Building Resilience Through Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Programs in Elementary Schools

• Author(s): Shaila Sheelavant
• Paper ID: 1702737
• Page: 574-583
• Published Date: 31-05-2021
• Published In: Iconic Research And Engineering Journals
• Publisher: IRE Journals
• e-ISSN: 2456-8880
• Volume/Issue: Volume 4 Issue 11 May-2021

Abstract

This study examines the impact of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) programs on building resilience among elementary school students through a quasi-experimental design conducted across 12 schools in urban and suburban districts in the United States, involving 1,200 students (Grades 3–5), where six schools implemented an SEL curriculum (CASEL-aligned) for one academic year while six schools followed traditional instruction, with pre- and post-intervention assessments using the Child and Youth Resilience Measure (CYRM-28) and the Social Skills Rating System (SSRS), revealing that students who participated in SEL programs demonstrated a statistically significant increase in resilience scores (M = 4.27, SD = 0.89) compared to the control group (M = 3.61, SD = 0.94, p < .001), particularly in self-regulation (d = 0.78) and emotional awareness (d = 0.65), with qualitative teacher interviews (N = 48) supporting these findings by indicating enhanced student adaptability and classroom engagement, while regression analysis showed that SEL exposure predicted 34% of the variance in resilience outcomes (R² = 0.34, p < .001), suggesting that structured SEL curricula foster coping strategies and emotional well-being, thereby reinforcing resilience in early childhood education, though limitations include reliance on self-reported measures and short-term data collection, indicating a need for longitudinal studies to assess long-term effects, ultimately concluding that SEL programs serve as an effective intervention for resilience-building in elementary schools and recommending policy integration to enhance student development in diverse learning environments.

Keywords

Social-Emotional Learning (SEL), Resilience Development, Elementary Education, Quasi-Experimental Study, Student Well-Being, Emotional Regulation

Citations

IRE Journals:
Shaila Sheelavant "Building Resilience Through Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Programs in Elementary Schools" Iconic Research And Engineering Journals Volume 4 Issue 11 2021 Page 574-583

IEEE:
Shaila Sheelavant "Building Resilience Through Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Programs in Elementary Schools" Iconic Research And Engineering Journals, 4(11)