The influence of emotional intelligence awareness on the teaching experiences of university teacher trainees: a quantitative and qualitative analysis

Educating prospective teachers is a complex and interdisciplinary effort, encompassing educational policies, core subject knowledge, and honing essential skills, attitudes, and behaviours necessary for effective classroom teaching. This study focuses on the initial stage of teacher development, exploring how pre-service university students perceive and understand emotional intelligence (EI) and its components, especially as they embark on internships in primary and secondary schools. The emotional dynamics in English language teaching classrooms, involving various emotions among students, teachers, parents, and colleagues are examined. The study underscores the importance of emotional expertise for both students and teachers in facilitating a productive teaching and learning process. A review of relevant literature reveals that while there is extensive research on emotions in teacher training, the emphasis has been primarily on general education, with limited focus on second-language teacher education. EI is seen as a critical factor in teachers' classroom management, pedagogical skills, and overall success within the profession. Additionally, studies on EI within English as a foreign language (EFL) teacher education are relatively scarce but indicate a significant impact on teaching outcomes. This research employs a mixed-methods approach to investigate pre-service teachers' perceptions of EI. Quantitative data was collected through a survey questionnaire measuring participants' agreement with statements related to EI. Qualitative data was obtained through in-depth interviews with selected pre-service teachers. The study involved 32 pre-service university students enrolled in English language teacher education programs about to begin internships at primary and secondary schools in Poland.