Practising teachers in Northern Ireland (NI) operate within an idiosyncratic sociopolitical context characterised by a legacy of conflict, socioeconomic inequalities and interruptions from Covid-19 (Leitch & Cownie, 2020). Student teachers in NI may be required to demonstrate maturity and resilience for which they are experientially unprepared. To equip them to work within this context, teacher-training programmes should focus not only upon academic knowledge but also upon development of emotional intelligence (EI) and personal resilience. This blog post focuses on identifying challenges to the wellbeing of student teachers and analysing potential solutions utilising EI.  

Student teachers within NI may find the mental health needs of their pupils challenging. The largely segregated schooling system may foster divided identities, limit social-emotional learning and increase exposure to sectarian narratives. Opportunities to interact with pupils from different backgrounds, developing empathy and conflict resolution skills are constrained. Such an environment can contribute to chronic stress, anxiety and other mental health issues. Some suggest this escalation in poor childhood mental health is an impact of the political situation. Rates of anxiety and depression in Northern Ireland’s youth are 23 per cent higher than in other UK nations. This context demands empathetic, culturally sensitive educators who model conflict resolution and possess the cognitive and emotional reserves to do so. 

The school system in Northern Ireland faces substantial socioeconomic challenges. Children from poorer communities are more likely to experience academic underperformance than their peers (Early et al., 2023), while poverty, unemployment and insufficient housing establish a cycle of disadvantage. This situation demands progressive educators with the ability to develop rapport with pupils, cater to individual needs and nurture supportive communities.  

The Covid-19 pandemic worsened challenges, necessitating immediate transition to remote learning and exposing discrepancies in the availability of technology and educational materials. Pupils from disadvantaged socioeconomic backgrounds and those with additional needs experienced disproportionate impacts. Social connections and emotional development were eroded. These effects endure: in post-primary schools, for example, absenteeism rose from 6.6 per cent of half-days possible attendance in 2020/21 to 11 per cent of half-days possible in 2021/22 (NISRA, 2022) resulting in lost-learning. Educating student teachers on emotional intelligence would support them in managing the substantial demands imposed by this complex environment.  

Challenges persist. Despite evident need, the Education and Training Inspectorate reported in 2023 ‘lengthy delays in accessing appropriate external support’ (p. 4), and highlighted cuts to school counselling and specialised support for children with special educational needs and mental health issues (NICCY, 2023).  The ‘emotional labour’ required to respond with courage, patience and empathy may induce ‘burnout’ impacting ‘health, productivity and function … [and] personal and professional life’ (Agyapong et al., 2022). Fearful of exposure, a student teacher may choose to hide “backstage” realities from view or quietly quit.

‘Fearful of exposure, a student teacher may choose to hide “backstage” realities from view or quietly quit.’

For Northern Ireland to move forward, integration of EI into teacher-training programmes presents a pragmatic solution. Emotional intelligence refers to the capacity to accurately perceive, comprehend, regulate and leverage emotions in oneself and others (Peltier, 2010). One way may be the application of interdisciplinary concepts to teacher-training. Building EI through synthesising Rogers’ person-centred work and Beck’s cognitive behavioural therapy provide a starting point. Rogers claims that purposefully employing unconditional positive regard, empathy and congruence/genuineness, as demonstrated by open-questioning, active-listening and boundary-setting, enables individuals to find and exploit their inner resources. Beck’s theory of Cognitive Distortions offers insight into behavioural and physiological responses to challenging situations.    

The promotion of empathy and understanding among educators and pupils from diverse origins can foster social cohesion and diminish stereotypes. Education in EI has the potential to help dismantle sectarian divisions within Northern Ireland’s school system, and to narrow socioeconomic and educational disparities by improving pupils’ abilities to navigate social interactions and manage emotions effectively.  

Upskilling student teachers in this manner could be personally and culturally transformational, with the cascading benefits fostering a more cohesive and healthy post-conflict society. 

Figure 1: Insufficient emotional intelligence training for student teachers

References

Agyapong, B., Obuobi-Donkor, G., Burback, L., & Wei, Y. (2022). Stress, burnout, anxiety and depression among teachers: A scoping review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(17), 10706. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph191710706

Early, E., Miller, S., Dunne, L., & Moriarty, J. (2022). The influence of socio-demographics and school factors on GCSE attainment: Results from the first record linkage data in Northern Ireland. Oxford Review of Education, 49(2), 171–189. https://doi.org/10.1080/03054985.2022.2035340

Leitch, R., & Cownie, E. (2020). Poverty and education in Northern Ireland: The legacy of division and conflict. In I. Thompson, & G. Ivinson (eds.), Poverty in education across the UK (pp. 37–64).

Northern Ireland Commissioner for Children and Young People [NICCY]. (2023, June 21). Urgent action needed to combat education cuts. https://www.niccy.org/news/urgent-action-needed-to-combat-education-cuts/

Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency [NISRA]. (2022). Attendance at grant aided primary, post primary and special schools 2020/21 (2022) Department of Education.  https://www.education-ni.gov.uk/publications/attendance-grant-aided-primary-post-primary-and-special-schools-202021

Peltier, B. (2010). Emotional intelligence. In The psychology of executive coaching (2nd edn, pp. 245–274). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9780203886106