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Current Practices and Future Directions of Accommodating Students with Mental Health Needs in Higher Education Institutions, 2022-05-13

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Identifier: Current Practices and Future Directions of Accommodating Students with Mental Health Needs in Higher Education Institutions

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

The International Conference on Global Diversity and Inclusion in Higher Education took place May 12-13, 2022 in the Gemmell Student Complex at Clarion University of Pennsylvania (USA). This collection contains conference proceedings from the event.

The official conference program contains the following introductory statement:

"In today's globalized economy, educational, and social interactions with international students from different parts of the world can provide U.S. students with 'real educational' and 'career' benefits. International students make campuses and classrooms more vibrant and diverse, plus, it makes economic sense to have international students because for every 7 international students, 3 U.S. jobs are created or supported. About 1.1 million foreign students studied in U.S. in 2018-19 and contributed $44.7 billion to U.S. economy, along with supporting 460,000 jobs. More than 60% students manage funding on their own or their government, which enables schools to offer student aid to other students. Despite the above facts, it is found that many colleges and universities are not able to reach and support the diverse and underrepresented populations of international students, due to lack of awareness and training.

Additionally, despite the economic and social benefits of international students to a university, it is found that international students encounter adjustment difficulties such as culture shock, loneliness, anxiety, discrimination, loss of social support, language barriers, depression, homesickness, and academic adjustments. These factors impact student satisfaction negatively and influence student persistence, retention rates, and graduation rates. International students' satisfaction is linked to their satisfaction with the educational experience, academic success, satisfaction with college including administration, faculty, and campus. According to many studies, the experiences and social integration of international students affects their academic success with the faculty, classroom, and campus community. it is important that faculty members understand the cultural factors that influence the improvement of international students in higher education. it is the responsibility of universities to provide opportunities, resources, and programs to promote academic success for international students. In order to encourage international students' academic success; it is important that faculty members and advisors understand international student needs and prepare to meet students not only academically but also socially and culturally. Thus, this conference can be extremely helpful to fulfill the purpose of global inclusiveness. With an increasingly diverse student population enrolled in education systems, it is imperative that educators and administrators continue to strengthen their skills, knowledge and competencies in diversity, equity, and inclusion to ensure that global education is not only accessible, but designed to support all students.

Therefore, the purpose of this conference is to share ideas on the importance of global diversity and inclusion in higher education sector and to promote learning and training on this critical issue among faculty and students. The goal is to share knowledge, research findings, build community, and collaborate to advance international diversity, equity, and inclusion in global education and cultural exchange."

Dates

  • 2022-05-13

Creator

Extent

From the Collection: 16 Files

Language of Materials

English

Abstract

After having experienced Coronavirus pandemic, many people around the world started to face lots of new issues and to see outdated issues with different perspectives. One of them is mental health issues. This has been an issue for a long time, however, it started to impact our classroom in higher education institutions more severely. Therefore, the purpose the study is to present best practices of accommodating students with mental health needs in higher education institutions and to discuss how we can better accommodate these students via literature review. The author conducted literature review. The author mainly used database Eric, EBSCO, and Academic Search Ultimate using keywords accommodations, higher education institutions, mental health needs, and psychological issues. Any articles published before 2000 were excluded from the search. This review was more focused on accommodating students with mental health issues, rather than other disabilities. After generating about 15 articles related to this topic, the author conducted thematic analysis. Four themes were emerged via thematic analysis: 1) how faculty are responding and accommodating students with mental health issues in the classroom, 2) how universities are responding to this issue, 3) what students with mental health needs are experiencing in higher education institutions, & 4) how professionals discuss this issue. This study showed 1) many faculty feel limited resources and lack of understanding of accommodating students with mental health issues, 2) DSS (Disability Support Services) office has been offering same options of accommodations for students with mental health needs as other students with disabilities, 3) students with mental health issues often do not report to DSS or counseling services and 4) UDL (Universal Design for Learning) for students with mental health needs has been suggested in accommodating students with mental health needs. The meaning of UDL for students with mental health needs are discussed. This study will present implications to university faculty who want to accommodate students with mental health needs in the classroom more effectively. Additionally, higher education administrators will have better understanding of accommodating students with mental health issues in every aspects of their college lives via this study.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements

Available only in electronic format.

Repository Details

Part of the Clarion University Archives Repository

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