Addressing anxiety in a teaching lab, through time adjustments, pre-lab familiarisation and noise management
A teaching fellow and teaching lab manager in a university undertook action research into student anxiety in Chemistry labs.
The research identified key areas in which students consistently experience anxiety in teaching labs. As a result, systemic improvements that apply to all students have been woven into teaching practices. These benefit all students, not just those experiencing a disability or health condition, although potentially over half of students experience an invisible mental health condition. Key improvements included changes in behaviour and approachability of staff, pre-lab familiarisation, time adjustments and noise management.
The biggest factor was the approachability of staff and tutors, particularly during demonstrations. People experiencing mental health challenges may find apparently minor negative interactions disproportionately detrimental to their wellbeing. As a result, demonstrators need to be friendly and constructive feedback supports them to do this. Other positive interventions include pre-lab familiarisation, keeping peer groups the same, providing access to the marking scheme and providing constructive feedback. Time pressure is relieved through time buffers and catch-up swap day mechanisms for all students. Although rarely used, students commented they really loved the flexibility of catch-ups if needed. Peer support was identified as providing support for student resilience, so student interactions are woven in as a safety net.
With potentially more than half of students experiencing an invisible mental health condition, ensuring labs provide a supportive environment benefits everyone. For anxious students it may be years before they receive a formal diagnosis. Supportively designed labs mean support is freely and readily available to all. Anecdotally, the measures appear to have supported students in completing their first year, whereas some may otherwise have left within the first month, dropping out of university entirely.
It鈥檚 important to make your labs accessible by default, because we found potentially over half of students are harbouring some kind of invisible mental health condition. It鈥檚 not just about having support mechanisms, but being boisterously and loudly visible about them because everyone sees how supportive you are.