the-missing-piece

offers the Collaborative for Academic,Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL)’sdefinition of SEL (see sidebar), nearlyall teachers (93 percent) believe SEL isvery or fairly important for the in-schoolstudent experience.Teachers Endorse SEL for AllStudentsTeacher endorsement of SEL holds trueacross education levels and school types.Nearly all teachers (95 percent) believesocial and emotional skills are teachableand report that SEL will benefit studentsfrom all backgrounds, rich or poor (97percent). Research shows that amongstudents from grades five through twelve,positive emotions such as hope, wellbeing,and engagement account for31 percent of the variance in student’sacademic success (hope is 13 percent,engagement 10 percent, and well-being8 percent). 1• z Only a small minority believe it isdefinitely true that SEL should notbe taught in schools (19 percent) orthink it should only be taught in highpovertyschools (18 percent definitely/probably true).Teachers Report SEL ShouldBe Given Greater Emphasis inSchoolsNearly all teachers (88 percent) reportSEL occurs in their schools on somelevel, although less than half (44 percent)of teachers say social and emotionalskills are being taught on a schoolwide,programmatic basis. Research suggeststhat a strong, evidence-based SELprogram can help reduce studentabsenteeism and improve studentinterest — both strong indicators of astudent being on track to graduate. 2Teachers See the Importanceand Benefits of SELResearch finds that SEL programsare frequently associated with positivestudent outcomes such as an increasein pro-social behaviors and improvedacademic performance. 3 More than threequartersof the teachers believe a largerfocus on SEL will be a major benefit tostudents because of the positive effect onworkforce readiness (87 percent), schoolattendance and graduation (80 percent),life success (87 percent), collegepreparation (78 percent), and academicsuccess (75 percent).(2) Teachers Believe Socialand Emotional LearningHelps Students Achievein School, Work, and LifeSEL ADDRESSES THE NATIONALCHALLENGE THAT AMERICA’SEDUCATIONAL ADVANTAGE ISSLIPPINGRecent international findings illustratethat America’s advantage of a highlyeducated labor force is shrinking as morecountries reach and surpass America’seducation levels. This, however, is asolvable problem, and SEL is a keypart of the solution. Research showsthat students receiving high-qualityA National Teacher Survey on How Social and Emotional Learning Can Empower Children and Transform Schools 5