Emotional-based pedagogy and facilitating EFL learners' perceived flow in online education

Abstract

Given the fundamental role of emotional intelligence (EI) in learning, especially in virtual learning contexts where individuals experience more stress and anxiety, the need to understand and recognize one's own feelings and the mutual feelings of peers has gained more importance. Flow as the ultimate state in harnessing emotions in the service of performance and learning has been introduced as the main reason for one's willingness to perform activities which are connected to no external motivation. In this regard, the present study was conducted to first introduce a new educational program to enhance the EI level in the English as a foreign language (EFL) online education environment and next to investigate the possibility of raising EFL learners' perceived flow. To achieve these goals, the study recruited a sample of 67 EFL learners who were next divided into experimental (n = 32) and control (n = 35) groups. The experimental group received the EI intervention over 10 weeks and the control group received the ordinary online EFL instruction. Data were collected through EI and flow questionnaires and semi-structured interviews which focused on learners' perception of the EI intervention and signs of enhanced flow. Statistical analysis of the data showed a positive effect of the program on the learners' EI and their perceived flow. The study emphasizes the role of applying positive emotions in making language learners more engaged in online classroom tasks.

Self-efficacy and resilience as predictors of students’ academic motivation in online education

“…The COVID-19 outbreak made an abrupt transition to online platforms for many businesses and schools were no exception. This transition brought new challenges for individuals and profoundly affected their perceptions, feelings and attitudes [ 1 , 2 ]. They mostly found it difficult to overcome their stress and maintain their motivation, despite the persistence of quarantine conditions and the ever-increasing concerns about the virus spread.…”

“…The research to date has confirmed learners’ challenges and psychological problems caused by the coronavirus pandemic. In this regard, a number of studies were conducted to investigate such factors as learners’ mental health [ 4 , 5 ], learners’ attitude [ 6 ], motivation [ 7 ], anxiety and coping strategies [ 8 ], as well as learners’ [ 1 ] and teachers’ perceived flow [ 2 ]. However, there has been no reliable evidence on the contribution of two highly researched psychological capital variables (i.e., self-efficacy and resilience) in traditional classes for the academic motivation of the students involved in online education.…”

Tools For The Development of Emotional Intelligence: Cognitive Native Language Teaching

“…The study (Jiang et al, 2022) confirms the effectiveness of EI in learning a foreign language through an integrated approach. Increasing the level of EI in the educational environment of English as a second foreign language is presented in the paper (Abdolrezapour & Ghanbari, 2022). Another study (Zhu et al, 2022) proves that a high level of EI provides a longer average time to teach a second language (positive perception of learning) to students with a low EI.…”