Examining the relationship between metacognitive reading strategies and emotional intelligence of Turkish preservice language teachers

Reading is an important area that needs to be investigated in depth, including both mental and physical activities, which are based on both vocalization and interpretation, including the individual's metacognition and emotional intelligence. In this study, it is aimed to examine the relationship between the metacognitive reading strategies and emotional intelligence of Turkish teacher candidates in terms of different variables. As a quantitative research was conducted, the relational screening model was used. 175 Turkish teacher candidates from Kırşehir Ahi Evran University Turkish Language Teaching Department 1,2,3 and 4th grade students participated in the research in the 2021-2022 academic year. The "Metacognitive Reading Strategies Scale", developed by Taraban, Kerr, and Rynearson in 2004, was used to measure pre-service teachers' metacognitive reading strategy skills. In order to determine the emotional intelligence characteristics of Turkish Teacher candidates, the "Schutte Emotional Intelligence Scale" was used. The data obtained were analyzed and evaluated with the SPSS 25.0 package program. T test, single factor analysis of variance, correlation analysis were used for statistical analysis and evaluation of the results. Emotional intelligence characteristics and metacognitive reading strategies differed significantly in favor of women according to the gender variable, while the age factor was insignificant according to the results of both tests. Emotional intelligence characteristics tend to increase in other groups except freshmen; metacognitive reading strategies tend to increase in first and fourth grade students. When we look at the number of books read in a year with emotional intelligence characteristics, while the emotional intelligence levels of those who read books in the range of 11-20 tend to increase, the metacognitive reading strategies of those who read 11-20 and 21 and above tend to increase. As a result of the research, it was determined that there is a positive, significant and moderate relationship between the level of using metacognitive reading strategies and emotional intelligence. Emotional intelligence when metacognitive reading strategies increase; When emotional intelligence increases, metacognitive reading strategies increase. The results obtained in the research were compared with the studies in the literature and some suggestions were made.