Self-assessment of ESL Learners’ Emotional Skills – A Study of Engineering Students

Abstract

Emotional Intelligence refers to being aware of, controlling, and expressing emotions. Holistic education teaches students the critical aspects of emotional intelligence for personal, academic, and professional success. However, most students studying in urban and semi-urban engineering colleges and institutions are unaware of the importance of emotional intelligence for their personal, academic, and career development. In the post Covid-19 pandemic situation there is a need for improving students’ confidence in emotional or stressful situations especially when they live in a fear of social anxiety disorder (SAD). Therefore, the present study aimed to measure 100 ESL engineering students’ emotional intelligence in terms of the three psychological dimensions: emotional sensitivity, emotional maturity, and emotional competency. For this purpose, 100 participants (46 females and 54 males) from Mepco Schlenk Engineering College (Autonomous), Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu, India, were chosen for the study and were administered with Dr. Dalip Singh’s Emotional Quotient (EQ) Test. Statistical procedures for measuring the reliability and were used to analyse the data. The results showed that these students are good at emotional sensitivity, maturity and competency and there is no significant difference between the boys and girls in terms of possessing emotional intelligence skills. The study offers some implications to students and teachers.