Emotional Intelligence

Going through school (K-12) brought on a lot of emotions. You were taught the basics as a kid, but as you grew up, you started experiencing different, more complicated emotions you couldn't describe. And depending on what kind of person you are, you either talked them out, you hid them, you acted out, or you went numb. One of these ways is a healthy way of coping with emotions, but not many kids do this because they aren't taught that it's normal to feel these ways.

We as teachers need to help our students, of all ages, know what different emotions are, why them come about, that they are OK to feel these ways, and how to handle them. By doing this, we are teaching emotional literacy. While this is starting to be taught at a young age, it is important for students at all ages to be reminded and taught new emotions that their age or grade will bring about.

In this week's rotating chair, Nicole posed the question "Which is more important, IQ or EQ?" In my response, I stated that these two are both important, and many times, one can affect the other. For instance, before taking a test, you feel anxious, worried, stressed, maybe even confused. Your level of confidence is probably lower than normal. When you take that test, these emotions will most likely effect your IQ, and your grade might be lower than what you are capable of. Another example goes the other way around. After you get a graded assignment back, you may undergo some emotions once seeing the grade you received.

In my response, I also included that when making decisions, we use the phrase "use your heart or your head". In this phrase, your heart is really your emotions and your head is your IQ. But many times, these two are hard to separate.

In both school and the real world, we will deal with an array of emotions. Without being taught about what these emotions are, why we feel these ways, and how we can handle them, life is going to be pretty tough. That's why it's important for all teachers to emphasize emotional literacy in their classrooms, and teach with "cura personalis" (care for the whole person).