[Part of the Learning Processes Series by Marilynn Force ©, Regis University affiliate faculty member. This Learning Process Series’ aim is to address learning issues that students and instructors may face while participating and interacting in the higher education journey.]
On June 27, 2011, National PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) Awareness day took place, a day dedicated to put more focus and attention on PTSD, which according to an to an estimate from the Department of Veterans Affairs, affects anywhere from 11 to 20 percent of veterans of the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.
The first part in this series is dedicated to putting more focus and attention on the fact that in today’s higher education environment, PTSD exists.
PTSD is in the Higher Education Classroom
The definition of PTSD is a “person who has been exposed to an event which may be outside the range of normal human experience: an event which would markedly distress almost anyone. It is the normal human response to the abnormal situation” (Kinchin, p 12), where PTSD is most readily associated as an issue within the military, other segments of the population experience PTSD as well including first responders, individuals who have survived the intensity of an abnormal situation”.
The National Institute of Mental Health states that over 20 million people have some type of diagnosed anxiety disorder. Seven million specifically have Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).
The larger issue for educators is that over two-thirds of the population decline to disclose that they are having learning issues (JFA Report). The reason people are not disclosing is due to a fear of social stigma and the potential for a negative reaction of by classmates and faculty.
You may ask why we at Regis University care and have a focus on PTSD. We care because it is part of the mission of the Jesuit Education mission. It’s the use of the Ignatian Pedagogy learning model, which focuses on the care of the whole person, or for every student, “cura personalis.”
How are We Addressing PTSD in the Classroom?
Recently, the College for Professional Studies advisors was given a check list to use when interviewing Regis adult students, which helped the advisors to better understand how the learning process was working or not working for these students in the classroom. This check list was developed from the University of Minnesota PASS IT project in conjunction with a sister Jesuit Institution, St. Louis University.
The questions are designed to honor the American with Disabilities Act, but seek to also support and identify those who have not yet disclosed to the school’s Disability Services Office for fear of being stigmatized.
The questions are as follows:
- What Learning Style preference does your student have?
- What modalities have instructors offered in disseminating class information and have they offered to help the student when they are having issues?
- What is the specific language sensitivity exists to a particular discipline?
- How timely and clear is the feedback to the student from the instructor?
- Is there disruption in class?
- What options for testing are given to the students to test successfully?
- Is the student given options to submit work in different modalities while supporting the necessary rigor for knowledge of the discipline?
- Are clearly defined rubrics that explain grading for the class accompanies with the instructors expectation?
It all boils down to the Joseph Pear’s definition of learning (author of The Science of Learning) for a brain that is not impaired, “neurological activity that is typically measured or observed as motor activity is combined with the environment as a function of a prior interaction between sensory-motor activity and the environment” (The Science of Learning, Pear, 2001, p.12).
Now, more than ever, it is important that instructors acknowledge that PTSD does is exist in today’s classroom. As more U.S. soldiers return from duty and enter the next chapter of their lives, and see education as a step into that next chapter, the emphasis on learning processes designed for those with PTSD will only grow. Any interference with motor activity and the environment needs to be immediately identified and countered for the student with a learning process that’s designed for a successful educational experience.
The Regis Community endeavors to do just that.
Marilynn Force is an affiliate faculty member who has been teaching for a total of 22 years, 15 of which have been spent at Regis University focusing on finance and accounting within the School of Management. She has also taught for Metro State College and Webster University. Ms. Force’s career has focused on all aspects of small business development, entrepreneurship, management, communication and the creation of effective learning processes and anxiety cessation within the academic and business environment so critical thinking can occur. She is currently an ABD Doctoral Researcher working on the completion of her PhD in Education.
