Leading

Schoolwide
Social and
Emotional Learning
Recommendations for regional and school district
leaders and coaches of multiple schools
 The Leading Schoolwide SEL on-demand course was developed
with school-level leaders in mind, so throughout the course
you can expect to see references to the school setting, with the
assumption that the course participant has influence and plays
a role in decision-making at that level.

For those who support schools (for example, district-level leaders), this course can
provide a model for how you can support school-based leadership teams as they take
steps toward a systemic, schoolwide model for social and emotional learning (SEL).

This facilitation guide includes recommendations for preparing participants to take this
course, guiding group discussion throughout the course, and monitoring participation and
progress. Use the table of contents below to jump to each section.

PREPARE TO USE THIS COURSE TO SUPPORT YOUR SCHOOLS

▪ Build foundational support for SEL

▪ Recruit school teams to participate in a Leading Schoolwide SEL learning community
▪ Register your participants

SUGGESTED AGENDAS AND PACING FOR GROUP DISCUSSION

▪ Group discussion recommendations

▪ Suggested meeting agenda for a single school team
▪ Suggested meeting agenda for a multiple-school discussion
▪ Suggested pacing

REVIEW ENGAGEMENT DATA FOR YOUR GROUP

▪ Course completion
▪ Workbook, Rubric, and Priority Actions
Prepare to use this course to support your schools
The Leading Schoolwide SEL on-demand course will be most beneficial for participants who
are part of a team within their school that is committed to taking action toward schoolwide
SEL implementation.1 If you are supporting school-based staff who will be participating in
this course, you may want to take these initial steps to set up them up for success.

BUILD FOUNDATIONAL SUPPORT FOR SEL

Begin by introducing SEL to the communities you support and learning from them about
how they see connections between SEL and what their goals are for their school
community. Here are two free resources you can use and build on:
▪ Social and Emotional Learning: An Introduction—This presentation can be adapted and
used to introduce SEL to staff, families, and community partners. It gives an overview of
what SEL is and why it’s important and the process for schoolwide SEL. Talking points and
activity instructions are provided in the notes section. Also available in Spanish.

▪ Social and Emotional Learning 101—In this pre-recorded webinar, participants will learn
from CASEL’s Vice President of Practice and Programs, Melissa Schlinger, who presents
CASEL’s SEL framework (known as the “wheel”), including the core competencies and key
settings of SEL, and how SEL can support other priorities.

RECRUIT TEAMS TO PARTICIPATE IN A LEADING SCHOOLWIDE SEL LEARNING

COMMUNITY

Once you have introduced and generated interest in SEL, recruit a group of committed
participants to take the course at the same time so that they can collaborate and provide
thought partnership to each other as they plan strategies and implement an action plan for
schoolwide SEL. Consider:

▪ If your district or organization is an accredited provider in your state, offer continuing

education credits. Registered participants will receive a course completion certificate
through our online hub after they complete the full course, which states the course takes
12-15 hours to complete. You can ask them to submit this as proof of completion.
▪ Support school leaders to recruit 5-10 members for an SEL team or adjust the objectives of
an existing team that does related work. Read more about how to put together a strong SEL
team here: Assemble an SEL Team. Register each team member for the course—they’ll take
the course independently and come together after each chapter to discuss action steps as a
team.
▪ If you are supporting multiple schools, set up a simple application process to recruit a
cohort of school teams that are committed and prepared to get started. See the sample
recruitment flyer on the following page as an example of how you might describe this
opportunity to the schools you support.

1
Learn more about what schoolwide SEL implementation looks like here: Indicators of Schoolwide SEL.
 SAMPLE RECRUITEMENT FLYER

Join the Leading Schoolwide SEL Learning Community

Members of this professional learning community will participate in a self-paced online course and a
discussion group with other social and emotional learning (SEL) leaders from our district to plan,
sustain, and continuously improve systemic SEL implementation throughout their school community.

Members receive:
▪ Access to CASEL’s Leading Schoolwide SEL online
course for 16 weeks
▪ Action planning support from your district SEL
Coordinator [insert name]
▪ Monthly [recommended] virtual group discussions to
collaborate with SEL teams from other schools
▪ 15 continuing education credits for all participants
who complete the course [if your district is offering this]

Please direct any questions to [Sample Name, sname@schooldistrict.org.]

To participate, please submit the application below by (date):

School:

Names and roles of team members who will take the course (list 5-10, including at least one administrator):

Why is this the right time for your school to participate in this learning community?

Please describe any SEL implementation efforts that are already underway at your school:

What do you hope to change/improve in your community with schoolwide SEL?

REGISTER YOUR PARTICIPANTS

Once you have a list of all your course participants, each will need to be registered
individually at the course registration page linked here. You can have one person register
and pay for your full group, or you can ask participants to register themselves.

▪ One person registers the full group

You will need the following information about your participants to register them:
o First and last name
o Email address
o Job title
o Primary work setting
o The week you would like course access to begin (course access is for 16
weeks)

▪ Participants register themselves

If you would like to prepay for your group with a purchase order or credit card,
contact us at professionallearning@casel.org first, and we will send you a unique
coupon code. When your participants register with this code, they will not be
charged or asked for payment information.

Upon registration, participants will be asked when they would like their course
access to begin (course access is for 16 weeks).

If you want all participants to begin the course at the same time, tell them which
week to choose.

On the Friday before they have selected to begin the course, registered participants will
receive an automated message at the email address used for registration, inviting them to
create a password and sign in. From there, they can begin using the course.

If your participants have any difficulty locating this email, you can let them know that the
sender is noreply@notify.casel.org, and the subject line is You are now enrolled in
Leading Schoolwide SEL (On Demand)!
 Suggested agendas and pacing for group discussion

The course is divided into five chapters consisting of videos, text, slideshows, discussion
boards, and quizzes. Chapters conclude with CASEL’s recommended Priority Actions that
build up to a basic action plan by the end of the final chapter.

The entire course will take about 12-15 hours to complete. It is designed for individual
users to complete at their own pace, pausing between chapters to come together with
other team members from their school community to complete the Priority Actions.

Participants will use a workbook (available as a writeable PDF or a Word document; it can
also be printed) to complete activities and record their thinking throughout each chapter.
Additionally, there are prompts for discussion and sharing throughout the course.

GROUP DISCUSSION RECOMMENDATIONS

Individual school teams - Schedule time for group discussion between each
chapter. This will create and ongoing collaborative space to work through
Priority Actions.

+ Supporting multiple school teams - Don’t forget to schedule time for

cross-campus discussion as well to share action steps and ideas, collaborate
on challenges and questions, and coordinate efforts.

SUGGESTED MEETING AGENDA FOR A SINGLE SCHOOL TEAM

15 Participants take turns sharing a key takeaway from the chapter or a highlight of the
min. work they completed in their workbook.
The group discusses the reflection questions provided in the Priority Actions section of
30
the workbook and surfaces other outstanding questions. Note: Questions can be posted in
min. discussion forums within the course. CASEL and other participants will see these questions and respond.
Participants complete a section of the Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric
15
individually, then share their responses and work together to identify rubric elements
min.
that are most relevant for their school at this moment in time.
60 Participants collaborate on the chapter’s action planning step and prepare to gather
min. input from the broader school community to complete it.
 SUGGESTED MEETING AGENDA FOR A MULTIPLE-SCHOOL DISCUSSION

Representatives from each campus summarize their work on the Priority Actions from
30 the most recent chapter (reflections, most relevant rubric elements, and a draft of their
min. action planning step).

Participants submit themes, topics, or broad questions they would like to explore in
more depth.

15 • Provide time for participants to think while you pass out paper/markers or share a
min. virtual whiteboard for them to write their ideas.
• Work together to prioritize an appropriate number of topics so that the larger
group can divide into groups of about 2-6 people.

Participants join a small group of their choice.

• If in person, write each topic on a poster and set them up around the room.
• If virtual, create and name breakout rooms for each topic and allow participants
to choose their breakout room.
20-60 • As the facilitator, don’t over-structure these conversations—just pop in and listen
and learn from what is being expressed.
min.
• Participants can either move freely from space to space to join conversations that
interest them, or you can designate times where participants should choose to
join a new group or stay where they are (e.g., every 20 minutes).

Note: For more detail on facilitating this kind of meeting, this blog describes the basics of an “unconference.”

Bring the full group back together.

• For each topic, invite participants to share any big ideas, “aha moments,” or
suggestions for how the group members can support one another, collaborate, or
coordinate work across campuses.
15
• There may only be time for a few to share aloud, so provide an alternate way for
min.
participants to share ideas and suggestions in writing.
• Send any ideas and suggestions submitted in writing out to the group after the
meeting, along with any steps you will be taking to support their needs or
organize opportunities for additional collaboration.

CASEL recommends using the SEL 3 Signature Practices in every meeting. Be sure to build
in time for a welcoming activity and an optimistic closure!
 SUGGESTED PACING

Facilitators should plan to host at least four meetings for group reflection and
collaboration. Participants have access to the course for 16 weeks2 and will be able to
choose which week their course access will begin when they register. Here is a suggestion
of how to pace the course:

Participants complete individually:

Week
▪ CHAPTER 1: Establish a Shared Understanding of Schoolwide SEL
1-2 ▪ CHAPTER 2: Build Foundational Support and Plan
First Group Meeting—Recommended points for discussion:
▪ Which of the 10 indicators of schoolwide SEL stands out at this moment as you think about the year?
Week Why?
3 ▪ After reviewing the Focus Area 1 Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric and the survey results,
what makes sense to focus on this year?
▪ Develop an SEL vision statement or plan a process to work with the school community to write one.
Week Participants complete individually:
4-5 ▪ CHAPTER 3: Strengthening SEL for Adults
Second Group Meeting—Recommended points for discussion:
▪ Share thoughts on how to set up foundational learning experiences about SEL for different groups
Week (teachers, non-teaching staff, families, partners, etc.) within the school community.
6 ▪ After reviewing the Focus Area 2 Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric, what makes sense to focus
on this year?
▪ Draft a goal statement for strengthening adult SEL.
Week Participants complete individually:
7-8 ▪ CHAPTER 4: Promote SEL for Students
Third Group Meeting—Recommended points for discussion:
▪ Share ways the school community is already promoting or could promote SEL through explicit
Week instruction, school climate and culture, or schoolwide practices and academic instruction.
9 ▪ After reviewing the Focus Area 3 Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric, what makes sense to focus
on this year?
▪ Draft a goal statement for promoting student SEL.
Week Participants complete individually:
10-11 ▪ CHAPTER 5: Implement Your Plan
Fourth Group Meeting—Recommended points for discussion:
▪ What data do we already collect related to our SEL goals, and what else will we need to measure
Week progress?
12 ▪ Overall, which elements within the Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric underlie our best next
steps?
▪ Plan action steps to move toward each SEL goal this year.
Schedule regular visits at the campus you are supporting or convene SEL representatives
from each campus throughout the year to follow up.
Ongoing ▪ Are you making progress toward your SEL goals?
▪ Would you rate your school differently on any part of the Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric?
▪ What have been the biggest challenges? What have been the biggest successes?
▪ What adjustments have you made/will you make to your SEL action plan?

2 Users who agree to complete a follow-up survey in the coming year will have their access extended for an additional four weeks at no cost.
Review engagement data for your group

There are several ways you can learn how your group has engaged with the course.
Consider using these data sources to stay informed about your group’s progress and what
support they may need.

COURSE COMPLETION

As a participant takes the course, they will click a Complete & Continue button at the
bottom of each screen. This allows them to leave the course at any point and come back at
the same spot; it also tracks the percent of the course they have completed. When they
complete 100% of the course, they will receive a link to their certificate of completion. You
can ask participants to download and send this record to you.

WORKBOOK, RUBRIC, AND PRIORITY ACTIONS

Participants will download a workbook in the initial chapter. This workbook serves as a
record of their thinking and progress on key steps that will build up to a basic SEL
implementation plan by the end of the course.

By looking at this workbook together when you meet with participants, you will gain an
understanding of where they are in the planning process and what challenges they may
need your support with.

▪ The workbook includes the Schoolwide SEL Implementation Rubric. Ask participants
to share their rubric results as they work through the course. This is a marker of
progress through the course but more importantly it provides useful baseline data
about the school you are supporting. If you are supporting multiple schools, this can
also help you make connections among schools that are focused on similar aspects
of schoolwide SEL.

▪ The workbook provides templates for Priority Actions: an SEL vision, specific SEL
goals, and action steps with an aligned plan to track progress. Ask participants to
share these “deliverables” with you as they complete them or, if you are able, meet
with them to lend support with the Priority Actions. This will give you a clear picture
of what their school community is aiming to accomplish with SEL and how you can
follow up with them after they complete the course.

For groups larger than 50, additional course customization options are available.
Contact schoolguide@casel.org to inquire.