SEL Screener Information for Families
Families can access information about how the SEL screener is delivered in schools and how to understand students' SEL screener data.
Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Screener
Students use the SEL Screener twice a year to share their perspectives on how well their school and community help them develop skills they need to succeed
Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) believes in supporting social and emotional learning (SEL) for all students. SEL helps students develop the necessary skills to succeed in various aspects of life. In FCPS, students use a tool called a "screener" to think about their own SEL skills and experiences at school. This screener helps them evaluate how well their school community makes them feel valued, included, and supported.
The screener works by asking questions or presenting statements that students can think about and respond to. Want to learn more about the screener? This webpage includes information about what the screener is, how it benefits our students, and how screener results are used to create a positive and inclusive learning environment. Learn more about SEL in FCPS.
About the SEL Screener in FCPS
Learn how the SEL Screener is used in Fairfax County Public Schools
FCPS collaborates with Panorama Education to develop a research-backed SEL Screener. All students in grades 3-12 participate in the screener twice a year, in the fall and spring. The screener is untimed, though it takes most students about 15 minutes to complete. The screener is translated into 13 languages and schools are encouraged to make use of supports such as read-alouds to help students access the screener.
Beginning in the 2023-24 school year, there will be different screener versions for students in grades 3-5 and 6-12.
The updated screener will include the following SEL topics:
- Self-Management & Responsible Decision Making
- Social Awareness & Relationship Skills
- Emotion Regulation
- Supportive Relationships
- Belonging
- Cultural Awareness and Action (grades 6-12 only)
- Challenging Feelings
Each SEL topic listed above will include 4-10 questions per topic. By focusing on fewer topics with more questions, we are able to provide schools with more data to support planning, and provide students with the opportunity to share more about their perspectives. Families can view SEL Screener content for the Grades 3-5 survey and Grades 6-12 survey.
Screener data is used to plan programming for the division, schools, and individual students. Division and school level results, which do not include individual student information, may be used by staff to improve SEL and mental wellness practices. Division and school level results may also be shared with the community to describe the needs of our student body and opportunities for partnership.The SEL Screener makes sure that student voices are heard.
Individual student data is maintained in secure files and databases accessible only to teachers, administrators, staff, and school officials with legitimate educational interests. In partnership with families, staff review this data alongside other information to plan interventions for students with identified needs
Parents and guardians will receive an individualized report regarding their student’s screener results following each assessment window. School staff are available to discuss results with families. View a Family Guide to Understanding SEL Strengths, which includes tips for talking to your student about their results, available mental wellness support for students, and copies of the SEL Screener parent/guardian report and guide.
Parents and guardians who prefer that their child not take part in the SEL Screener can either complete the opt-out in the Parent Digital Consent application or fill out the form at the bottom of the testing notification letter to your child's school.
If you are interested in having your child’s screener data deleted from a previous SEL screener administration, please contact your student’s school.
FCPS shares limited student data with Panorama Education for students participating in the screener. This data includes: student name, student ID, school, student email, grade level, graduation year, gender, ethnicity, Advanced Academic Programs (AAP) status, English learner (EL) status, and special education (SPED) status. If a student is opted out of the screener, FCPS stops sharing new data with Panorama Education. Previous screener results and demographic data remains in the Panorama platform unless a data deletion is requested.
Panorama Education has signed FCPS data confidentiality agreements that ensures they maintain confidentiality of any data they receive. Agreeing to limit the use of student data to only the purpose for which it is collected is one of the requirements of this agreement. Additionally, Panorama Education complies with all applicable federal laws, including Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) and the Protection of Pupil Rights Amendment (PPRA), as well as state and local regulations concerning student data.
FCPS 2023-2030 Strategic Plan Goal 2 emphasizes the importance of highlighting student voice in decision making regarding mental wellness practices, honoring student identities and experiences, and ensuring student safety and well-being in an inclusive school climate and culture. The FCPS Educational Equity Policy further emphasizes the importance of family and community engagement, student agency, and student environments. The SEL Screener is an important tool to help us measure our progress towards these critical goals.
Screener data helps us to understand how students across grade levels, races, ethnicities, and special programs feel about school and how successfully we are supporting them. By asking specifically about students’ school communities, relationships, and experiences related to race and ethnicity, among many other factors, we are better able to highlight successes and target supports where they are most needed.
What Questions Are on the SEL Screener?
Students in grades 3-12 share their voice on the SEL Screener two times a year, answering questions in the fall and again in the spring. View the questions used on each version of the SEL Screener using the buttons below.
Grades 3-5 Survey Questions
Social-Emotional Learning Screener
To better support you, your school and teachers would like to ask you some questions about how you think and feel. Only your teachers, school leaders, and parents or guardians will be able to see your responses. Your responses will not affect your class grades. Please respond honestly—there are no right or wrong answers!
Your Behavior
Please answer the following questions about how you respond to different situations.
1. During the past two weeks, how carefully did you listen to other people's opinions?
| Not carefully at all | A little carefully | Somewhat carefully | Very carefully | Extremely carefully |
2. During the past two weeks, how often did you come to class prepared?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
3. During the past two weeks, how much did you care about other people's feelings?
| Did not care at all | Cared a little bit | Cared somewhat | Cared a lot | Cared a hugeamount |
4. During the past two weeks, how often did you follow directions in class?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
5. During the past two weeks, how well did you get along with students who are different from you?
| Did not get along at all | Got along a little bit | Got along somewhat well | Got along very well | Got along extremely well |
6. During the past two weeks, how often did you get your work done right away, instead of waiting until the last minute?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
7. During the past two weeks, how often did you pay attention in class?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
8. During the past two weeks, how clearly were you able to describe your feelings?
| Not at all clearly | A little clearly | Somewhat clearly | Very clearly | Extremely clearly |
9. During the past two weeks, when you were working on your own, how often did you stay focused?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
10. During the past two weeks, when others did not agree with you, how respectful were you of their opinions?
| Not at all respectful | A little respectful | Somewhat respectful | Very respectful | Extremely respectful |
11. During the past two weeks, how much were you able to stand up for yourself without putting others down?
| Not at all | A little bit | Somewhat | A lot | A huge amount |
12. During the past two weeks, how often did you allow others to speak without interrupting them?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
13. During the past two weeks, how much were you able to disagree with others without starting an argument?
| Not at all | A little bit | Somewhat | A lot | A huge amount |
14. During the past two weeks, how often did you compliment others' accomplishments?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
Feelings in General
In this section, we are hoping to learn how you experience different emotions that may occur in your life (whether inside or outside of school).
15. How often are you able to pull yourself out of a bad mood?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
16. How often are you able to control your emotions when you need to?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
17. When you get upset, how often can you get yourself to relax?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
18. When things go wrong for you, how calm are you able to stay?
| Not calm at all | A little calm | Somewhat calm | Very calm | Extremely calm |
19. When you get upset, how often do you stop to think before you act?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
Feelings About Being at School
For the following questions, we are interested in learning more about how you think about your school. Please give us your honest opinions so that we can better understand your experience and work to make the school a better place.
20. How well do people at your school understand the kind of person you are?
| Do not understand at all | Understand a little | Understand somewhat | Understand mostly | Completely understand |
21. How much support do the adults at your school give you?
| No support at all | A little bit of support | Some support | A lot of support | A huge amount of support |
22. How much respect do students at your school show you?
| No respect at all | A little bit of respect | Some respect | A lot of respect | A huge amount of respect |
23. When you are at school, how much do you feel like you belong?
| Do not belong at all | Belong a little bit | Belong somewhat | Mostly belong | Completely belong |
Your Feelings
These questions ask about how you’ve been feeling recently. Please respond honestly—there are no right or wrong answers because there are no right or wrong feelings! Your answers will help us better support you and other students, and will not affect your grades or show up on your report card. You can skip any question you don’t feel comfortable answering.
During the past week, how often did you feel _______?
24. mad
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
25. lonely
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
26. sad
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
27. worried
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
Help From Other People
In this section, tell us about how other people help you.
28. Do you have a teacher or other adult from school who you can count on to help you, no matter what?
| No | Yes |
29. Do you have a family member or other adult outside of school who you can count on to help you, no matter what?
| No | Yes |
30. Do you have a friend from school who you can count on to help you, no matter what?
| No | Yes |
Grades 6-12 Survey Questions
Social-Emotional Learning Screener
To better support you, your school and teachers would like to ask you some questions about how you think and feel. Only your teachers, school leaders, and parents or guardians will be able to see your responses. Your responses will not affect your class grades. Please respond honestly—there are no right or wrong answers!
Your Behavior
Please answer the following questions about how you respond to different situations.
1. During the past two weeks, how carefully did you listen to other people's opinions?
| Not carefully at all | A little carefully | Somewhat carefully | Very carefully | Extremely carefully |
2. During the past two weeks, how often did you come to class prepared?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
3. During the past two weeks, how much did you care about other people's feelings?
| Did not care at all | Cared a little bit | Cared somewhat | Cared a lot | Cared a huge amount |
4. During the past two weeks, how often did you follow directions in class?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
5. During the past two weeks, how well did you get along with students who are different from you?
| Did not get along at all | Got along a little bit | Got along somewhat well | Got along very well | Got along extremely well |
6. During the past two weeks, how often did you get your work done right away, instead of waiting until the last minute?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
7. During the past two weeks, how often did you compliment others' accomplishments?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
8. During the past two weeks, how often did you pay attention in class?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
9. During the past two weeks, how clearly were you able to describe your feelings?
| Not at all clearly | A little clearly | Somewhat clearly | Very clearly | Extremely clearly |
10. During the past two weeks, when you were working on your own, how often did you stay focused?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
11. During the past two weeks, when others did not agree with you, how respectful were you of their opinions?
| Not at all respectful | A little respectful | Somewhat respectful | Very respectful | Extremely respectful |
12. During the past two weeks, how much were you able to stand up for yourself without putting others down?
| Not at all | A little bit | Somewhat | A lot | A huge amount |
13. During the past two weeks, how often did you allow others to speak without interrupting them?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost all the time |
14. During the past two weeks, how much were you able to disagree with others without starting an argument?
| Not at all | A little bit | Somewhat | A lot | A huge amount |
Feelings in General
In this section, we are hoping to learn how you experience different emotions that may occur in your life (whether inside or outside of school).
15. How often are you able to pull yourself out of a bad mood?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
16. How often are you able to control your emotions when you need to?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
17. When you get upset, how often can you get yourself to relax?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
18. When things go wrong for you, how calm are you able to stay?
| Not calm at all | A little calm | Somewhat calm | Very calm | Extremely calm |
19. When you get upset, how often do you stop to think before you act?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | A lot of the time | Almost always |
Feelings About Being at School
For the following questions, we are interested in learning more about how you think about your school. Please give us your honest opinions so that we can better understand your experience and work to make the school a better place.
20. How well do people at your school understand the kind of person you are?
| Do not understand at all | Understand a little bit | Understand somewhat | Understand mostly | Completely understand |
21. How much support do the adults at your school give you?
| No support at all | A little bit of support | Some support | A lot of support | A huge amount of support |
22. How much respect do students in your school show you?
| No respect at all | A little bit of respect | Some respect | A lot of respect | A huge amount of respect |
23. When you are at school, how much do you feel like you belong?
| Do not belong at all | Belong a little bit | Belong somewhat | Mostly belong | Completely belong |
24. How often do teachers encourage you to learn about people from different races, ethnicities, or cultures?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
25. How often do you think about what someone of a different race, ethnicity, or culture experiences?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
26. How confident are you that students at your school can have honest conversations with each other about race?
| Not at all confident | Slightly confident | Somewhat confident | Quite confident | Extremely confident |
27. At your school, how often are you encouraged to think more deeply about race-related topics?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
28. How comfortable are you sharing your thoughts about race-related topics with other students at your school?
| Not at all comfortable | Slightly comfortable | Somewhat comfortable | Quite comfortable | Extremely comfortable |
29. How often do students at your school have important conversations about race, even when they might be uncomfortable?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
30. When there are major news events related to race, how often do adults at your school talk about them with students?
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
31. How well does your school help students speak out against racism?
| Not at all well | Slightly well | Somewhat well | Quite well | Extremely well |
Your Feelings
These questions ask about how you’ve been feeling recently. Please respond honestly—there are no right or wrong answers because there are no right or wrong feelings! Your answers will help us better support you and other students, and will not affect your grades or show up on your report card. You can skip any question you don’t feel comfortable answering.
During the past week, how often did you feel _______?
32. angry
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
33. lonely
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
34. sad
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
35. worried
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
36. frustrated
| Almost never | Once in a while | Sometimes | Frequently | Almost always |
Help From Other People
In this section, tell us about how other people help you.
37. Do you have a teacher or other adult from school who you can count on to help you, no matter what?
| No | Yes |
38. Do you have a family member or other adult outside of school who you can count on to help you, no matter what?
| No | Yes |
39. Do you have a friend from school who you can count on to help you, no matter what?
| No | Yes |
40. Do you have a teacher or other adult from school who you can be completely yourself around?
| No | Yes |
41. Do you have a family member or other adult outside of school who you can be completely yourself around?
| No | Yes |
42. Do you have a friend from school who you can be completely yourself around?
| No | Yes |
Screener Results Used to Create Positive Learning Environment
One FCPS elementary school implemented a program to increase student sense of belonging by having staff chat daily with students who felt disconnected.
Teachers reviewed data from the SEL Screener to identify students in each class who rated themselves lower in terms of feeling part of the school community. They were then asked to have daily two-minute chats, on any non-school related topic, for 10 consecutive days.
Additional Resources for Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Programs in FCPS
Learn more about how SEL programming in FCPS.