What is Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)

Social and emotional learning research tends to focus on results for K12 students but requires major shifts in mindsets for teachers. Lustick et al. found that teachers who run community circles must negotiate complex questions around their own boundaries and exert a significant amount and novel kind of emotional labor. Sustainable implementation means recognizing, honoring, and supporting this labor; it represents a significant shift compared to traditional notions of teacher professionalism. A literature review uncovered 16 SEL interventions and compared them on the basis of teachers' role. The chapter asked: How are teachers recognized in the literature in terms of design and treatment of integrity? How is the unique labor of SEL—beyond formal instruction—recognized in the literature and in teachers' practice? The authors draw on existing research and interviews with six teachers across elementary, middle, and high school grade levels in one urban district in the US South that was implementing a districtwide SEL program.