, and other related disciplines, each What Works Brief provides a number of practical recommendations for school staff, parents, and community members. What Works Briefs can be used separately to target specific issues, or together to address more complex, system–wide issues.

Gender norms and the mental health of boys and young men

The Lancet

The traditional norms of masculinity contribute to poor mental health outcomes for boys and young men, and there is a growing need for gender-sensitive health policies and programs that promote healthier emotional expression and help-seeking behaviors in settings such as schools, sports, and digital platforms.

Student- and School-Level Factors Associated With Mental Health and Well-Being in Early Adolescence

Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry

dolescence is a key developmental window that may determine long-term mental health. As schools may influence mental health of students, this study aimed to examine the association of school-level characteristics with students' mental health over time.

School Pulse Panel: Responses to the pandemic and efforts toward recovery

National Center for Education Services

The School Pulse Panel is a study collecting information on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic from a national sample of elementary, middle, high, and combined-grade public schools. Some survey questions are asked repeatedly to observe trends over time while others examine unique topics in a single month.

Impacts of Social and Emotional Learning Interventions for Teachers on Teachers' Outcomes

Frontiers in Psychology

This study conducted a systematic review with meta analysis of 43 empirical studies that examined the effects of SEL interventions on the personal and professional outcomes of 3004 in service PreK-12 teachers. Nonetheless, the meta analysis showed that the SEL interventions had moderate impacts on improving teacher’s social and emotional competencies and wellbeing, while also reducing their psychological distress symptoms. These results reinforce the potential of SEL for teachers' personal and professional outcomes, thus corroborating the relevance of including SEL approaches in teacher training.

Developmental relationships and school success: How teachers, parents, and friends affect educational outcomes and what actions students say matter most

Contemporary Educational Psychology

Developmental relationships with teachers, parents, and friends directly and indirectly affect school outcomes. Students describe how teacher relational practices such as not giving up on them, providing decision-making opportunities, and helping them see future possibilities affect motivation and effort. The study provides both policy and practice evidence for helping students succeed.

Building Schools as Communities: A Conversation with James Comer

ASCD

What children need as much as computers or books, says James Comer, is relationships with caring adults. After a quarter-century, the School Development Program is continuing to model how educators can work with families to create caring communities in schools.

Shaping Summertime Experiences: Opportunities to Promote Healthy Development and Well-Being for Children and Youth.

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering & Medicine

For children and youth, summertime presents a unique break from the traditional structure, resources, and support systems that exist during the school year. For some students, this time involves opportunities to engage in fun and enriching activities and programs, while others face additional challenges as they lose a variety of supports, including healthy meals, medical care, supervision, and structured programs that enhance development. Children that are limited by their social, economic, or physical environments during the summer months are at higher risk for worse academic, health, social and emotional, and safety outcomes. In contrast, structured summertime activities and programs support basic developmental needs and positive outcomes for children and youth who can access and afford these programs.

Respected Perspectives of Youth on High School & Social and Emotional Learning

CASEL

The central message of this report is while current and recent high school students today generally respect their teachers and give their high schools favorable marks, most see a big missing piece in their education -- a lack of social and emotional skills development -- and most recent students feel unprepared for life after high school. Students, like teachers and administrators, see the benefits of attending schools that emphasize social and emotional learning (SEL), especially in terms of improving relationships, reducing bullying, and preparing them for postsecondary education, work, and life.

Why Kids Should Nature Journal at All Grade Levels

Edutopia

Nature journaling—sketching and annotating observations about natural phenomena—also builds crucial cognitive and processing skills like close observation, technical illustration, attention to detail, critical thinking, and the ability to organize and categorize information.

What New Research Shows About the Link Between Achievement and SEL

Education Week

Students’ social-emotional skills are positively correlated with their reading and math performance, according to a study by Branching Minds, an ed-tech company that provides multitiered system of supports software.

Social Emotional Learning in Middle School: Developing Evidence-Based Programs

RTI Press

This paper highlights the critical need for more evidence-based SEL (Social Emotional Learning) programs for middle school students, reviewing key SEL domains and the evolution of SEL in response to a changing world. It demonstrates the scarcity of programs meeting rigorous standards such as WWC, CASEL, and Blueprints, and notes that even proven programs often show limited effects across domains. The paper concludes by addressing the unique developmental needs of early adolescents and offering recommendations for refining SEL programs for this age group.

The quality and effectiveness of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) intervention studies in Korea

National Library of Medicine

Social-emotional learning (SEL) aims to enhance students' social-emotional competences through a comprehensive program involving school, home, and community. While global research on evidence-based SEL practices is active, the quality of intervention studies, essential for evaluating these practices, has been under-examined, particularly outside Western contexts. This study analyzed the quality and effectiveness of 22 peer-reviewed SEL intervention studies in Korea, using Evidence-Based Intervention (EBI) indicators and meta-analysis to calculate effect sizes.

Social-Emotional Learning for Improving Mental Health Outcomes in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Individuals

McGill University

A national survey of LGBTQ youth found that 67% heard homophobic comments in schools, 58% felt unsafe due to their sexual orientation, and 43% felt unsafe due to their gender identity, with only 12% reporting teacher intervention. Despite the known benefits of supporting LGBTQ youth through seven key systems (family, curriculum, school professionals and teachers, peers, school policies, programs, and school climate), positive outcomes are inconsistent. This inconsistency is attributed to insufficient training and support for school staff to enforce inclusive policies and curriculum, and broader sociopolitical barriers to LGBTQ activism and support in schools.

The Benefits of Play for Adults

HelpGuide.org

Just because we’re adults, that doesn’t mean we have to make life all about work. Learn how play can benefit your relationships, job, and mood.

The Benefits of Play on Mental Health

kitcamp

We know play is important. It is a child’s work. But is there more to it? With current media awareness around mental health, we reflect on how play can make a difference for a child’s long-term mental wellbeing.

The Social and Cognitive Benefits of Play

Parenting Science

Science supports many of our intuitions about the social and cognitive benefits of play. Playful behavior appears to have positive effects on the brain and on a child’s ability to learn. Want specifics? Here are some examples.

The Conscious Kid

The Conscious Kid

The Conscious Kid Is An Education, Research And Policy Organization That Supports Families And Educators In Taking Action To Disrupt Racism, Inequity And Bias

The Health Benefits of Humor and Laughter

Very Well Mind

When we’re laughing at a friend’s joke or a comedian’s monologue, the benefits of humor extend to our health. We're not only being entertained but also enhancing our physical, psychological, and social well-being. Here's how it works.

The Importance of Play

Healthline

Play is one of the most important aspects of a child’s life. Why? Because through peekaboo, patty-cake, and playing house, children learn to think creatively and interact socially.

The Power of Play

healthychildren.org

More than just a chance to have fun, play is serious business when it comes to a child's health and development. From peek-a-boo to pat-a-cake and hide-and-seek to hopscotch, the many forms of play enrich a child's brain, body and life in important ways.

6 Benefits of Play for Children Development

epl.ca

Kids don’t need fancy toys or certificates to play. They need time, space and freedom to explore the ideas that interest them. No matter what it looks like, when children play, they learn.

The Social Neuroscience of Education

This book explains how the brain, as a social organism, learns best throughout the lifespan, from our early schooling through late life. Positioning the brain as distinctly social, Louis Cozolino helps teachers make connections to neurobiological principles, with the goal of creating classrooms that nurture healthy attachment patterns and resilient psyches.

Why Laughter is Good for Your Mental Health

Newport Academy

If someone plays an April Fools’ joke on you today and it makes you laugh, thank them. Turns out they did you a favor. That’s because laughter is scientifically proven to benefit mental health. Leading benefits of laughter include stress reduction, strengthened social connections and the release of your body’s “feel good” chemical, endorphins. As a result, one of the many benefits of laughter and humor is the power to combat anxiety and depression, according to researchers. Therefore, laughter is good medicine for teen mental health.

Mindful Laughter

Michigan State University

Learn how laughter builds resiliency to stress and disease, strengthens muscle and builds lung capacity — as well as how to cultivate it into your daily life.

Playtime May Bolster Kid's Mental Health

The Atlantic

But as parents and schools emphasize academics, it’s dwindling.

Teacher Stress and Health

Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Teaching is one of the most stressful occupations in the country, but introducing organizational and individual interventions can help minimize the negative effects of teacher stress.

How to Laugh More Every Single Day

Everyday Health

Laughter may not be on your self-care to-do list, but it’s good for your mood, mental health, heart health, and more. Do you need another reason to chuckle right now?

9 Benefits of Play

Parenting for Brain

In this article, we will look at nine amazing benefits of play in child development. We will also review research results that highlight the importance of children play.

It's Not Joke!

Theirworld

For Theirworld's #5for5 campaign, we look at the role of humour - from babies smiling at a very early age to young children using it to form friendships and their identity.

Laughter Boosts Our Mental and Physical Health

Covenant Health

We know laughter feels good, but did you know humour does much more than entertain us? Research shows laughter has many long- and short-term benefits to our mental, physical and social well-being, says Scott Aylwin, Senior Director of Addiction and Mental Health with Covenant Health.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

HelpGuide.org

It’s fun to share a good laugh, but did you know it can actually improve your health? Learn how to harness the powerful benefits of laughter and humor.

2017 Survey on Play

Voice of Play

New Survey from IPEMA and the Voice of Play Reveals Parents’ Attitudes on Importance of Play Behavior and Frequency Findings also highlight generational differences among parents and an opportunity for increased education on the benefits of outdoor play for kids

6 Benefits of Play

The Genius of Play

Play isn’t all fun and games — it’s also an important teaching tool! Through play, kids learn how to interact with others and develop critical lifelong skills. These 6 benefits all play an important role in raising well-rounded children.

7 Health Benefits & The Importance of Laughter

Gaiam

One of the best feelings in the world is the deep-rooted belly laugh. It can bring people together and establish amazing connections. Everything from a slight giggle to a side-splitting guffaw can change the temperature of a room from chilly unfamiliarity to a warm family-like atmosphere. There is already so much to love for laughter that it seems greedy to look for more, but that’s exactly what researchers Dr. Lee Berk and Dr. Stanley Tan at the Loma Linda University in California have done. These two doctors have researched the benefits of laughter and found amazing results related to the importance of laughter. Get ready to get your giggle on!

All Work and No Play

The Atlantic

For more than fifty years, children's free play time has been continually declining, and it's keeping them from turning into confident adults

Children, Teens, and Anxiety

Psychology Today

Overnight, the COVID-19 pandemic has dramatically magnified the collective anxiety of an already restless world. As adults attempt to navigate the stormy seas of uncertainty, children and teens are also suffering greatly, leaving many parents and caregivers wondering what they can do to help.

Children's Mental Health Matters

Right to Play

Depression, anxiety, and behavioural disorders are some of the most common mental health challenges children and youth face. They are major contributors to lost school days, dropping out, poverty and other negative life outcomes. In their most severe forms, they can lead to suicide, the third leading cause of death for adolescents worldwide.

Advancing SEL science & practice

Yale School of Medicine

March 8, 2024, is international SELDay! #SELDay is an international, community-driven campaign championing children’s social and emotional learning health and achievement worldwide. SEL supports students to feel their best and do their best at school, and #SELDay is a time to raise awareness and share resources to support the overall academic, social, and emotional health of all youth and adults, worldwide!

Effect of Digital Storytelling on Prospective Teachers' Social Emotional Learning

Annals of Human and Social Sciences

In this study, the researchers explored the impact of Digital Storytelling on prospective teachers' Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), encompassing their self-awareness, social awareness, self-management, relationship management, and responsible decision-making. The results strongly support the research hypotheses, indicating that digital storytelling positively influences the social-emotional development of educators.

Well-being for Schoolteachers

Wellbeing Research Centre

A seminal new report by the Wellbeing Research Centre at the University of Oxford highlights the critical importance of teacher wellbeing for teachers themselves, students and school systems. Based on an extensive literature review, the researchers developed a framework that identifies drivers of teacher wellbeing, which can spark meaningful discussions within your school context.

Promoting Social-Emotional Learning Development Through Preventing and Resolving Conflict

Virtual Lab School

Telling a child to stop a certain behavior or to calm down will not likely result in any long-term behavior changes because the adult is still managing the child’s behavior. It is much more effective to model and teach social and emotional skills to help children deal with their feelings, problems, and interactions with others. This, in turn, will lead to a richer and more fulfilling experience. This lesson will describe the strategies that will help children learn these important social-emotional skills. This lesson will also describe ways to help staff prevent conflicts and how staff should respond when problems arise.

From Reaction to Prevention Turning the Page on School Discipline

American Educator

In this article, the authors trace the course of school discipline over the past 20 years and examine the status of school discipline reform today. They begin with an examination of zero-tolerance, suspension, and expulsion policies, as well as their assumptions and effects. They discuss alternatives that have been proposed and the guidance that has been offered by the federal government, and examine state changes that may be models for others. Finally, for any new model to be effective, support of teachers and administrators is essential; thus, the authors consider what educators really need if they are to successfully reform school discipline.

The state of evidence for social and emotional learning: A contemporary meta-analysis of universal school-based SEL interventions

Child Development

A Comprehensive review and analysis of universal school-based social and emotional learning (SEL) interventions. The findings reveal that students who participated in these interventions exhibited substantial improvements in various aspects, including skills, attitudes, behaviors, school climate, peer relationships, school functioning, and academic achievement when compared to control groups. The study also highlights the importance of considering differences in SEL content, intervention features, context, and implementation quality when assessing student outcomes and offers insights for future research, policy, and practice in this area.

How School Discipline Impacts Students’ Social, Emotional and Academic Development (SEAD)

The Education Trust

The paper discusses the significant impact of school discipline policies on students' social, emotional, and academic development, emphasizing the adverse consequences of harmful practices and their disproportionate application to underserved students. It calls for federal and state-level reforms to promote evidence-based, equitable, and inclusive discipline policies and encourages district leaders to adopt a race equity lens when implementing these policies at the local level.

SEL for Teachers: A Win for Both Educators and Students

D2L

More educators are considering leaving the profession. School districts can support them through social-emotional learning.

Research finds social and emotional learning produces significant benefits for students

Yale School of Medicine

In the midst of an unprecedented mental health crisis plaguing our nation’s youth, a study led by Christina Cipriano, PhD, assistant professor in Yale Child Study Center, and Michael Strambler, associate professor of psychiatry, substantiates the evidence of social and emotional learning (SEL) in supporting student flourishing in school and life.

New Polling Data Show Overwhelming Support for Social-Emotional Learning Among Parents

Center for Children

Benenson Strategy Group conducted online interviews with 1200 parents of school aged children from April 15-23, 2022. Key findings were 1. Parents largely take the term “SEL” at face value and there aren’t negative top of mind associations with it. 2. There is strong and widespread support for teaching SEL- both among the 54% who say it’s already taught at their school and those who say it isn’t or are unsure. 3. Parents prioritize a range of skills that SEL support 4. And see how teaching SEL creates a positive classroom environment where kids learn the skills they need to succeed. 5. In head to head argumentations, parents overwhelmingly say schools have a role in teaching kid social and emotional skills and reject the idea that SEL is somehow taking the place of mental wellness supports like therapists and social workers.

Reappraising academic and social adversity improves middle school students’ academic achievement, behavior and well-being.

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS)

Without social and emotional support, adolescent students who have recently made the difficult transition to middle school experience decreased social belonging, waning academic performance, and increased risk of dropping out. This randomized field trial, conducted at scale across a Midwestern school district, reveals how a psychologically precise intervention for students supported transitioning sixth graders. Intervention materials taught students that middle school adversity is common, short-lived, and due to external, temporary causes rather than personal inadequacies. As a result, students realized improved social and psychological well-being, fewer absences and disciplinary infractions, and higher grade point averages. Implemented at scale, this intervention holds potential to help to address the widespread academic underperformance by the nation’s transitioning middle school students.

The Science of Belonging and Connection

Edutopia

A lack of belonging is tied to a host of negative outcomes in students, from poor grades to more frequent disciplinary infractions. In this article, Stanford psychologist Geoffrey Cohen shares research backed strategies educators can deploy to build belonging and connection in class.

Teacher wellbeing and turnover intentions: Investigating the roles of job resources and job demands.

British Journal of Educational Psychology

This study examined the role of three job resources (autonomy-supportive leadership, relatedness with colleagues and students) and three job demands (autonomy-thwarting leadership, time pressure, disruptive student behaviour) in relation to teacher wellbeing and turnover intentions. The job resources were generally positively associated with the well-being factors, whereas time pressure was negatively associated with vitality, but positively associated with behavioural engagement. In addition, relatedness with colleagues and subjective vitality were negatively associated with turnover intentions, whereas the reverse was true for autonomy-thwarting leadership and time pressure. There were no interaction terms retained in the final model.

Parental mental health and children’s adjustment: the quality of marital interaction and parenting as mediating factors.

Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry

Parental and Peer Relationships: The quality of relationships with parents and peers plays a significant role in boys' mental health. Supportive relationships can act as protective factors against the development of mental health issues.

Supporting Parent and Family Engagement to Enhance Students’ Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning

CASEL

This paper explores how states and districts can utilize the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA) to enhance family engagement in promoting students' academic, social, and emotional learning. It provides key recommendations, emphasizing the importance of evidence-based parent and family engagement, coupled with social and emotional learning, to positively impact academic performance and overall well-being. The integration of these strategies with ESSA requirements presents a significant opportunity for states and districts to influence student outcomes, particularly in the context of recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Families Are Students’ First SEL Teachers.

EducationWeek

There are four fundamental steps which can strengthen the relationship between families and schools: cultivate trusting relationships between educators and families, build the confidence and skills of both staff and caregivers, reposition families’ roles from spectators to collaborators, and involve families in interpreting data and posing solutions. These steps are crucial to building a supportive social and emotional learning environment for students. There are four fundamental steps which can strengthen the relationship between families and schools: cultivate trusting relationships between educators and families, build the confidence and skills of both staff and caregivers, reposition families’ roles from spectators to collaborators, and involve families in interpreting data and posing solutions. These steps are crucial to building a supportive social and emotional learning environment for students.

Social and Emotional Supports for Educators During and After the Pandemic

The Center for American Progress

The pandemic has led to a lot of educators feeling overwhelmed and disstressed. Research shows that teachers with SEL training improves their ability to teach. Research shows that it is quite diffcult for teachers to get access to SEL training. SEL training for educators should occur both before and during their teaching career. Teachers who willingly learn SEL, carry that positively to their student.

The Success of Social-Emotional Learning Hinges on Teachers

Education Week

Schools are recognizing the lack of SEL training. Therefore, SEL training has began to be integrated within school districts. This directly corelates with the use of SEL coaches to train both teachers and princiapls. There is an overall improvement/growth with student learning and builiding a stronger school community.