4 Reasons Why Children Experience Exam Stress

Exam season is when you see your children at their study desks more than out playing. Exam stress is a common experience among students, often displayed in the form of anxiety, worry, headaches, and stomachaches. Parents and teachers need to understand why children experience this stress in order to support children and help them manage their stress better. In this blog, we will explore the four most common reasons why children experience exam stress. Let’s dive in to learn more about dealing with exam stress.

1. High Expectations

Children often worry about what their parents or society will think of them if they don’t score well in exams. Students set these expectations in their minds, which can create an atmosphere where the student might feel that their worth is tied to their academic performance.

The pressure to meet these high expectations can have numerous negative effects. It can lead to various mental health issues like depression, low self esteem and anxiety. Emotional education in schools greatly helps students understand the root causes of their fears and anxieties, and helps them take effective steps to address these.

Parents have an important role in helping their children deal with exam stress. Setting realistic goals and encouraging your children’s efforts rather than focussing only on their results will help to create an environment where your child feels safe and secure.

Open communication with your child can help create a bond and better understanding, which will help your child to thrive.

2. Fear of Failure

The fear of failure is a common concern among many students, often manifested as anxiety about not meeting certain standards or expectations. At its core, this fear stems from a desire to avoid negative outcomes, which may have developed from past experiences, or a tendency toward perfectionism. The fear of failure can lead to various psychological effects on children, including the following:

• Anxiety: Students worry constantly about failing or negative outcomes.
• Low self-esteem: Students doubt themselves and lose their self-confidence, often developing a negative self-image.
• Depression: Students begin to feel unmotivated and experience low energy, withdrawing from social interactions, and focusing largely on perceived failures.
• Procrastination: The fear of underperforming can cause students to feel so overwhelmed that they begin to engage in avoidant behaviour, procrastination and overthinking.

Parents should normalise failure as part of the learning process and provide emotional support to help their children build resilience. This approach encourages a growth mindset and helps students stay mentally healthy while also reducing stress, which can positively impact their overall well-being.

3. Peer Pressure

Peer pressure is the influence that students may feel from friends, classmates, or any social group. As a result, when students see their peers completing tasks well while they struggle, they may feel pressured to perform at or better than their peers’ levels. This pressure often does more harm than good, making the students doubt themselves and feel stressed. Here are some common ways that students experience peer pressure.

• Comparison with peers: Once a student begins to compare their academic performance with another student, they mentally set standards to meet the same levels of performance.
• Fear of social rejection: Students fear being judged by others for their academic performance.
• Competition: In a highly competitive environment, students experience heightened stress to be the best among their peers.
• Pressure to comply: Students might feel pressured to adopt study habits or activities that align with their peers, even if they aren’t necessarily beneficial to them.

Ideally, students should be challenged to improve without developing pressure. Parents can guide their children by advising them on how to deal with peer pressure.

4. Poor Time Management

Time management is a skill that many students find hard to master. Poor time management can make students feel stressed as the examination dates approach. Managing time effectively helps students balance study, leisure, and other activities, which goes a long way in supporting their academic performance. There are several consequences to poor time management, as discussed below:

• Increased stress: As exam dates approach, students often experience increasing anxiety and stress.
• Low performance: When time is not utilised properly, productivity decreases, and students tend to struggle to perform well academically.
• Burnout: Students often overcommit and manage their time poorly, leading to physical and mental exhaustion, ultimately resulting in burnout.
• Poor quality work: Mismanaged time often leads to rushing tasks, resulting in lower quality work and incomplete assignments.

Tip for Students to Stay Calm

Here are tips for students for coping with exam stress:

• Students should develop a study plan and stick to it. Each subject should be allotted manageable chunks at the proper times.
• Mindfulness and relaxation help keep a student calm. Students must engage in these practices on a regular basis.
• Healthy eating habits keep students physically and mentally fit. A diet with balanced nutrition is essential for all students.
• A positive study environment that is quiet, well lit and has proper ventilation will help a student focus on their work.

Exam season can be stressful for students, but with effective exam stress management strategies, they can overcome these challenges and perform at their best. Students should develop a study plan, practice mindfulness, and create supportive environments to stay calm and focused. By implementing these methods, students can be confident and stress-free during exams.

Billabong High International School is committed to creating a supportive and nurturing environment for children to excel academically and contribute to their holistic growth. Visit our website to learn more.