1
WGU D180 TASK 4: EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
(OPM2) |PASSED ON FIRST
ATTEMPT |LATEST UPDATE WITH COMPLETE
SOLUTION
AT WESTERN GOVERNORS UNIVERSIT
Determining Research and Data Analysis Methods
Mary Kathleen Crinklaw
MSCIN Program, Western Governors University
D180: Educational Research (OPM2)
Course Instructor: Lori Ramey
Submission Date: …….
, 2
A. Restatement
A.1. Research Topic
The topic for my proposed capstone research is Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). The
topic aligns with the field of curriculum and instruction because SEL encompasses the skills that
students must acquire to succeed as students and citizens. When SEL is included in the
curriculum, an environment that improves learning outcomes is fostered. SEL directly impacts
teaching practices and learning outcomes, as stated by Durlak et al. (2011). When SEL is
implemented, student’s social-emotional skills improve, as well as their academic performance.
When schools add structured SEL lessons to the curriculum, better behavior occurs, student
engagement increases, and academic performance improves.
SEL is essential to the field of curriculum and instruction because students who
received social-emotional instruction had an average 11% increase in their academic
achievement. This shows that SEL actively improves academic learning, making it an important
part of curricular design (Mahoney, 2018).
A.2. Problem Statement
The problem is that teachers at my school do not implement SEL in their classrooms. The
impact is that students have limited access to SEL skills. This may be occurring because
teachers have not had SEL implementation training.
A.3. Type of Capstone
My proposed capstone research is an applied research project where I propose to create a
professional development program.
WGU D180 TASK 4: EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
(OPM2) |PASSED ON FIRST
ATTEMPT |LATEST UPDATE WITH COMPLETE
SOLUTION
AT WESTERN GOVERNORS UNIVERSIT
Determining Research and Data Analysis Methods
Mary Kathleen Crinklaw
MSCIN Program, Western Governors University
D180: Educational Research (OPM2)
Course Instructor: Lori Ramey
Submission Date: …….
, 2
A. Restatement
A.1. Research Topic
The topic for my proposed capstone research is Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). The
topic aligns with the field of curriculum and instruction because SEL encompasses the skills that
students must acquire to succeed as students and citizens. When SEL is included in the
curriculum, an environment that improves learning outcomes is fostered. SEL directly impacts
teaching practices and learning outcomes, as stated by Durlak et al. (2011). When SEL is
implemented, student’s social-emotional skills improve, as well as their academic performance.
When schools add structured SEL lessons to the curriculum, better behavior occurs, student
engagement increases, and academic performance improves.
SEL is essential to the field of curriculum and instruction because students who
received social-emotional instruction had an average 11% increase in their academic
achievement. This shows that SEL actively improves academic learning, making it an important
part of curricular design (Mahoney, 2018).
A.2. Problem Statement
The problem is that teachers at my school do not implement SEL in their classrooms. The
impact is that students have limited access to SEL skills. This may be occurring because
teachers have not had SEL implementation training.
A.3. Type of Capstone
My proposed capstone research is an applied research project where I propose to create a
professional development program.
