SEL Competencies
Social and Emotional Learning Competencies
Social and emotional learning (SEL) enhances students’ capacity to integrate skills, attitudes, and behaviors to deal effectively and ethically with daily tasks and challenges. The Arizona Department of Education (ADE) recognizes the value and importance of supporting students’ academic, social, and emotional learning as well as the SEL of educators and communities. ADE is using CASEL’s integrated framework to promote intrapersonal, interpersonal, and cognitive competence. These five core competencies and SEL equity elaborations can be taught in many ways across many settings.
School districts, charters, education, and youth-serving organizations are welcome to complete the SEL pledge to acknowledge that each of us plays a role in supporting healthy social and emotional development in our school communities. Please complete the survey below to support the Arizona Department of Education's records of which districts, charters, education, and youth-serving organizations are committed to supporting social-emotional learning. The pledge is available upon completion of the survey.
Social-Emotional Learning Resources
The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) is a trusted source for knowledge about high-quality, evidence-based social and emotional learning (SEL). CASEL supports educators and policy leaders and enhances the experiences and outcomes for all PreK-12 students. CASEL leads to multiple initiatives and produces high-quality resources to advance and implement SEL practices and policies. Based on your role and your schools' level of SEL implementation, this interactive resource provides valuable tools to strengthen SEL in your school community.
CASEL School Guide: Where to Start
The adoption of evidence-based programs is key to providing consistent, high-quality SEL opportunities for all students. To support educators in selecting a high-quality SEL program, CASEL's Program Guide serves as a Consumer report-style product that showcases well-designed, evidence-based SEL programs (pre-kindergarten through high school) and the impact they have on students and/or teacher outcomes.
Because social and emotional learning is critical to the success of students, educators, and communities, many federal funding streams already available to support the implementation of social-emotional learning for both the students and adults in a school campus. This SEL Funding Guide intends to expand awareness of the potential opportunities to fund the implementation of SEL activities and open the door for further exploration.
Opportunities offered by ADE
Please check our events page for all of the professional development opportunities available through ADE.
Social-Emotional Learning and Trauma Sensitive Training Resources and Videos
Opportunities offered by external organizations
Free SEL Training is Available at PAX GBG Arizona through AHCCCS Funding. The PAX GBG training provides teachers and staff with skills and strategies necessary to implement evidence-based Kernels which decrease problematic behaviors, improve academic performance, and increase student engagement.
The PAX Next Steps training provides previously trained PAX GBG teachers and staff with professional development training to expand upon strategies and recalibrate classroom implementation to improve outcomes.
PAX GBG Arizona Training Schedule
The Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence’s new course, Managing Emotions in Times of Uncertainty and Stress, is now available on Coursera. Rolling admissions are available from December 8, 2020, through May 8, 2020.
Managing Emotions in Times of Uncertainty and Stress is a free, 10-hour course that is designed to help school staff better manage their emotions and create supportive learning environments for students. The course content is delivered by leading experts in the fields of psychology, education, and research at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Participants will complete coursework at their own pace and create an action plan to enhance their personal and professional growth. View their program flyer to learn more.
Apply HERE.
Coursera: Managing Emotions in Times of Uncertainty & Stress
School and Classroom Resources
Resources in this section are meant to assist teachers to establish learning environments, whether they be in-person, or virtual, that focus on inclusivity and support social development in students and staff in a manner that is culturally responsive and acknowledges the effects of racism and inequality in student learning and behavior. The relationships with others and the school environment have a direct effect on how students learn and how that learning affects the students throughout life
- Ways to guide elementary students to regulate their emotions and feel connected to their teacher and peers so they’re ready to learn: https://www.edutopia.org/article/4-strategies-help-students-feel-calm-during-distance-learning
- 21 Measures of Risk and Protective Factors for Youth and Young Adults: https://schoolsocialwork.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/21MeasuresForSchoolSocialWork.pdf
- Toolkit for New Virtual Teachers: https://sanfordinspire.org/inspire-at-home/
The Arts Education and Social and Emotional Learning Framework are designed to illuminate the intersection between arts education and SEL to allow for the intentional application of appropriate teaching and learning strategies, with the overarching goal of enhancing Arts Education.
The Connecting Social and Emotional Learning to the Arizona English Language Arts Standards infographic was designed to highlight the natural connections between the Arizona ELA Standards and the SEL Competencies.
Social and Emotional Learning – What Health and Physical Educators Should Know” from SHAPE America shows how health and physical educators are on the front lines of the SEL movement and how the standards for Health and physical education naturally integrate starting at the elementary grade level. The natural integration of the physical education standards and SEL is so abundant, there is even a full crosswalk to the national K-12 physical education standards.
- Social and Emotional Learning and Mathematics resources from the University of Texas at Austin, Charles A. Dana Center highlight the integration of the Standards for Mathematical Practice with the 5 SEL Competencies. As with the Science engineering design process, process standards truly highlight student collaboration, student engagement, peer to peer communication, and positive student to student learning relationships. Additional links to quality and robust mathematical tasks are also provided that encourage student engagement and link to the SEL Competencies.
- “How to Teach Group Work in Math Class” addresses specific ways to guide students in how to work collaboratively together in math class. Over the course of the year, student talk will actually be the majority of the time with teacher talk being secondary.
- Social-Emotional Learning in the Science Classroom” focuses on the engineering design process included in the Arizona Science Standards. The integration with the engineering design process offers the development of collaboration and cooperation through science instruction.
- “5 Ways to use Social and Emotional Learning in the Science Classroom” highlights five ways to use social and emotional learning in the science class. This highlights the integration power of working in teams using inquiry as well as student reflection points.
- Arizona Science Infographic was designed to highlight the natural connections between the Arizona Science Standards, STEM, and the SEL Competencies.
Arizona Social Studies Infographic was designed to highlight the natural connections between the Arizona Social Studies Standards and the SEL Competencies.
Arizona World Language Infographic was designed to highlight the natural connections between the Arizona World and Native Language Standards and the SEL Competencies.
District and Charter (LEA) Resources
District and Charter, or local education agency (LEA) level, resources are meant to help schools create systemic change and instill social and emotional learning practices into the fabric of their operations at every level. These practices require that staff at every level approach interaction with students with an SEL and trauma-informed lens.
- Connecting SEL to Other School-wide Frameworks
- Navigating SEL from the Inside Out
- When Districts Support and Integrate Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
“Educators nationwide are preparing to welcome students and adults back to school to reunite, renew, and thrive. They face the layered impact of school closures, the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic crisis, and racial inequities exacerbated by the pandemic and amplified by the nationwide mobilization for racial justice. To aid in this transition, CASEL collaborated with more than 40 partners to illuminate a way forward, centered on relationships, and built on the existing strengths of a school community.” “The SEL Roadmap is designed to support school leaders and leadership teams in planning for the transition back to schools, in whatever form that takes. Schools at any stage of SEL implementation can use this roadmap to build upon existing efforts around community-building, school climate improvement, student well-being and mental health, trauma-responsive learning environments, restorative practices, and social and emotional competency development. It is also intended to help you reflect and act upon what you can do that is different—to leverage the historical moment we are in. While this guidance is written for schools, states and districts will also play critical roles in ensuring schools have the resources, support, and guidance needed to carry out these actions.”
Family and Community Resources
Resources in this section are meant to help families create healthy SEL learning environments. These environments allow for the creation of strong partnerships between families and schools, educators and communities to support children to become lifelong learners who develop into adults who make significant contributions to the world.
