Page 124 - Vseživljenjsko učenje kot temelj trajnostne družbe

Vita Jeraj and Petra Dolenc

skills and promoting a positive self-concept among children and adolescents
(Tuxford & Bradley, 2015). Teaching also requires the effective management
of both the teacher’s own emotions and those of their students. Given that
students may experience a range of negative emotional states, such as frus-
tration and anxiety, it is essential that teachers are equipped with the skills
to manage these emotions effectively (Dobesova Cakirpaloglu et al., 2022).

Emotional Intelligence in Education
Emotional intelligence (EI) refers to the ability to recognize, understand, and
manage our own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. This emo-
tional competence plays a key role in guiding cognitive processes and be-
haviour (Mayer et al., 2008). Additionally, EI can be viewed as a personality
trait, consisting of various self-perceptions and dispositions related to emo-
tions, which are often evaluated through self-report measures (Petrides et al.,
2016).
EI plays a crucial role in a teacher’s professional development and the
overall quality of teaching (Abiodullah et al., 2020). Numerous studies have
demonstrated that higher teachers’ EI is linked to positive attitudes in the
classroom and contributes to a more favourable classroom climate (Maamari
& Majdalani, 2019). Moreover, it has a moderate correlation with students’
academic achievement (Sánchez-Álvarez et al., 2020). Teachers who possess
higher EI create a supportive and inclusive learning environment and are
more effective in managing classroom discipline (Valente et al., 2019). The
EI of teachers plays a vital role in fostering empathy and understanding of
students’ emotional needs, which is essential for building and maintaining
positive teacher-student relationships (Wang, 2023). Additionally, teachers’
EI influences various aspects of their professional lives, including their over-
all well-being and health. Recent research suggests that higher perceived
EI is linked to increased work engagement – characterized by enthusiasm,
motivation, and perseverance (Su et al., 2022) – along with higher job satis-
faction (Cejudo & López-Delgado, 2017; D’Amico et al., 2020) and a reduced
likelihood of leaving the profession. Furthermore, teachers with high EI re-
port lower levels of perceived occupational stress and burnout (D’Amico et
al., 2020). They also experience greater well-being and assertiveness in their
relationships within the school environment (Ávila Muñoz, 2019).

Self-Efficacy in Teachers
Another important concept in quality teaching is self-efficacy (SE), which
refers to an individual’s confidence in their ability to plan, implement, and

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