Exploring the Role of Emotional Intelligence in New Teachers’ Approaches to Educational Inequality in Low-Resource Schools

This study, conducted in a low-resource region of western China, examines the role of emotional intelligence in low-resource schools, where socio-economic challenges and limited resources hinder student engagement and academic achievement. Despite extensive research on emotional intelligence, its impact on educational equity in these contexts remains underexplored. Drawing on Goleman’s emotional intelligence framework, the study investigates how emotional intelligence shapes teacher-student interactions and emotional support. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and classroom observations with 30 teachers, analysed using thematic analysis. The findings show that emotional intelligence significantly enhances teacher-student relationships, emotional support, and student engagement, ultimately improving academic outcomes. This research contributes to the literature by extending the application of emotional intelligence to low-resource environments, highlighting its potential relevance in international and cross-cultural educational settings, and underscores the importance of emotional intelligence training for teachers to foster educational equity.