Effective SEL Program Implementation: Exploring Leadership and Dosage on the Growth of Social-Emotional Competence

Introduction: Research has shown that well-implemented social emotional learning (SEL) programs can lead to positive youth outcomes (Durlak et al., 2011). In order for SEL programs to be well-implemented in routine practice, leadership must provide organizational support for implementation (Aarons, Ehrhart, & Farahnak, 2014) and implementers (e.g., teachers) must deliver adequate amounts (dosage) of intervention (Durlak & DuPre, 2008). In this study, we first examine the extent to which a SEL program enhanced students’ social-emotional competence. We then test whether or not teacher-perceived leadership indicators as well as traditional (i.e., lesson-based) and non-traditional (i.e., strategy-based) dosage indicators directly contribute to youth outcomes.

Methods: Data come from a quasi-experimental study of TOOLBOX (Collin, 2015), an SEL program that promotes children’s social-emotional development through the instruction and reinforcement of 12 tools (e.g., Breathing Tool, Courage Tool). The sample includes 1,625 K-2 students nested within 79 classes and six schools, with two schools (n=554) implementing TOOLBOX Standard (lesson-emphasis), two schools (n=496) implementing TOOLBOX Primer (strategies-emphasis), and two schools (n=496) not implementing TOOLBOX. Implementation leadership was measured by teacher report using an existing leadership scale (Aarons et al., 2014). TOOLBOX dosage was measured by teacher report on lesson-based indicators (e.g., number of lessons taught) and strategy-based indicators (e.g., asking students what tools they could use in the moment). Students’ social-emotional competence was measured using the DESSA-Mini (Naglieri et al., 2011), a teacher-completed behavior rating scale. Controlling for baseline DESSA scores, random intercept models with fixed slopes were estimated in a multi-level framework.  

Results: There were no baseline differences in initial DESSA scores by intervention condition. TOOLBOX students, across both Standard and Primer conditions, had higher DESSA-Mini scores at mid-year (p<.05) and year-end (p<.001) relative to comparison students. Within the TOOLBOX condition, there was no difference in DESSA-Mini scores between Standard and Primer conditions. Several implementation leadership and dosage variables were significantly related to DESSA-Mini scores. When teachers perceived implementation leadership to be more supportive (β=2.42, p<.05) and perseverant (β=2.55, p<.05) at year-end, their students were likely to have higher DESSA-Mini scores at year-end. Supportive leadership and perseverant leadership explained 11.31% and 8.67% of student outcomes, respectively. When teachers taught more lessons by year-end (β=.44, p<.05), reinforced TOOLBOX more outside of lessons at mid-year (β=1.41, p<.05), and used TOOLBOX more frequently to improve their own lives at mid-year (β=2.17, p<.05), their students had higher DESSA-Mini scores at year-end. The number of lessons taught, the number of times referencing TOOLBOX, and the frequency of using TOOLBOX to improve teachers’ personal lives explained 8.36%, 19.39%, and 21.55% of student outcomes, respectively.

Implications: These results suggest that TOOLBOX can enhance youth social-emotional competence. Consistent with the literature, school leadership played an important role in student outcomes. Dosage was important regardless of dose form, such that directives to emphasize either manualized lessons or strategies did not make a significant difference in youth outcomes.