Mental Health Work and Social Emotional Learning Within Schools
Hailey Schramm （ Unaffiliated Researcher ）
https://doi.org/10.37155/2972-3086-0501-5Abstract
There is a gap in the literature surrounding preventive mental health care in education. This paper addresses the civic issue of mental health work and social emotional learning (SEL) within schools in the United States (US). I will demonstrate the ways in which social emotional learning can support the diverse needs of school-based populations while ethically supporting students, their families, and the larger community. Professional development focusing on social emotional learning, paired with extra support and oversight, could be a potential solution for closing this gap. The paper answers an important question: Can social emotional learning act as preventive care in US schools?
Keywords
Psychology; Social Emotional Learning; Mental Health; K-12 Education; Teaching PedagogyFull Text
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[16]．The National Center for Education Statistics. (n.d.) School pulse panel: Surveying high-priority, education-related topics. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/spp/results.asp
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[2]．Adolescent Behaviors and Experiences Survey [ABES]. (2022). Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from https://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/data/abes.htm
[3]．Burroughs, M. D., & Barkauskas, N. J., (2017). Educating the whole child: Social-emotional learning and ethics education. Ethics and Education, 12(2), 218-232.
[4]．Coburn, C. E. (2003). Rethinking scale: Moving beyond numbers to deep and lasting change. Educational Researcher, 32(6), 3-12.
[5]．Cohen, J. (2006). Social, emotional, ethical, and academic education: Creating a climate for learning, participation in democracy, and well-being. Harvard Educational Review, 76(2), 201-237.
[6]．Divecha, D., & Brackett, M. (2020). Rethinking school-based bullying prevention through the lens of social and emotional learning: A bioecological perspective. International journal of Bullying Prevention, 2(2), 93-113.
[7]．Gee, B., Wilson, J., Clarke, T., Farthing, S., Carroll, B., Jackson, C., ... & Notley, C. (2021). Delivering mental health support within schools and colleges–a thematic synthesis of barriers and facilitators to implementation of indicated psychological interventions for adolescents. Child and Adolescent Mental Health, 26(1), 34-46.
[8]．HealthCare.gov. (n.d.). Term: Preventive services. U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Retrieved from https://www.healthcare.gov/glossary/preventive-services/
[9]．Lawlor, M. S. (2016). Mindfulness and social emotional learning (SEL): A conceptual framework. In Handbook of Mindfulness in Education (pp. 65-80). Springer, New York, NY.
[10]．Levinson, M. & Fay, J. (2019). Democratic discord in schools: Cases and commentaries in educational ethics. Harvard Education Press.
[11]．Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. (n.d.). Terms: Ethical and moral. Retrieved from https://www.merriam-webster.com/
[12]．National Alliance on Mental Illness [NAMI]. (n.d.). Mental health in schools. Retrieved from https://nami.org/Advocacy/Policy-Priorities/Improving-Health/Mental-Health-in-Schools
[13]．Responsive Classroom. (n.d.). Created in collaboration with CASEL. Retrieved from https://www.responsiveclassroom.org/about/principles-practices/
[14]．The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning [CASEL]. (n.d.). What does the research say? Demand for SEL is on the rise, and it is easy to see why: SEL makes a difference. Retrieved from https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/what-does-the-research-say/
[15]．The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning [CASEL]. (n.d.). What is the CASEL framework? Retrieved from https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/what-is-the-casel-framework/#social-awareness
[16]．The National Center for Education Statistics. (n.d.) School pulse panel: Surveying high-priority, education-related topics. Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/spp/results.asp
[17]. World Health Organization Fact Sheets. (2025). Term: Mental health. Retrieved from https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-health-strengthening-our-response
Copyright © 2026 Hailey Schramm
Publishing time:2026-01-29
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License