Public School Teachers' Perspectives on a Program Designed to Support Awareness of Social Emotional Competence Learning

• In Event: Policy and Culture in Rural Education

Abstract

There are many social-emotional learning (SEL) programs for students; however, fewer for teachers. We formatively assess a teacher-focused SEL program, the Making a Difference No Matter What video series piloted in a rural Alabama school district. P-12 teachers’ perceptions of their SEL and stress were examined. Ninety teachers (83.3% response rate) completed the survey with Likert-scale and open-response formats. Findings indicated a statistical difference between pre- and post-implementation overall and in five components of SEL, but only a weak correlation between SEL and perceived stress. While this study was initiated before COVID-19, results support more teacher awareness of SEL and future research questions such as further testing the intervention in other school districts and examining getter perceived stress and teacher SEC.

Authors

• Jessica J. Williams, Samford University
  Presenting Author

• Mary E. Yakimowski, Samford University
  Non-Presenting Author