Date

5-16-2024

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Education in Community Care and Counseling (EdD)

Chair

Todd W. Schultz

Keywords

secondary, SEL, school counselor, social and emotional learning

Disciplines

Counseling | Education

Abstract

Social and emotional learning (SEL) has become a standard practice in public education due to the many social and mental health challenges faced by young people. Teachers have been directed to incorporate SEL lessons daily, which sometimes can be a challenge to facilitate when having to teach core instruction. However, secondary school counselors are trained to facilitate SEL as part of their comprehensive school counseling programs and the American School Counseling Association (ASCA) national model. Unfortunately, they experience challenges with facilitation. The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological qualitative study was to analyze the lived experiences of secondary school counselors’ implementation of social and emotional learning (SEL) within their school settings. The research sought to identify how secondary school counselors navigate barriers when implementing SEL and the practices/strategies utilized. The study was driven by one central and one guided research question. Data was collected using a semi-structured interview approach with eight secondary school counselors to provide a rich description of their perceptions of implementing SEL. Five themes emerged from the data review: (a) student/counselor interaction, (b) school-wide social and emotional learning practices, (c) school counseling SEL program initiatives, (d) SEL implementation barriers, and (e) navigating the barriers. Research implications, limitations, and recommended future research are also discussed.

Download

Share

COinS