Casel'S Sel Framework:: What Are The Core Competence Areas and Where Are They Promoted?
Casel'S Sel Framework:: What Are The Core Competence Areas and Where Are They Promoted?
Casel'S Sel Framework:: What Are The Core Competence Areas and Where Are They Promoted?
SETTINGS: dinated efforts should foster youth voice, agency, and engagement; establish supportive classroom and school climates and
approaches to discipline; enhance adult SEL competence; and establish authentic family and community partnerships.
CLASSROOMS. Research has shown that social and emotional competence can be enhanced using a variety of clasroom-
based approaches such as: (a) explicit instruction through which social and emotional skills and attitudes are taught and prac-
ticed in developmentally, contextually, and culturally responsive ways; (b) teaching practices such as cooperative learning and
project-based learning; and (c) integration of SEL and academic curriculum such as language arts, math, science, social stud-
ies, health, and performing arts. High-quality SEL instruction has four elements represented by the acronym SAFE: Sequenced -
following a coordinated set of training approaches to foster the development of competencies; Active - emphasizing active forms
of learning to help students practice and master new skills; Focused - implementing curriculum that intentionally emphasizes
the development of SEL competencies; and Explicit - defining and targeting specific skills, attitudes, and knowledge.
SEL instruction is carried out most effectively in nurturing, safe environments characterized by positive, caring relationships
among students and teachers. To facilitate age-appropriate and culturally responsive instruction, adults must understand and
appreciate the unique strengths and needs of each student and support students’ identities. When adults incorporate students’
personal experiences and cultural backgrounds and seek their input, they create an inclusive classroom environment where stu-
dents are partners in the educational process, elevating their own agency. Strong relationships between adults and students can
facilitate co-learning, foster student and adult growth, and generate collaborative solutions to shared concerns.
SCHOOLS. Effectively integrating SEL schoolwide involves ongoing planning, implementation, evaluation, and continuous im-
provement by all members of the school community. SEL efforts both contribute to and depend upon a school climate where all
students and adults feel respected, supported, and engaged.
Because the school setting includes many contexts—classrooms, hallways, cafeteria, playground, bus—fostering a healthy
school climate and culture requires active engagement from all adults and students. A strong school culture is rooted in stu-
dents’ sense of belonging, with evidence that suggests that it plays a crucial role in students’ engagement. SEL also offers an
opportunity to enhance existing systems of student support by integrating SEL goals and practices with universal, targeted, and
intensive academic and behavioral supports. By coordinating and building upon SEL practices and programs, schools can create
an environment that infuses SEL into every part of students’ educational experience and
promotes positive social, emotional, and academic outcomes for all students.
www.casel.org/what-is-SEL
THE KEY SETTINGS (CONT.)
FAMILIES/CAREGIVERS. When schools and families form authentic partnerships, they can build strong connections that reinforce
students’ social and emotional development. Families and caregivers are children’s first teachers, and bring deep expertise about
their development, experiences, culture, and learning needs. These insights and perspectives are critical to informing, supporting, and
sustaining SEL efforts. Research suggests that evidence-based SEL programs are more effective when they extend into the home, and
families are far more likely to form partnerships with schools when their schools’ norms, values, and cultural representations reflect
their own experiences. Schools need inclusive decision-making processes that ensure that families—particularly those from historically
marginalized groups—are part of planning, implementing, and continuously improving SEL.
Schools can also create other avenues for family partnership that may include creating ongoing two-way communication with families,
helping caregivers understand child development, helping teachers understand family backgrounds and cultures, providing opportuni-
ties for families to volunteer in schools, extending learning activities and discussions into homes, and coordinating family services with
community partners. These efforts should engage families in understanding, experiencing, informing, and supporting the social and
emotional development of their students.
COMMUNITIES. Community partners often provide safe and developmentally rich settings for learning and development,
have deep understanding of community needs and assets, are seen as trusted partners by families and students, and
have connections to additional supports and services that school and families need. Community programs also offer opportunities for
young people to practice their social and emotional skills in settings that are both personally relevant and can open opportunities for
their future. To integrate SEL efforts across the school day and out-of-school time, school staff and community partners should align on
common language and coordinate strategies and communication around SEL-related efforts and initiatives.
Students, families, schools, and communities are all part of broader systems that shape learning, development, and ex-
periences. Inequities based on race, ethnicity, class, language, gender identity, sexual orientation, and other factors are
deeply ingrained in the vast majority of these systems and impact young people and adult social, emotional, and academic
learning. While SEL alone will not solve longstanding and deep-seated inequities in the education system, it can create
the conditions needed for individuals and schools to examine and interrupt inequitable policies and practices, create
more inclusive learning environments, and reveal and nurture the interests and assets of all individuals.
www.casel.org/what-is-SEL