Abstract
Emerging research from the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates a negative impact on children’s mental health and a need to support youth in developing healthy coping mechanisms (Lee, 2020; Singh et al., 2020). Social emotional learning (SEL) is a process known to significantly benefit youth in many ways, including an increased ability to manage stress, depression, and problem-solve (Durlak et al., 2011). Considering these benefits, SEL offers potential reprieve to children coping with the pandemic. The present study is a quantitative and qualitative assessment of an SEL intervention delivered in Miami-Dade County with early adolescents. This study sought to improve youth’s social emotional skills and knowledge, contribute to understandings of youth’s experience in and perceptions of SEL programs, and incorporate cultural and contextual factors into SEL curriculum. The intervention was delivered in a school and a summer camp with 74 early adolescents using traditional in-person instruction methods as well as digital tools to support hybrid learning. Quantitative results showed that this SEL intervention was associated with improvements in youth’s social, emotional, and academic self-efficacy, as well as increases in SEL knowledge. Emerging themes characterizing participants’ perceptions of the program were described in detail, along with descriptions of how participants related SEL material to their own lives. These findings have implications for improving future SEL interventions and providing children and adolescents with culturally responsive, locally situated social and emotional support.