Tamara Fyke 
edCircuit note: In this 2019 SELChat column, Tamara Fyke sets out seven steps toward a unified schoolwide approach to social-emotional learning. An update at the end maps her steps to the CASEL framework and adds what research and surveys since 2022 show.
Over the past eight months, I have had countless conversations with educators, from administrators to classroom teachers, about their perspectives on social-emotional learning (SEL). My team and I have asked questions about current practices and needs. The most common response we have received, without question, is the need to build the capacity for the adults in the school community to deliver SEL. Those who’ve shared this perspective have been unequivocal in their explanation. Some have believed so strongly in this course of action, in fact, that they’ve delayed adoption of an SEL plan for students until they have provided training for their teachers. My question is: can the two objectives be met simultaneously? In other words, is there a unified, schoolwide approach that can be adopted? I believe there is.
It Starts with the Kids (But Don’t Forget the Adults!)
Because this work is all about the kids, let’s start with the objective at the root of everything: meeting their well-rounded needs. I was recently asked about the goals of my work and I replied, “1.) To build relationships between caring adults and kids. 2.) To help kids identify and articulate what is going on in their heads and in their hearts. 3.) To teach character traits, otherwise known as SEL competencies.”
Building a relationship doesn’t happen in a vacuum, though. It requires both parties to be engaged in meaningful conversations in an effort to foster healthy connection. These conversations and connections are opportunities to practice SEL skills and competencies. This is why our programs must also have goals for the adults. I recommend the following tactics to encourage faculty and staff, and build their capacity:
• Professional Development Training – Engaging and interactive training for faculty and staff from SEL experts.
• Ongoing Coaching and Support – Webinars, coaching calls, observations, SEL moments in faculty meetings…all of these can be helpful in nurturing and sustaining the adults in the building when they are offered in the right spirit.
• Public Appreciation – From shout outs on morning announcements to monthly recognition in staff meetings, public acknowledgement of a job well done can encourage and inspire dedicated staff.
• Self-Care – Reminding teachers, cafeteria workers, and bus drivers to take care of themselves with regular exercise, healthy eating, and soul-nourishing hobbies affirms their value.
Once we’ve set appropriate goals for both students and staff, we can create a plan that works toward a true schoolwide approach. Support for teachers equals support for students, and vice versa.
How Ongoing Trends Must Inform Our Actions
I have witnessed two competing trends in education over the past 15 years. The first is the insatiable appetite for data, particularly the data that comes from standardized test scores. The problem is that we have become a society that has used the data for punitive means rather than restorative purposes. We must ask ourselves, “What story is the data telling us – about the student, the teacher, the school, the leadership?” We need a holistic approach that uses data to strengthen and support people.
The second trend is the proliferation of education technology and its results. Although many edtech tools provide desired data, these same tools have isolated children from their peers and from their teachers. Instead of engaging in worthwhile projects and conversations, screens are often used to occupy “problem” students so the teacher can accomplish their agenda for meeting standards. The skill-and-drill or other remedial work often bores or frustrates students. But when educators are living in fear of test scores, how can we expect them to invest the same amount of time in the hearts of their students?
Given these trends, how must we plan action steps that achieve our SEL goals? First of all, administrators need to communicate with their faculty and staff that they are prioritizing relationship building – SEL. All adults need to know that they will not be penalized for putting the needs of a child above test scores. If a child is hungry, give them food before beginning to teach. If a child is not dressed properly, provide appropriate clothing. If a child is sad, angry, or hurt, take time to comfort and converse about what is going on in order to get them back on track.
Secondly, administrators must adopt an intentional plan for integrating SEL into the culture of the school. Keep in mind; culture is what we do. Inevitably, culture impacts climate: how it feels. The goal of SEL is to create a culture and climate where every child and adult feels seen, known, and valued – that they belong.
Seven Steps Toward Implementation
Here are seven steps to forming the foundation of a unified schoolwide approach:
1.) Strong principal leadership and teacher buy-in – A caring leader nurtures their faculty and staff by listening to their thoughts and ideas while still maintaining decision-making power.
2.) Professional development training – Any SEL implementation requires training and ongoing coaching to support the growth of the classroom teachers and school staff.
3.) Kickoff Event – The entire school community needs to be involved in a kickoff event that highlights the goals and importance of the SEL initiative.
4.) Curriculum Implementation – A shared scope and sequence that integrates with academic areas and the school day provides intentionality, including common language and experiences.
5.) Reinforcement Materials – Culturally-relevant resources, such as music, posters, and videos, serve as continual reminders of SEL.
6.) Family Involvement – Offering resources and events for family members promotes out-of-school time learning. SEL is for all.
7.) Service Learning – Coordinating opportunities for students to serve your community is a hands-on expression of what they have learned about SEL. They are empowered to make a difference.
As all stakeholders in the school community work together – administrators, teachers, students, and family members – each one has the opportunity to build their SEL competencies. We are stronger together!
The CASEL framework and schoolwide SEL in 2026
The CASEL framework is the most widely used map for the kind of unified schoolwide approach Tamara Fyke describes above. CASEL, the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning, is a nonprofit research and policy organization, and its framework sets out five competencies and four settings in which young people learn them. Fyke’s seven steps line up closely with it, and reading the two together helps a school team see what its plan already covers and what is missing.
The five competencies
CASEL defines social and emotional learning (SEL) as the process through which “all young people and adults” acquire and apply the knowledge, skills and attitudes to manage emotions, show empathy, maintain supportive relationships and make caring decisions. The CASEL framework groups those skills into five competencies, often called the CASEL 5:
- Self-awareness: understanding one’s own emotions, thoughts and values and how they influence behavior.
- Self-management: managing emotions, thoughts and behaviors in different situations, including setting goals and handling stress.
- Social awareness: understanding the perspectives of others and empathizing with them, including people from different backgrounds.
- Relationship skills: establishing and maintaining healthy, supportive relationships, communicating clearly and resolving conflict.
- Responsible decision-making: making caring and constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions.
Fyke’s third goal, teaching “character traits, otherwise known as SEL competencies,” refers to this same set. For classroom lessons, CASEL describes high-quality instruction as SAFE: sequenced, active, focused and explicit.
The four settings, and how the seven steps fit them
The framework places the competencies in four settings: classrooms, the school as a whole, families and caregivers, and the wider community. Fyke’s steps cover all four. Curriculum implementation belongs to the classroom. Principal leadership, the kickoff event and reinforcement materials shape the school. Family involvement reaches homes, and service learning connects students with the community. Her emphasis on adults, through training, coaching, appreciation and self-care, matches CASEL’s point that SEL is for adults as well as students.
CASEL’s practical guide for school teams, the CASEL Guide to Schoolwide SEL Essentials (third edition, June 2021), organizes the work into four focus areas. The first builds foundational support and a plan: an SEL team, a shared vision, an implementation rubric and goals. The second strengthens adult SEL through personal reflection, staff agreements and modeling for students. The third promotes SEL for students through schoolwide norms, an evidence-based program, and partnerships with families and community organizations. The fourth is continuous improvement, using walkthroughs and structured reflection on data. Because the guide treats adult SEL and student SEL as two focus areas within one plan, it gives much the same answer as Fyke to her opening question of whether teacher training must come before a student program. The guide also states that high-quality professional learning and the use of data for continuous improvement are central to schoolwide SEL, which echoes her call to use data to strengthen people rather than to punish them.
What the evidence and the climate show now
The research base has grown since 2019. A 2023 meta-analysis led by Christina Cipriano and Michael Strambler, published in Child Development, pooled 424 studies of universal school-based SEL programs covering 575,361 students in 53 countries. Compared with control groups, students improved in skills, behavior, school climate and safety, peer relationships and academic achievement. Effects varied considerably with program content and implementation quality, which supports Fyke’s insistence on training and coaching rather than a curriculum alone.
SEL is now common practice. RAND and CASEL reported in 2024 that 83 percent of principals said their schools used an SEL curriculum in 2023-24, compared with 46 percent in 2017-18, according to eSchool News. It has also become politically sensitive in places. In an EdWeek Research Center survey in spring 2025, 16 percent of educators said their school or district had used another name for SEL in the past year to limit controversy while still teaching the same skills, and “character education” was the most common replacement. Whatever name a school uses, families respond best to a specific account of what is taught, and Fyke’s family involvement step is the natural place to provide it.
Using the framework in a planning meeting
- List current SEL activities under each of the four settings and look for empty columns.
- Check that each of the five competencies appears in the student curriculum and in adult professional learning.
- Score the school on CASEL’s implementation rubric once a year and set one or two goals from the results.
- Describe the program to families in plain terms, naming the skills students will practice.
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