Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy
Submit for a Special Issue of Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Policy and Practice
Integrating Social, Emotional, and Academic Learning: Knowledge, Innovation, and Transformation
Proposal due: 15 February 2025
Submission deadline: 30 September 2025
The peer-reviewed journal Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy (ISSN: 2773-2339) is soliciting letters of intent to prepare a manuscript for consideration in a forthcoming special issue entitled “Integrating Social, Emotional, and Academic Learning: Knowledge, Innovation, and Transformation.” This special issue is designed in relation to the growing interest in how social and emotional learning can be integrated with academics.
Guest editors:
- Sara Rimm-Kaufman, University of Virginia
- Cheyeon Ha, Postdoctoral Associate in the Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine
- Sophia Hwang, Assistant Professor in Community Psychology at University of Maryland, Baltimore County
- Helen Watt, Professor of Educational Psychology, The University of Sydney
Special issue information:
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) plays a key role in healthy student development and academic success. Yet, integrating SEL and academics in school and out-of-school environments seems to be an elusive goal. This special issue seeks to explore the relation between SEL and academic learning and invites contributions that examine how SEL can be woven into educational experiences across various learning settings, from early childhood to post-secondary. By investigating approaches that support both social and emotional and academic growth, we aim to expand knowledge on strategies, programs, and policies that leverage synergies between SEL and academic learning and address students’ needs.
This call for papers encourages submissions that addresses key questions and gaps in our knowledge on SEL and academic integration. Potential topics include:
Identifying Effective SEL Strategies within Academic Content: What SEL approaches are most compatible with different academic subjects, such as language arts, mathematics, social studies, science, and the arts? How can SEL skills be cultivated within academic disciplines to enhance engagement and personal development?
Evidence-Based Practices for SEL and Academic Co-Delivery: What research-based practices and interventions have shown success in fostering SEL alongside academic achievement? How do educators balance SEL skill-building with academic objectives within time-limited instructional periods?
Measurement and Assessment of Integrated SEL and Academic Outcomes: What methodologies, tools, or indicators best capture the ways SEL can be integrated with academic learning? How are academic, social and emotional outcomes measured differently in the presence of this integration?
Teacher Preparation and Professional Development for SEL Integration: How can teacher education programs and ongoing professional development better equip educators to seamlessly incorporate SEL into their instructional practices? What specific skills and competencies are required?
SEL and Equity in Academic Settings: In what ways can integration of SEL practices and academics promote equity in classrooms? What role do cultural competence and responsiveness play in achieving inclusive, equitable SEL outcomes across academic subjects?
Addressing Barriers to SEL-Academic Integration: What challenges exist for educators attempting to integrate SEL into academic subjects? How do factors such as curriculum constraints, educator workload, and classroom environment impact SEL implementation within academic instruction? Are there ways of creating integrated approaches that are systemic?
We welcome submissions from researchers, practitioners, and policymakers aimed at advancing work focused on the synergies between SEL and academic environments. We invite manuscripts that describe SEL and academic integration to promote supportive, inclusive, and academically engaging experiences for every student. In this special issue of Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, we will bring together original, creative, and rigorous papers from multiple disciplines that use a variety of methodologies. The resulting special issue will focus on growth in the field of SEL and academic integration, introduce forward-thinking innovations that support SEL integration with academics and shed light on new possible directions in the U.S. and internationally. Toward these goals, we encourage submissions for four types of papers:
- Original Research: The Original Research section includes empirical articles that have direct application to SEL and academic integration practice and policy. The Journal will consider articles that use a range of methodologies, including randomized controlled trials (RCTs), program evaluations, meta-analyses, descriptive or longitudinal studies, psychometric evidence, qualitative studies, and mixed-methods studies. The Journal is particularly interested in publishing articles that have direct application of and relevance to practice and policy. Manuscripts must not exceed 32 pages, inclusive of tables, figures, and references (excluding the title page, abstract and impact statement).
- Perspectives: The Perspectives section includes reviews of research and articles that frame, conceptualize, and integrate multiple viewpoints, or advance new insights on research, practice, or policy focused on SEL and academic integration. This section includes articles that describe newly emerging issues or challenges in the field, syntheses of existing research, scoping reviews, systematic reviews, and new perspectives on topics related to SEL and academic integration research, programs, practices, or policy. This section will not accept articles on new research findings. Manuscripts must not exceed 32 pages, inclusive of tables, figures, and references (excluding the title page, abstract and impact statement).
- SEL in Practice: The SEL in Practice section will include articles that advance and improve practice through the voices of practitioners and others working to advance the implementation and sustainability of SEL and academic integration in school settings. This section includes articles describing scientific insights along with strong practical implications that practitioners can apply in their work. Articles may call attention to exemplary practices, for example, ways that district SEL coordinators work together with Dual Language Learner Coordinators to identify social, emotional, and academic supports for youth who are new to English. Manuscripts must be between 8-20 pages, inclusive of tables, figures, and references (excluding the title page, abstract and impact statement).
- SEL in Policy: The SEL in Policy section will include articles that seek to translate policy implications of SEL research; and explore the ways in which policies at the school or institution, district/community, state, federal, and international levels influence SEL practice, promote improvements to SEL practice and policy; and elevate examples of successful adoption and implementation of policy that advances SEL and academic integration. This section will highlight the voices of those working to advance SEL policy and policymaking in education, professional development, and youth development settings and will seek contributions that represent a variety of viewpoints and experiences. The Journal especially encourages submissions by authors who have recently published policy-relevant reports and others who are doing work at the intersection of SEL and policy. Manuscripts must be between 8-20 pages, inclusive of tables, figures, and references (excluding the title page, abstract and impact statement).
Manuscript submission information:
Authors interested in contributing a manuscript for this special issue are asked to first submit a letter of intent via an online portal which includes the following: (1) tentative title; (2) brief description of approximately 400 to 500 words; (3) brief justification of how the proposed submission contributes to one or more of the aims of the special issue; and (4) author affiliations and contact information for the Corresponding Author. The associate editors will review the letters of intent to ensure a fit with the special issue and work to provide an inclusive set of papers that best advance SEL research, practice, and policy.
Letters of intent must be submitted online by February 15, 2025, using this https://uic.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_dcfm9x3MYtqWgwC
Authors will be notified by April 7th, 2025, whether they will be invited to submit their full manuscript for publication in the special issue. Full manuscripts will be required to be submitted online through a unique author link by September 30th, 2025. Manuscripts will be sent out for full masked peer review in accordance with the standard Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy review guidelines. Please visit the journal website and read the Guidelines for Authors for more information about publishing in Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy. In addition, please note the special guidance for practice and policy manuscripts which can be found in the Guidelines for Authors.
Article publishing fees for open access will be waived for all accepted manuscripts.
Questions concerning letters of intent can be directed to the managing editor, Dr. Denise Buote at dbuote2@uic.edu
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- All articles in this special issue will be reviewed by no fewer than two independent experts to ensure the quality, originality and novelty of the work published.
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