Causes Of Stress
Among Students
Exam Stress
Issues In The Home
Early Childhood Trauma
Exam stress is known to effect all students, even high achievers. The student is gripped with fear even before the exam has begun. Below is a list of steps a student can take to give them the best chance of being prepared before the fear grips, so that when the fear begins to appear, they have the best chance of staving it off.
Acquire Adequate Sleep
Study Smarter
Less than 6 hours sleep can put you into a sleep deficit and have a negative effect on your performance. Even if those hours were spent studying, it is not advisable at the cost of one's sleep.
When studying to a deadline make a list of things that are most important and hit the items at the top of the list first.
Visualize Success
Visualizing success in the exam can help create it by creating a positive reaction to exam scenarios, releasing positive chemicals in the brain and in turn creating confidence.
Also visualizing the subject matter in a manner which is applicable to your everyday life can help you remember it.
Stay Calm
It is important to stay calm and even though that is sometimes easier said than done here are some tips to achieve that:
- Meditation
- Regular Exercise
- Breathing Exercises
- A balanced diet
- Creating To-Do lists or Check-Lists before starting work
Issues
Divorce
- The child blames themselves
- Poor concentration at school and in general
- Anxiety
How The Issue Materializes:
- Parents must remain civil to each other
- Similar rules and expectation at each home
- Parents are still good role models
Steps To Creating a Better Environment Which Should be Discussed With Parents:
Illness
- Lack of predictability and structure in the home
- Parents begin to overcompensate by spoiling the child
- Attempt to maintain predictability and routine with meal times, bedtimes and weekend routines
- Avoid the impulse to overindulge or overprotect your kids
- Attempt to balance support and protection with children's needs
Financial Problems
- Kids get stressed as parents get stressed
- Kids may not have a context to base the increase in stress on
- Parents working longer hours
- Answer all questions as honestly and compassionately as possible for if you do not the child will fill in the blanks as they see fit
- Instead of spending time at expensive restaurants or the cinema play board games or cycle
Steps to discuss with student on how to improve conditons
Early childhood trauma refers to various types of adversity and traumatic events experienced during the early years of a person's life. Below are three examples of how early childhood trauma may express itself.
Emotional Functioning
Depression
PTSD
Emotionally dysfunctional environments can lead to children not being able to express their emotions in a positive manner. Some children may forget completely about the events and some may temporarily forget only for the memory to re appear later in life with detrimental effects.
Depression can be displayed in persons that have experienced acute or chronic trauma, especially in their childhood. With the surfacing of relevant studies, evidence proposes that childhood trauma is a large risk factor in developing depressive disorders that can persist into adulthood.
Post-traumatic stress disorder is differentiated from other psychiatric disorders by its need for a triggering stressor.
An effective way for teachers to address all the issues discussed here is to use the SEL (Social and Emotional Learning) process within the classroom.Before one implements this one must know their limits. We are not their parents or their doctors.
SEL
SEL seeks to improve self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making. All of these cannot be easily measured in an exam but have a huge effect on students ability to perform in an exam scenario.
SEL is such a huge concept that is could not be fully covered here. Needless to say that it begins with the students social and emotional well being.
Visit California Department of Education for more