Across existing research literature and among arts educators there is widespread belief that artistic disciplines including music, dance, theatre, visual arts, literary arts, and media arts have a positive effect on children's and adolescents' social-emotional development. This project investigates the relationship between arts education and…

Students with gifts and talents perform--or have the capability to perform--at higher levels compared to others of the same age, experience, and environment in one or more domains. They require modification(s) to their educational experience(s) to learn and realize their potential. Student with gifts and talents: (1) Come from all racial, ethnic,…

We illustrate the application of mixture IRT [item response theory] models to evaluate the possibility of respondent confusion due to the negative wording of certain items on a social-emotional learning (SEL) assessment. Using actual student self-report ratings on four social-emotional learning scales collected from students in grades 3-12 from…

Although there is a robust body of literature studying targets for academic indicators within school quality systems few studies explore target setting for non-academic indicators. Focusing on elementary schools within the CORE districts, we investigate how moving performance targets for non-academic indicators affects school quality ratings. We…

While the importance of social-emotional learning for student success is well established, educators and researchers have less knowledge and agreement about which social-emotional skills are most important for students and how these skills distribute across student subgroups. Using a rich longitudinal dataset of 221,840 fourth through seventh…

This study evaluates how teacher report measures align with different conceptualizations of children's social-emotional development. Leveraging seven teacher report measures of social competence and behavioral regulation in a predominantly low-income, population-based rural sample of four-year-old children (n = 828), model fit and validity were…

Social and emotional learning (SEL) has been defined in various ways. One of the most commonly cited models, that of the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), defines SEL as "the process through which students and adults acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills necessary to understand…

Training in social and emotional skills is critical for success, both in school and life. The lack of funding for programs and trained, skilled professionals leaves many children without the essential tools required to form emotional coping strategies and navigate social relationships. An Intelligent Tutoring System (ITS) is an effective tool that…

Nurture groups aim to meet the developmental needs of vulnerable children identified as having Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs. Past research has highlighted the need to explore and explain the practitionerchild relationship in nurture groups. In this research, five nurture group practitioners from Key Stage 1 (KS1) nurture groups…

Conoley, Powers, and Gutkin (2020) called for an increased emphasis on models of psychological service delivery that are primarily indirect, adult-focused, and geared toward systems-level change in the schools. They asserted that research in school psychology should not focus on the problems of individual children and youth but address the…

This qualitative study explored preschool teacher beliefs and practices in relationship to observed classroom quality and student outcomes. A phenomenological approach framed the design of the research collected from seven preschool teachers in a large urban school district in Western NY. Teachers were asked two questions about student learning…

Recess in the United States is decidedly limited in elementary schools, despite numerous research findings that support unstructured play as a vehicle for development across multiple domains. It is widely understood that recess breaks promote prosocial behaviors, physical activity, and attentiveness in class. However, few researchers in the United…

Interest in both the objective dimension and the subjective dimension of summer camp experiences has grown among camp scholars. As a building block for understanding subjective elements of summer camp experiences, discrete defining moments may provide insights into linkages between what program providers deliver and the experiences that youth…

Although the social-emotional competence of preservice early childhood professionals (ECPs) has been associated with the quality of their interactions with young children, there is limited understanding of these associations during preservice training. Utilizing a sample of students with career goals in early childhood (N=473), we examined the…

Background: The 4-week-long College Orientation Workshop (COW) is an experiential education program that combines physical and mental challenges with classroom instruction to promote self-confidence, self-control, wellness, and life success in promising male youth facing challenges to reaching their full potential. Purpose: This was an exploratory…