Adam Ray H. Manlunas^1,, Jeany Mae D. Macalam¹, Jerico V. Parreno¹

The pandemic shifted the world into the new usual way of life, affecting different aspects of development, especially the educational arena. The Philippine education catered to a new paradigm of learning and modeled modular teaching modalities to suffice the need for continuous education. This rapid transition of learning gave rise to numerous reactions from students and other stakeholders. Thus, this study aims to determine the emotional stress response and level of emotional intelligence of students during the implementation of the modular teaching modality. The study used the Perceived Stress Scale Test (PSS) and Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire (TEIQue-SF) as a standardized test to determine the students' level of stress and emotional intelligence. The test was administered to a sample of 113 Grade 10 students, 32 males, and 81 females, at Gusa Regional Science High School-X after the First-Quarter implementation of the modular learning modality. The results indicated a very high emotional stress and average emotional intelligence across gender. The contributory factors that led to increased emotional stress were massive school works, lack of sleep, and academic burnout. Though there is an evident elevated stress response, the students' average emotional intelligence showed the students' capability to cope effectively with academic stress. Further, the score showed no significant difference in emotional stress and emotional intelligence by gender and a negative correlation between emotional intelligence and emotional stress. The study showed that emotional intelligence affects stress and a good indicator for academic and emotional sustainability.

emotional stress, emotional intelligence, modular teaching modality