of less flexible and less optimally tuned stress response systems with a higher risk of poorly regulated stress physiology and lower emotional self-regulation (Ursache et al., 2012). To create a positive, well-organized course, faculty should provide clear expectations in all areas of the course and a variety of resources that are available and easy to locate, as well as be accessible for students and answer questions in a timely manner. The more time it takes for a student to locate instructions, understand expectations, or receive an instructor’s responses, the more dysregulated their emotions can become. The Power of Social–Emotional Learning One recommendation for managing dysregulation in the classroom is social–emotional learning (SEL), the process by which a student learns to use social and self-awareness, self-management, relationship skills, and decision-making in their daily lives (McKown, 2017). Three major branches of SEL exist: thinking, behavior, and self-control. Explicitly embedding SEL goals in the educational curriculum can help to address ongoing learning in emotional self-awareness and self-management and teach students tools to manage their thinking (Malow & Austin , 2016). Meditation, in general, and mindfulness specifically, is designed to direct the individual’s thoughts with the goals of (1) self-regulation of awareness, (2) directing internal and external attention, (3) metacognition, and (4) the adoption of a nonjudgmental attitude (Bishop et al., 2004), all of which support the notion of positive psychology. When schools consistently implement SEL, learning & behavior expectations are communicated and enforced, creating a calmer learning environment (Liebl, 2021). At UAGC, SEL is already in the classroom, especially in the university’s entry-point courses, which include assignments on mindfulness, metacognition, and identifying and managing one’s thinking. In GEN 101, for example, students are asked to complete a personal SWOT (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats) analysis during Week 1 and reflect on the experience of analyzing themselves and how completing the SWOT analysis will impact their personal, professional, and academic growth. By doing this, students are using SEL principles to become more self-aware of any areas of opportunities or triggers they may have and then begin to self-regulate their emotions or express to the instructor why they may be struggling. Later in the course, the students are asked to define the traits of grit, resilience, or growth mindset and to share an example of when they demonstrated one of these traits in a discussion. This uses the SEL principles of mindfulness and reminds the students that they have some control over their behavior and they have succeeded in the past, thereby giving them more confidence to succeed in the future. Times have changed how schools, teachers, and students relate and adapt to dysregulation. Dysregulation and its associated behaviors can often be misunderstood, leading to faculty not knowing how to react and often avoiding or even engaging negatively with the student in return, which then leads to more dysregulated behaviors from the student and their possible withdrawal from the course. Dysregulation can affect student learning not only for the dysregulated individual but also for the teacher and the other students in the classroom. Faculty must be ready to lean into the topic of dysregulation and take steps to create an efficient and inclusive environment in the classroom, whether
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