“Building social-emotional learning awareness and sustainable supports through teacher collaboration,” by JoAnne Spagnuolo
What was your research challenge?
The impacts of the pandemic left students and staff with low morale. As a result, school personnel, including educators and an administrator, proposed suggestions about how to improve the intervention. The data suggested that educators wanted consistent and specific training on implementing tangible social-emotional learning strategies in their subject areas. Participants also agreed that there should be a cultural shift with a priority centered on the importance of mental and emotional health.
Where did you find your inspiration?
After being an educator during the pandemic and consistently hearing “social-emotional learning” as a buzz word in education, I wanted to research for myself the trainings and supports teachers had regarding social-emotional learning. Upon interviewing teachers, it was clear this was a need that was not completely satisfied by the limited professional developments provided by the district. As a result, I wanted to complete my own research and trainings to support teachers further and curate materials to support implementation of social-emotional learning strategies in the classroom.
What was the impact and outcome of your research?
In response to this data, the researcher intervened by forming a social-emotional learning committee of willing participants. Within this committee, the educators were trained on social-emotional learning practices and worked collaboratively to develop a website created for and utilized as a school resource. This website housed social-emotional learning lessons that staff members throughout the school could access at their discretion.
What’s next for you?
After graduation I moved from working as a classroom teacher to an educational coach, and for the past year I have been working as the director of education at a school that serves students with disabilities. I was able to utilize the research compiled from my dissertation in a book chapter called, “Integrating Social-Emotional Learning Strategies Into the Curriculum Through a Trauma-Informed and Culturally-Responsive Lens.” This chapter was published in the book, “Transforming Teacher Preparation Through Identity, Development, and Effective Technologies.” I hope to continue to work with my research and utilize my degree to publish in additional outlets.
