Social and Emotional Learning Resources (South Carolina Department of Education)
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. Decades of research, practice, and policy have demonstrated the effectiveness of SEL in supporting students’ academic and long-term success. By systemically integrating SEL across classrooms, schools, homes, and communities, adults and students work together to develop and apply five core competencies of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship management, and responsible decision-making. These competencies, or abilities, are needed generally throughout our lives yet even more so at this time to manage our own stressors, anxieties, and joy. Social Emotional Learning builds our ability to understand how the pandemic is influencing others and can build relationships to best support our staff, students, families, and communities.
The Collaborative for Academics and Social Emotional Learning (CASEL), a researched-based organization, is a trusted source for knowledge about high-quality evidenced-based social and emotional learning. CASEL supports educators and policy leaders and enhances the experiences and outcomes for all Prekindergarten-12 grade students. The families, communities, and schools embrace the five competencies or skills that are at the core of social emotional learning: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship management, and responsible decision-making. The district is looking forward to sharing these ideas and commitments on behalf of our students with Sumter community families and leaders.