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There is a sense of urgency among P-12 educators to dismantle systemic school-based racism and radically transform conditions for teaching and learning in ways that advance equity, social justice, and social-emotional learning (SEL). This transformation cannot be achieved through typical top-down, short-term approaches to school improvement or professional development. In this article we explain how, in an urban school district working to bring Digital Literacy and Computer Science (DLCS) to all students, robust professional learning communities (PLCs) have been leveraged to redress racism and led to changes in teacher mind-sets, more equitable classroom practices, and positive social-emotional learning outcomes. We explain how routine school improvement initiatives, such as stand-alone professional development events, fail to address racist beliefs and behaviors, and are inadequate to the task of advancing SEL. We describe the attributes and outcomes of effective PLCs, including the effects that PLC participation may have on teacher capacity to make anti-racist changes to curriculum and instruction, and advance the social, emotional, and academic learning of all students. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An introduction to articles published within the issue is presented in which the editor discusses topics on the impact of social emotional learning (SEL) on Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), the deconstruction of racism in schools, and the training of school leaders on SEL skills.

COVID-19 has increased the emphasis on social emotional learning (SEL) in our schools. Unfortunately, the current approaches to SEL can often perpetuate racial hierarchies, apply a deficit lens toward students, and emphasize the need for student-level change while ignoring the historical, social, and cultural influences that created and actively maintain oppressive environments through which students are required to navigate. Therefore, the authors offer an Antiracist Social Emotional Justice Learning (ASEJL) approach for educators to apply to promote freedom and justice for students through empowerment, hope, and joy. The AEJL approach emphasizes applying Critical Theoretical Frameworks, Anti-Bias Building Blocks, Student and Family Voice, Strengths Based Empowerment, and Homeplace to combat the current colorblind approach to SEL while cultivating the interests and talents of students and families from diverse backgrounds. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

When inequitable situations arise, principals with strong SEL skills have a clear understanding of social emotional learning implementation to support teachers and are prepared to expose implicit bias with difficult conversations that allow teachers to examine personal beliefs and behaviors. In this article, we outline how to support SEL learning with a focus on deconstructing racist structures in K-12 education. Using SEL competencies as the guide with race at the forefront, this article explores these dimensions while offering practical strategies to implement in schools. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As youth in the United States continue to become diverse, it is important for the practices educators adopt to be inclusive and antiracist. Youth Participatory Action Research (YPAR) is a pedagogy that aligns with the social emotional learning competencies and the tenets of antiracist education. We propose that school counselors are best positioned to support efforts to implement YPAR in schools. The following article provides 2 case examples of the use of YPAR: one in a school counseling small group and the other in a classroom co-facilitated with a teacher. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Evidence suggests teachers, intentionally and unintentionally, perpetuate racist practices in the classroom affecting students' grades, engagement, opportunities, and mental health. Over time these collective experiences result in generational academic trauma. Within educational settings, school counselors (SCs) work in a myriad of ways to dismantle racist practices. One of the primary tasks of SCs is to promote whole-student wellness by providing equitable opportunities for all students to develop academically, socially, emotionally, and in postsecondary planning. However, it is unreasonable to expect students to flourish in these areas if educational staff, specifically teachers, do not embody, model, and promote culturally affirming social and emotional wellness. Centered in educator SEL, authors propose an integrated and culturally-affirming teacher/school counselor consultation model in which SCs work collaboratively with teachers to champion equity and student success. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]