A Mixed Methods Study of the Relationship Between Individualized Lesson Planning and Social-Emotional Outcomes in Young Children

This mixed methods study examines the relationship between different components and characteristics of individualized lesson plans and children’s social-emotional outcomes to develop a profile of effective planning. Sixty-one individualized SEL lesson plans written and implemented by 20 experienced early childhood educators from a large city in the northeastern United States are examined to understand the types and difficulty level of behavioral challenges teachers addressed, the types and specificity of SEL skills taught and the specificity of teaching strategies implemented. By quantizing qualitative data through a process of descriptive, pattern and then magnitude coding, the study then uses correlational analyses to examine the relationship between successful child outcomes following instruction and the rated components of the lesson plans. Findings reveal that lesson plan alignment is most strongly related to successful social-emotional outcomes (rho coefficient.69), followed by teaching strategy specificity (rho.51). The difficulty level of the children’s behavior being addressed by the lesson plans and the teachers’ ability to list SEL skills with specificity as learning objectives were not significantly related to later student success. Assigning individualized SEL lesson planning to in-service teachers resulted in at least partially successful child outcomes 59% of the time, showcasing how teachers need more systematic practice and training to refine this important skill.