Integrating Socio-Emotional Learning into Teaching Practice: Evidence from a Field Experiment in Spanish Schools

08.12.2025 14:15 – 15:30

INSTITUTE OF ECONOMICS AND ECONOMETRICS SEMINAR

(Jointly with Caterina Calsamiglia, Giacomo de Giorgi, Andrea Salvati and Ece Yagman)

Abstract:

Socio-emotional skills are key determinants of learning and long-run success, yet teaching them is difficult when classroom time and teacher attention are fixed. Structured pedagogy offers a promising way to guide how teachers integrate socio-emotional learning (SEL) into regular instruction but, by changing what teachers emphasize, it may also reallocate effort across students and skills, with uncertain implications for equity. We study this trade-off in a clustered randomized controlled trial involving 114 teachers and 2,680 secondary school students in Spain. Treated teachers received training, mentoring, and educational technology tools to embed SEL practices into their daily teaching. The program substantially improved classroom practices: students rated teachers as more caring and supportive, and teachers reported spending less time managing behavior. Average treatment effects on academic achievement were modest, but varied sharply by socioeconomic background. Among lower-SES students, absenteeism fell significantly and perceived teacher support increased; among higher-SES students, grades improved selectively, especially in arts. Socio-emotional skill gains appeared in some domains, but inconsistently across constructs. Our results suggest that structured SEL pedagogy improves engagement and teaching quality, but by reallocating teacher attention, it shifts the margins along which educational equity evolves.

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