‘I am a UK Innovator:’ College of Education’s Jena Hinds
Video by Jeremy Blackburn and Erin Wickey, Research Communications
For years, Jena Hinds, Ph.D., has wondered what happens in the moments between knowing and performing. Today, that curiosity is driving research and innovation that could help students overcome the effects of stress and more accurately demonstrate what they know.
Through the video series “I Am a UK Innovator,” Research Communications and UK Innovate highlight University of Kentucky researchers transforming breakthrough ideas into discoveries, technologies and ventures with real-world impact. UK Innovate works collaboratively with innovators to strategically assess, protect and license early-stage technologies and co-create new technology startups.
In this Q&A, Hinds, Ph.D., clinical assistant professor in the Department of Teaching and Learning in the UK College of Education, discusses her work on preparing future educators to create engaging, student-centered learning environments grounded in the science of learning and development.
UKNow: What inspired you to pick this specific area of research?
Hinds: My interest in this research began with a question that would not leave me alone: What happens in a student’s mind and body when they are asked to demonstrate what they know? As a mathematics educator, I have worked with students who could explain a concept, solve problems in class and clearly demonstrate their understanding of mathematics, yet perform differently on tests, quizzes or when presenting to their classmates.
That question is also deeply personal. I experienced test anxiety as a student, and I knew what it felt like to prepare and understand the material, only to have anxiety interfere when it was time to perform. Those experiences made me question whether traditional assessments always captured what students knew or whether something else influenced their performance.
This curiosity led me beyond traditional educational measures to explore how the body responds to assessments and whether we can intervene when stress affects performance. We owe it to students to find out. It also led to my research on Stress Performance Evaluation. Today, we’re exploring interventions, technology and artificial intelligence to turn that knowledge into practical tools.
UKNow: What is the most challenging aspect of your research?
Hinds: One challenge is that stress is highly individual. Another is that physiology has not traditionally been part of teacher education. Educators are trained to understand learning, instruction, assessment, behavior and student development, but we rarely examine the physiological processes at play when a student tries to demonstrate what they know. Incorporating measures such as heart rate, blood pressure and other physiological indicators into educational research can challenge familiar ways of thinking about the classroom.
There are also persistent misconceptions about test anxiety. Some people question whether it is meaningful, while others assume that studying harder will necessarily lead to better performance. Preparation absolutely matters, but it does not tell the whole story. A well-prepared student can still experience a stress response during a test, quiz or presentation that interferes with attention, working memory, recall or the ability to communicate their knowledge. A low score does not automatically indicate a lack of knowledge, effort or preparation.
My research brings together physiological measures, students’ experiences, and performance, and increasingly explores artificial intelligence to offer another lens on those moments. No single physiological measure tells the whole story. Combining information helps us ask better questions.
I want educators to ask not only, “What did this student score?” but also, “What was happening within this student while they were trying to perform?” This does not mean lowering expectations. It means understanding performance more fully so we can give students the support and tools they need to meet those expectations.
UKNow: What have been the most fulfilling moments for you regarding your discoveries?
Hinds: The most fulfilling moments come when the research stops being just numbers on a spreadsheet and you can see the person behind the data. A heart rate, blood pressure reading, anxiety or test score reflects a student’s real experience.
Seeing evidence that students can perform differently when we change the testing environment or provide an intervention to help regulate their stress response reinforces why this work matters. It is especially meaningful when a student who may have thought, “I’m just not good at math,” begins to understand that stress or anxiety may be affecting their ability to demonstrate what they know.
UKNow: How has your research impacted the way you train students?
Hinds: My research has significantly shaped how I prepare future educators. I want my students to understand that academic performance does not always fully reflect knowledge or ability. We discuss how to create supportive learning environments, recognize signs of stress and anxiety, use multiple forms of assessment and provide evidence-based strategies that promote regulation and confidence. I also model these practices in my courses.
Most importantly, I want future teachers to be curious about what may be happening beneath a student’s performance rather than immediately assuming a low score means the student does not understand the content. My goal is for future educators to leave UK knowing how to teach their content effectively while understanding the whole learner and how classroom and assessment conditions can influence performance.
This research has also made me more intentional about the well-being of the future educators I teach. Teachers spend so much time supporting others that they can overlook their own stress. I want my students to understand their stress responses and leave with strategies to regulate stress, build confidence and sustain themselves throughout their careers. These are tools they can use personally and share with their future students.
UKNow: What drew you to the University of Kentucky?
Hinds: What inspires me most about the University of Kentucky is the opportunity and support to think bigger. My research brings together education, physiology, technology, artificial intelligence, innovation and human performance. The support I have received from my department chair, associate dean for research, dean and colleagues in the College of Education has been invaluable. Leaders who listen to ideas, connect you with people and resources, and encourage you as your work evolves make a tremendous difference.
UK Innovate has been especially influential. Through UAccel and mentorship within UK Innovate, I began to see my work not only as research but also as innovation. Mentors challenged my thinking, helped me understand users’ needs and guided me in translating research into meaningful, real-world innovation. Access to an innovation developer has also helped me begin translating the concepts behind Stress Performance Evaluation into a technology-based tool. Through these experiences, I have been encouraged to identify real needs and consider how an academic idea could become a practical, scalable tool to support students, educators and others who experience stress during performance.
The opportunities, mentorship and confidence I gained through UK’s innovation ecosystem encouraged me to pursue experiences beyond the university, including Vanderbilt University’s Wond’ry I-Corps programming and the Harvard Business School AI Bootcamp. Those experiences broadened my perspective on entrepreneurship, AI and the potential reach of this research. What excites me most is the potential to apply this work beyond a single classroom or assessment type and to explore how technology might help people perform at their best when stress gets in the way. UK has helped me realize that research need not end with a publication. It can become an innovation, a collaboration or a tool that changes how we support people.
