Teachers’ Perspectives on Social-Emotional Learning Benefits for Students with Emotional and Behavior Disorders

The problem addressed in this study was that there is a lack of knowledge about middle school special education teachers’ perceptions on the benefits of social emotional learning (SEL) strategies for improving the behavior of students with emotional behavior disorder (EBD) in a self-contained setting. Comer’s concepts on social learning served as the conceptual framework for this study. The research questions explored middle school self- contained special education teachers' perceptions of the effectiveness of SEL with middle school EDB students on their behavior, and the middle school self-contained special education teachers' perceptions of the effectiveness of SEL with middle school EBD students on their emotional well-being. Data for this study came from semi-structured interviews from 15 middle school special education teachers of students with EBD. Data analysis was conducted with open coding, axial coding, and thematic analysis. Results of this study produced the following themes: SEL was not found to be effective in reducing behavior problems because teachers need more training, SEL was not found to be effective in reducing behavior problems because teachers needed a consistent curriculum to implement and track behavior progress, and SEL was found to be effective with increasing students emotional well-being because student’s classroom engagement and relationships with peers increased. This study can contribute to positive social change by recognizing both the limitations and benefits of SEL for EDB students.