What Is Social and Emotional Learning?

Mental and emotional health disorders in children are on the rise. Nearly 1 in 5 children ages 3 to 17 have been diagnosed with a mental, emotional, or behavioral health condition.¹ In addition, the prevalence of diagnosed mental or behavioral health conditions among adolescents grew by 35 percent between 2016 and 2023.²

Data like this has led to increased demand for educators who can help students develop and maintain emotional and social wellbeing. Around 93 percent of parents say it’s important for schools to teach social and emotional learning (SEL) skills and 96 percent of school administrators believe that SEL is just as important as academic learning.³

Emotional and behavioral health are nonacademic factors that have a real impact on students’ ability to learn and thrive in school. Understanding the value of SEL and best practices for implementation ensures educators can create inclusive, supportive learning environments for students of every age.

The concept of SEL as we know it today began at the Yale School of Medicine’s Child Study Center in 1968.⁴ A leading child psychologist and professor, James P. Comer, created the Comer School Development Plan to implement practices that supported the “whole child” at school, in the community, and at home.⁵

Emotional intelligence and social wellbeing were found to have a direct impact on students’ behavioral challenges and academic performance. The two low-performing New Haven, Connecticut elementary schools where social development strategies were implemented saw significantly improved outcomes by the 1980s.⁴ This led to widespread adoption of these initiatives across the school district and beyond.

In 1994, the term social and emotional learning, or SEL, was created, and the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) was formed. Its mission is to establish high-quality, evidence-based SEL as an essential part of education.⁵

CASEL defines SEL as the “process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions.”⁶

The CASEL framework emphasizes partnerships between schools, families, and communities to help learners and schools thrive. At its core are five competency areas, known as the CASEL 5, that can be applied across age groups, developmental stages, and cultural contexts.⁷ We’ve outlined them below:

The goal of the CASEL framework is to establish equitable, supportive learning environments by coordinating efforts across four key settings.⁷ They include:

When SEL approaches are applied in these settings, young people feel seen, heard, and supported by a network of caring adults. It’s important to note that it’s beyond the scope of SEL to solve systemic inequities based on factors like race, class, or sexual orientation; however, it can create more inclusive learning environments that prioritize equity and social wellbeing for all students.⁷

Implementing SEL in classrooms, schools, and communities can be more effective within a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS). Many schools and districts already use MTSS frameworks for evidence-based interventions, and having MTSS in place makes it easier to add SEL initiatives to existing priorities.

Within the MTSS framework, around 80 percent of students fall into Tier 1, 15 percent into Tier 2, and 5 percent into Tier 3.⁸ Learn more about each tier below, along with social emotional learning examples for each:

At every level, combining MTSS and SEL principles can have significant advantages for students. However, while the two frameworks are often implemented together, they are not interchangeable: CASEL emphasizes that SEL should not be used to diagnose or screen for mental health issues.¹⁰

Thanks to a large body of research, the benefits SEL can offer students, staff, and schools are clear. Studies involving more than 1 million PK-12 students worldwide¹¹ offer key findings like:

If you are an educator who wants to learn evidence-based strategies for improving the wellbeing of your students, the online Graduate Certificate in Social, Emotional, Behavioral, and Cultural Wellbeing from Arcadia University can help you reach your goals. It explores essential topics like social-emotional wellness, positive behavior supports, mental health literacy, and more to provide specialized SEL expertise that can be applied in any PK-12 classroom.

Arcadia’s online SEL certificate can be completed in as little as one year and qualifies candidates who are already licensed Pennsylvania educators for the PK-12 Social, Emotional, and Behavioral Wellness Endorsement.

This 12-credit program includes 25 total hours of fieldwork and delivers the expertise you need to develop a culturally responsive social and emotional learning framework for learners from diverse backgrounds.

Featuring fully online courses led by experienced faculty, the trauma-informed SEL certificate can be completed as a standalone credential or combined with a second certificate and a capstone to earn a Master of Education in Social and Emotional Learning degree.

Discover how you can create a more supportive learning environment for your students with this online graduate certificate from Arcadia.