Schools increasingly use structured social-emotional learning programs to teach children how to manage emotions and resolve conflicts. Advocates point to stronger relationships and quieter classrooms, but new research shows both the benefits and the practical challenges of making these programs work. Understanding how these tools affect students helps parents and educators choose the best path forward.
What Happened
Second Step, a prominent provider of social-emotional learning (SEL) curriculums, recently highlighted how teaching "human skills," such as emotion regulation and empathy, helps students handle everyday peer conflicts. According to the Second Step Team, their digital programs for elementary and middle schools are designed to help students resolve disputes without needing constant adult intervention. To back these claims, the organization points to an evaluation by WestEd involving more than 25,000 students. The study linked the digital curriculum to measurable improvements in self-management and stronger teacher-student relationships. It also showed a better overall school climate. As we previously reported, consistent delivery of these lessons is key to reducing behavioral referrals.
The Bigger Picture
Independent academic research shows mixed results regarding how social-emotional curricula affect academic success and classroom behavior. On one hand, a systematic review of randomized controlled trials published in the European Journal of Psychology of Education found that primary school SEL programs consistently improve academic achievements, emotional regulation, and social competence. This suggests that when schools implement explicit lessons in self-awareness, students perform better overall.
However, other studies show less uniform results. A systematic review of programs in Australian primary schools published in The Australian Educational Researcher found that broad SEL programs had mixed or no effect on reducing problem behaviors and emotional distress. A study of primary school students in Yunnan Province, China, published in BMC Psychology, found that while social awareness correlated with academic success, self-management did not have a statistically significant link to grades.
Yet targeted emotional training shows success. A study in the Journal of Primary Education showed that teaching students to identify specific emotions reduced weekly classroom behavior incidents from an average of 9.85 down to 3.70 for children with emotional and behavioral disorders. This indicates that specific instruction can change classroom dynamics, even when generic programs fail to show results.
What This Means for Families
For parents and educators, this research shows that teaching social skills provides a valuable foundation rather than a quick fix. When children learn how to name their feelings, they can step back before reacting in anger. In the classroom, this means teachers spend less time refereeing minor arguments, such as who gets to lead a group project, and more time teaching. At home, these same skills help siblings resolve disputes and help children handle the frustration of difficult homework assignments. Parents should note that a school's climate and the way teachers deliver a program matter just as much as the curriculum itself.
What You Can Do
- Practice emotional vocabulary at home. Use proven emotional training strategies by helping children label exact emotions, such as distinguishing between feeling disappointed and feeling angry.
- Ask your school's administration about their curriculum. Use resources like the EdCircuit Social-Emotional Learning Guide to understand how your child's school chooses and evaluates its SEL programs.
- Reinforce problem-solving steps during conflict. Encourage children to share their perspectives and brainstorm solutions together instead of stepping in immediately to solve the issue for them.