The Missing Piece - Civic Enterprises

such as boosting academic performanceand reaching grade-level readingproficiency. They also report that SELhelps overcome key challenges they facein their classrooms, including studentlack of interest, poor student behavior,and bullying (Figure 8).SEL Boosts AcademicPerformanceAccording to the survey, boostingstudent academic performance is thekey goal teachers aim to achieve withtheir students. Moving successfullythrough the school system, excellingat coursework, earning high markson standardized tests, and staying ontrack to graduate are all benchmarksof a student’s academic success.The research consistently shows theacademic benefits of SEL — andteachers’ voices echo this. Students’ability to regulate emotion, attention,and behavior is related to academicachievement. 75 SEL helps studentsbecome more self-aware and confidentin their learning abilities. Progress in“[SEL] would help students learn the other core subjects. It would helpstudents be attentive in class, form good habits, solve problems, andplan ahead.”— Eighth grade boysocial and emotional competencies alsohelps students with stress management,problem solving, and decision-making;these skills in turn have been foundto help them get better grades. 76 Morecognitive forms of regulation, such asinhibition control, are related to academicsuccess, especially in young children. 77Schools teaching SEL on a programmaticbasis are more likely to develop students’knowledge and skills in key contentareas, such as English, history, science,and math. 78 A teacher from Philadelphiaexplains, “If the students are betterprepared, which [SEL] helps them tobe, then they are also better prepared tolearn the core curriculum because they’regetting their social needs met and theiremotional needs met. They’re going to dobetter at school — that’s the bottom line.”The majority of teachers believe SEL willhelp students move successfully throughthe school system and stay on trackto graduate (80 percent) and improvestudent achievement in academiccoursework (75 percent). More thanthree in four teachers (77 percent)believe teaching SEL will increasestandardized test scores and overallacademic performance (77 percent).Some district leaders also recognize thestrong connection between SEL andacademic learning, explaining that SELis the foundation for academic success.These leaders observe more studentson task and learning, less disengagedand off task in schools where SELimplementation is a district priority.Student voices echo these opinions. Aseventh grade girl says, “In a class whereeveryone respects the teacher, it is morepeaceful and there is a more steadyA National Teacher Survey on How Social and Emotional Learning Can Empower Children and Transform Schools 23