Enhancing the Emotional Intelligence of Students: Helping the Critical Few

Abstract

Research has shown that students’ emotional intelligence (EI) can be enhanced with time intensive instructional methods other studies are inconclusive. I looked at the impact of including short EI lessons in an introductory hospitality management class. Results show that students who started with low EI increased their scores significantly; however, those with medium and high EI did not. More intensive EI lessons may be needed for those who start with higher levels of EI. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) reflections were used and the results of the current study were also compared to other similar studies to identify EI teaching methods among faculty in other disciplines. My recommendations are included for those who want to incorporate EI lessons into their classes to enhance students’ emotional and social competencies.

Keywords

• teaching EI
• emotional and social competencies (ESC)
• teaching reflections