Are Educators Setting Goals for Social-Emotional Learning? Evidence from Nationally Representative Surveys. Data Note: Insights from the American Educator Panels. Research Report. RR-2575/2-1-BMGF

• Published in: RAND Corporation
• Main Authors: Doss, Christopher Joseph, Johnston, William R, Akinniranye, Goke
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: RAND Corporation 2020
• Subjects: Academic Achievement; Administrator Attitudes; Educational Strategies; Emotional Development; Goal Orientation; Instructional Leadership; Prediction; Principals; Rural Urban Differences; School Districts; Social Development; Student Development; Teacher Attitudes; Teaching Methods
• DOI: 10.7249/RR2575.2-1

A growing body of evidence shows that social-emotional skills predict the long-term outcomes of students, even after controlling for differences in academic achievement. Despite the evidence that social-emotional learning (SEL) contributes to student success, few studies have investigated the extent to which educators promote SEL among their students. This American Educator Panels Data Note details the extent to which a nationally representative sample of teachers and school leaders report setting goals for the social-emotional growth of their students. Results indicated that about 60 percent of teachers and principals report setting goals for student SEL growth. However, teachers were less likely to report that their school leadership set these goals compared with principals' self-reports. These results indicate that SEL goal setting is substantial but by no means universal. Further, the gap in perceptions of school leader goal setting indicates that as principals begin or continue to develop goals, they should aim to create a schoolwide strategy that is communicated to teachers and take into account efforts that are already underway in classrooms. One barrier to these efforts may be the lack of schoolwide systems for assessing SEL skills.