The Complicated Rise of Social Emotional Learning in the United States: Implications for Contemporary Policy and Practice

In this article examining the history of social emotional learning (SEL) in the United States, Kelsey A. Dalrymple and Joel M. Phillips use an intellectual history approach to demonstrate that the development of contemporary SEL was significantly influenced by different sociocultural, political, and economic factors. They highlight how metaphorical wars waged by presidential administrations from the 1960s to the 1990s shaped public policy and societal attitudes toward minoritized and marginalized groups and describe how education became a key strategy to battle many of the perceived ills and behaviors associated with those groups. Outlining ongoing debates on SEL, they argue that acknowledging the racialized and socioeconomic roots of SEL can help inform contemporary policy and practice and also educate advocates and critics alike on the ways SEL may serve to address and/or perpetuate long-standing social injustices.