What is Preservice Teacher Training

Within the United States, almost 50% of teachers leave the field of education within the first five years. Teachers who remain in the field have been shown to be able to demonstrate career competency skills. These skills are related to emotional intelligence (EI), which refers to competencies in recognizing, managing, communicating, and understanding emotions in one's self and others. Previous literature suggests gifted students, due to specific characteristics associated with giftedness, struggle with EI, which impacts their ability to utilize the skills they have, including cognitive intelligence. For gifted individuals entering the field of education, difficulty with EI could potentially impact their ability to feel successful and remain in the field long term. This chapter provides information and resources related to meeting the emotional intelligence needs of gifted students in preservice teacher training programs.