Student Pressure blog by Saloni Garg

 Pressure to do well at school has been shown to increase stress and anxiety in students, leading to poorer physical, social and emotional health. Students can feel pressure from their parents, school, teachers, society or themselves to achieve higher grades and academic success.

Recognising the signs of stress and anxiety in our students, helping them to develop practical coping skills, working in partnership with parents, reinforcing the importance of balance, and establishing realistic expectations are all helpful approaches schools can take to support students who feel pressure to do well academically.

When the system or the authority, of which an individual is a part of, considers the academic performance card more valuable than the inherent skills, cases of academic pressure rise.

Textbook oriented teaching system, rote learning method, examination system for awarding degrees and degree based job selection systems are few prominent factors that are smoothly building academic pressure on young minds.

Depression is becoming the most common mental health problem college students suffer these days. It is also a reflection of an individual’s academic frustration, academic conflict, academic anxiety and academic pressure. The four components of academic stress usually identifiable in a student are academic frustration, academic conflicts, academic anxieties and academic pressures.

Academic and exam stress is found to be positively correlated with parental pressure and psychiatric problems. It is important to remember that the mental constitution or coping capacities vary from one child to another. Therefore, children with poor coping capacities become more prone to anxiety, depression and fear of academic failure and this shows us that one should not compare one student with another.

In some cases academic pressure encourages students to perform better in school and increases their productivity levels as they are more motivated to achieve high results. Most of the time however, and from my personal experience, academic pressure results in a fixation to perform better in school to the extent where young people begin doubting their capabilities and knowledge. High levels of academic pressure led me to overthink and worry about the marks I was receiving as I was afraid of facing disappointment. I would lose concentration and focus when studying due to constantly stressing about the outcome of my exams and assignments which in turn caused me to procrastinate and have low self esteem. Academic pressure is mostly evident in young people at the time of assignments and exams since that is when there is large amounts of workload to be completed and when students are spending large amounts of time studying. This is a very difficult and overwhelming time for students as there is a high demand for students to do well and more pressure put on them from their parents, teachers and society. While academic pressure is intended on motivating students in school, it results in students being burdened with high expectations in academic performance.

Common Causes of School-Related Stress:-

Knowing the most common causes of school-related stress can help you provide distinct mental health support for different students’ unique needs. Researchers have identified the following as the most common contributors to school-related stress:-

• Demanding academic content and excessive homework
• High-stakes tests
• Pressure from parents and to gain acceptance to prestigious universities
• Developmentally inappropriate classrooms
• Peer relationships
• Lack of preparation
• Academic kindergartens
• Overbooked schedules
• Pressure to maintain high grades and fear of failure
• Conflicts with teachers
• Transitioning to secondary school
• Poor diet and lack of sleep

While these are common causes of school-related stress, it’s important to note that every individual responds to stressors in different ways. 

Consequences of Chronic Stress:-

Without the right mental health support in place, stress can become chronic, leading to a number of adverse outcomes for students such as:

• Physical illness
• Anxiety and depression
• Insufficient sleep
• Irritability or volatility
• Decrease in academic performance
• Social withdrawal
• Experimentation with drugs and alcohol Cheating

Looking at these high levels of academic stress in students which can also lead to psychological disorders, there is an urgent need to develop suitable interventions and solutions to reduce this level of stress and psychiatric morbidity.

What can be done to limit stress among students?

As students spend most of their time in classrooms, teachers can play a useful role in mitigating the stress affecting them. Heres how:

• Teachers can educate their students about the importance of time management that can considerably reduce stress. They should allow flexible due dates to submit the assignments. Not only will this reduce stress but also keep them motivated to deliver their work.                        
• Teachers should acknowledge the effort of every student instead of discouraging them.          
• Teachers should put in the effort to encourage laughter and humour in the classroom. At times, they can share incidences related to their own childhood with the students to strengthen the bond.                                                 
• Lessons should aim to create a deeper level of understanding instead of burdening the students with figures and facts.                            Similar to teachers, parents have a key role to play in reducing the stress among the students. Heres how:-                                               
• Parents should instigate positive thinking and good lifestyle habits in students. A healthy lifestyle coupled with good eating and sleeping habits can considerably reduce stress. 
• Be it in academics, sports or any other area, parents should always embrace a child's imperfections and mistakes. They need to teach their children that failure is part of success.    
• If a student is experiencing fear or anxiety, parents should take the time to talk and address the concerns.
• Parents should always make it a point to focus on the good aspects and positive attributes of the student

Final words:-

In this age where a decimal point can be a deciding factor in ones life, there is a dire need to address the issues of parenting expectations and academic stress. We must work as a cohesive unit to conduct deeper analysis and wider studies to understand the obstacles and devise specific plans to reduce the burden on the youngsters.

                      By Saloni Garg

                    BBA 3rd Sem

                      A20006421089