Profiling Elementary Students’ Emotional Intelligence and Sustainability Literacy as a Basis for Integrative Curriculum Development
Keywords:
emotional intelligence, sustainability literacy, elementary education, integrative learningAbstract
Background: Emotional Intelligence (EI) and Sustainability Literacy (SL) are essential competencies for preparing students to face social and environmental challenges in the 21st century. However, elementary school students often demonstrate adequate conceptual understanding without fully internalizing emotional regulation skills and sustainable behaviors in daily life.
Methods: This study employed a quantitative descriptive-correlational design involving fifth-grade students at SD Islam Al-Falah Bojonggede. A total of 49 students participated in the Emotional Intelligence (EI) assessment, while 51 students participated in the Sustainability Literacy (SL) assessment. Participants were selected purposively to represent upper elementary students who had previously been exposed to character and environmental education. Data were collected using validated questionnaires adapted from Goleman’s Emotional Intelligence framework and UNESCO’s Sustainability Literacy framework, covering five EI dimensions and three SL dimensions. Descriptive statistics were used to profile students’ EI and SL levels, while Pearson product-moment correlation was conducted using paired data from 39 students who completed both instruments.
Results: The findings revealed that students’ Emotional Intelligence was generally in the moderate to high category, with a mean score of 55.39. Motivation emerged as the strongest EI dimension (M = 3.03), while emotional regulation showed the lowest score (M = 2.49). Sustainability Literacy obtained a mean score of 32.24, with sustainability knowledge identified as the strongest dimension, whereas sustainability skills and mindset remained relatively low. These results indicate a gap between students’ conceptual understanding and the practical internalization of emotional regulation, sustainability values, and sustainable behaviors. Pearson correlation analysis showed a positive and statistically significant relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Sustainability Literacy (r = 0.440, p = 0.005, n = 39).
Conclusion: The study concludes that elementary school students demonstrated moderate to high Emotional Intelligence and adequate Sustainability Literacy, particularly in motivation and sustainability knowledge. However, emotional regulation, sustainability skills, and sustainability-oriented mindsets remained underdeveloped. The positive and statistically significant relationship between Emotional Intelligence and Sustainability Literacy suggests that emotional competencies may support students’ sustainability-related knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors. These findings underscore the importance of integrating emotional and sustainability competencies in primary education.
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