Theory Review - Stress in Learning

 Theory Review – Stress in Learning

Your name	Commented On
David Barry	Nicole Brennan
David Barry	Sifat Baig

      In order for learning to occur, one must be prepared mentally to take on the task of receiving and processing new information.  Efficiently managing one’s feelings and emotions is part of the learning process.  Emotional intelligence, according to Daniel Goleman (1995), is the “ability to motivate oneself and persist in the face of frustrations, to control impulses and delay gratification, to regulate mood and keep distress from swamping one’s ability to think, to empathize with others, and to hope” (MacKeracher, 2010, pg. 137).  One must be able to focus their thoughts and feelings on the material that is presented to them.  They must be present in the moment; otherwise, the intake of new material will not only be inefficient but making necessary connections with the information will be nonexistent.  However, MacKeracher (2010) points out one crucial confounding variable and emotional roadblock to the learning process:  stress.  Stress can play a significant role in one’s ability to intake new information. 

                                                          Main Theoretical Points

What is stress?

     According to the National Institute of Mental Health (2022), stress is the “physical or mental response to an external cause” (para. 2).  Everyone deals with some sort of daily stress; however, when it becomes overwhelming and produces physical or mental challenges for the individual, this can create barriers to one being capable of absorbing new material.  All individuals react to stress differently.  Per Cingl (2018), “an individuals’ reaction to stress seems to be highly complex and to differ with respect to the type and duration of a stressor as well as with respect to various individual characteristics” (pg. 3).  If one is too over-stimulated, this can prove disastrous for learning as motivation and focus drop due to emotions running high, resulting in the individual withdrawing, and not performing adequately (MacKeracher, 2010). 

How does stress impact learning?

     One way that stress impacts learning can be explained thoroughly by a heuristic that is called the Yerkes-Dodson Law of 1908.  Per Whiting, Wass, Green, and Thomas (2021), the theory suggests that one’s arousal level determines how they distribute their individual attention via “anticipatory awareness” (pg. 180).   

  

a.)    Yerkes and Dodson Law (1908) b.) Diamond et al. (2007) depict actual results.

Retrieved from Whiting, Green, Thomas, 2021.

     Thoughts regarding this chart, provided by Yerkes and Dodson (1908) and updated further by Diamond et al. (2007), were that high arousal states produced greater performance on trivial tasks under novice conditions but lower performance on more complex tasks under more challenging conditions (Whiting et al., 2021, pg. 181).  Another observation that can be made based on the chart is that one could argue that optimal performance seems to hover right in the middle.  So, to perform adequately, under both novice and more challenging conditions, one must sustain an individually specific level of arousal.  Sapolsky (2015) adds that factors that contribute to how one deals with stress, such as vulnerability and resilience, “affect the shape of the inverted-U” takes (Whiting et al., 2021, pg. 180). 

     Stress can also impair one’s ability to remember information.  Depending on the severity of the stressor, it can sometimes trigger one’s fight or flight system.  As a result, cortisol and adrenaline are released into the bloodstream; this reaction can have a significant effect on one’s ability to learn content.  According to Vogel and Schwabe (2016), stress during learning sequences can increase encoding and acquisition of new information, but learning after a stressor is introduced is hindered, both retrieval and acquisition of new information.  This explains why one could psyche themselves out before even taking a test, as the stress of the test would be so overwhelming that it disrupts their ability to successfully retrieve memories.

     As stress accumulates and becomes more established and consistent it can break down a very fundamental part of learning:  communication.  Things to look out for that indicate a breakdown in communication include the following: 

•    Repeating phrases,
•     Not finishing sentences
•     Not listening,
•   Excessive talking or excessive silence
•   Omitting details
•   Repeating questions that have already been answered, and so on (MacKeracher, 2010, pg. 126). 

     Stress can produce many lasting side effects that are detrimental to the learning process.  This is further noticed when it comes to the way learners take in information at the onset of stress.  This is further indicated by not grasping the content provided.  Many times, students will process information in a manner that is consistent with “deletions, distortions, simplifications, and overgeneralizations in the individual’s personal model of reality” resulting in misunderstandings, confusion, and the inability to make connections or achieve the “Aha” moment when it comes to grasping new material (MacKeracher, 2010, pg. 127). 

Application

     As professionals and instructors, there are many ways in which we can ease the minds of our students and provide suitable learning experiences that are not only stimulating but provide an environment that is safe and understanding of student needs.  One way we can be supportive is by recognizing and understanding the differences between stress-induced behaviors and disruptive behaviors (MacKeracher, 2010).  By being mindful of what behaviors are consistent with stress, this can help reduce any miscommunications or misconceptions about the student.  This allows instructors to adjust and provide the necessary support that the student needs to maintain focus. 

     Another helpful way that teachers can provide quality learning opportunities for students under stress is to reduce the amount of immediate demand on the student (MacKeracher, 2010).  This can help reduce the risk of stimulus overload.  Learners who often feel overwhelmed are less like to take in the new information and are more likely to forget what they learned.  Simple accommodations such as extra time allowed on tests can certainly help ease the minds of students who struggle with timed tasks due to the pressure. 

    An additional strategy that instructors can employ to help relieve stress levels is to create a safe environment (MacKeracher, 2010).  Making sure that students understand that the classroom is free of threats and that they are capable of building trusting relationships with peers and their proctor can help set a relaxing tone.  This can ease the feelings the student might be exhibiting and help them focus their energy on the tasks at hand.  Positive energy and encouragement can help facilitate learning and improve retrieval. 

     Finally, another way that instructors can help alleviate stress is to encourage communication with their students (MacKeracher, 2010).  Allowing students to have discussions before or even after class can help reduce stress and provide opportunities for any confusion on the material to be cleared up.  This enables a student to be more engaging, especially during a situation or sequence where immediate feedback could be quite helpful.  The conversations could also prove to be an opportunity where strategies for learning and absorbing information could be discussed. 

Reflection

     After going over the material within this chapter and reading the research articles utilized it became clear to me why, in some portions of my life, I struggled to perform my best in academic endeavors.  It is imperative that instructors understand the needs of their students and to provide an environment that is not only supportive but free of unnecessary factors that could confound the results the student is trying to achieve.  Making sure that material is not only engaging but connected to real-life sequences is very important, particularly when considering motivation.  I stress the need for students to be aware of how stress can affect their learning potential and the strategies that can be employed to deal with those challenges. 

     I understand now why many syllabi come with the mention of not only accessibility to the professor to ask for help or to address questions, but also the references for student assistance in terms of counseling that is offered by student services.  Additionally, the whole process of researching this particular section of emotional intelligence helped me gain a greater appreciation of the process behind instructing others and the responsibility the student contributes to the sequence of learning as well. 

Process

     The process I took to complete this assignment was the following.  First, I looked for research articles via OneSearch via the Ball State Library site, checking off peer-reviewed research and full-text online.  https://www.bsu.edu/academics/libraries   Using keywords such as Stress in Learning, or Stress and Learning, I was able to find information to support my topic.  One thing that I find helpful is making a checklist of everything needed to complete the assignment, going do the list, and checking off things one by one.  Using an outline and organizing the paper is quite helpful as well.   

  

Table 1.  Summary of the theoretical ideas

	The main theoretical ideas –Be specific		Summary of how to apply the main theoretical ideas in practice
Idea 1	Engage Students	Get to know your students and understand their needs.  Do not assume or past judgment based on behavior (MacKeracher, 2010).
Idea 2	Reduce Demands	Reducing the onset of demands on students can help establish a more relaxed environment that can help lower stress levels and minimize distractions.  Extra time on quizzes is also beneficial (MacKeracher, 2010).
Idea 3	Safe Environment	Create an environment that is supportive, where trust can be established, and provide encouragement and resources to help with student difficulties (MacKeracher, 2010).
Idea 4	Communication	Establish open communication with students.  Whether before or after class, allowing for concerns and or questions to be answer providing clarify (MacKeracher, 2010).

References

Cingl, L. (2018). Social learning under acute stress. PloS One, 13(8), e0202335-

           e0202335. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0202335       

Diamond, D. M., Campbell, A. M., Park, C. R., Halonen, J., & Zoladz,P. R. (2007). The

temporal dynamics model of emotionalmemory processing: A synthesis on the     neurobiological basisof stress-induced amnesia, flashbulb and traumatic mem-ories, and the Yerkes-Dodson law.Neural Plasticity, 2007, 60806-60833.  https://doi.org/10.1155/2007/60803

MacKeracher, D. (2010). Making sense of adult learning. University of Toronto Press.

Sapolsky, R. M. (2015). Stress and the brain: Individual variabilityand the inverted-U.Nature

Neuroscience,18(10), 1344–1346.https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.4109

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (n.d.). I'm so stressed out! fact sheet. National

Institute of Mental Health. Retrieved February 20, 2022, from  

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/publications/so-stressed-out-fact-sheet

Vogel, S., Schwabe, L. (2016). Learning and memory under stress: implications for the

classroom. npj Science Learn 1, 16011. https://doi.org/10.1038/npjscilearn.2016.11

Whiting, S.B., Wass, S.V., Green, S. and Thomas, M.S.C. (2021), Stress and Learning in Pupils:

Neuroscience Evidence and its Relevance for Teachers. Mind, Brain, and Education, 15: 177-188. https://doi.org/10.1111/mbe.12282

Yerkes, R. M., & Dodson, J. D. (1908). The relation of strength of stimulus to rapidity of habit-

formation.  Journal of Comparative Neurological Psychology,18(5), 459–482.

https://www.doi.org/10..1002/cne.920180503