Emotional literacy may be one of the most important skills students can learn, not just for relationships, but for their education and future careers, a new study suggests.
The new research by Dr Madalena Grobbelaar and Dr Elizabeth Reid Boyd from Edith Cowan University (ECU) shows ‘Heart Skills’ – empathy, compassion and self-awareness – are being embedded into teaching to boost resilience, relationships and career readiness.
“Our research is about something deeper than romantic love,” Dr Grobbelaar said. “Emotional literacy shapes how students learn, relate to others and enter professions that rely on care, communication and ethical decision-making.”
The unit unites students across social science, community services and counselling, applying Heart Skills to everything from social justice to therapeutic practice.
The paper, ‘Love letters to the self: building heart skills through positive autoethnography’, lays the foundation for future research and the development of a Heart Skills toolkit that could be adapted across disciplines, offering a model for heart-led learning in higher education.
Dr Reid-Boyd says embedding emotional learning is vital as universities confront rising wellbeing challenges, sweeping curriculum reform and the accelerating influence of AI.
“We argue that emotional literacy shouldn’t be treated as an optional extra,” she said. “It needs to sit at the heart of how we teach interpersonal and professional skills.”
The original version of the above article was first published as a media release by Edith Cowan University (ECU).