Are you a teacher, school principal or school counselor wondering what this title even mean? Well, well! We feel you. Yes, it is not very intuitive to think about how SEL can help school counselors. We spend so much time evaluating the benefits of SEL for children but forget that SEL can help school counselors and teachers too!
What is social-emotional learning (SEL)?
First things first – let’s re-look at what social-emotional learning (SEL) means. The benefits for school counselors will start looking intuitive if you take a closer look at this official definition. According to CASEL,
“SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions.”
The definition itself includes the word ‘adults’! Hence, yes, SEL can do wonders not only for the students at school but for all adults working at the school too. Now, this includes support staff, school counselors, teachers, principals, and everyone else you can think of.
How can SEL help school counselors?
We went back and re-looked at how school counselors have benefitted themselves from SEL implementations at the school. Here are 5 top ways in which SEL can help:
1. Reduce the work fatigue and burnout
Working at a school is deemed an easy profession. But of course, it is NOT! In fact, the burnout can be real and a lot of school counselors come back with complaints of the same. Implementing SEL can reduce the instances of:
- bad or disruptive social behavior
- general conduct issues
- demoralization and lack of correct expression
- instances of anger suppression followed by resentment towards peers
As a result, the burden on counselors can go down drastically. For every counselor, today, there are about 400+ students against the recommended number of 250. Hence, the fatigue can be real and this is when SEL can come to counselors’ rescue. Thus, by implementing SEL, the schools can reduce occurrences of disruption due to behavior issues in children, thereby reducing the load for the counselors.
2. Better work environment
SEL implementation helps in creating a conducive environment at schools. Self-awareness leading to a better expression of emotions can help people at work communicate better. Hence, collaboration levels and productivity automatically go up. By implementing SEL, counselors can benefit from the perks of working at an open and collaborative place.
Again, by collaboration, we don’t just mean teachers and counselors coming together. It goes on to include every support staff as well, who can identify possible outbreaks or cases of emotional turbulence and report them before the damage is done. Hence, SEL is great for co-working adults who together form the vibe of the workplace.
3. Structured approach to helping students
A school counselor’s core job is to advance a student’s success in academics, specific interests, and social-emotional spheres. However, managing this end-to-end for 450+ students per counselor can be a nightmare. SEL implementation using the right tech support can help drive better efficiency. As long as, you’re committed to making progress and also tracking it, you’ll need reliable tech support to implement SEL. Palo is one such innovative skill-building solution aimed at middle schoolers. Middle school years are the foundation years for children and hence, SEL implementation for them is of utmost importance. We at Palo, focus on 3 key pillars while helping schools implement SEL:
- Self-management: students learn skills and then practice regulating their thoughts and emotions so that they make intentional decisions that move them toward success. For schools, this means better class attendance, timely homework submission, and less procrastination.
- Learning strategies: students learn skills and strategies to focus on the task at hand, apply creative problem solving and become better learners. Thus, for schools, this means overall improved academic outcomes.
- Relationships: students learn how to work collaboratively with others, communicate well with family and friends, and handle social situations appropriately. Hence, this means a more supportive and cohesive classroom environment, fewer instances of conflict, and greater empathy among students.
Why Choose Palo?
As opposed to other SEL programs, Palo needs educators to do ZERO prep! Yes, you read that right. Through our app, we provide bite-sized learnings in the form of videos, graphics, and texts that motivate students to participate. Our curriculum is designed around relatable topics, specifically for the needs of middle school students. Furthermore, we assess the students regularly and share relevant insights and growth metadata that help improve the school climate. Moreover, the insights are actionable and easy to understand for every educator on board.
Why should school counselors choose Palo?
If you’re a school counselor, by using Palo you’ll be able to find more time and energy to do the work you love. You will receive actionable insights on your students’ progress and well-being. Moreover, you’ll be able to measure the effectiveness of schoolwide programs like SEL, RTI & MTSS. All in all, read it as increased efficiency in work and a major impact on the school environment.
Excited to see your students thrive and your SEL implementation efforts bear the fruit of better school environment? Start your journey with Palo in just 2 easy steps. First, sign up for a FREE demo of Palo app to see how it works. We’re sure you’ll want to leap to the next step! Second, enroll in the package that works for your school or district. And, there you go! Kickstart your students’ journey toward a more fulfilling future with Palo.
Click here to schedule a free demo now!