What’s Happening This Week This Wednesday marks the halfway point of the school term, from Christmas to the last week of school.
In reality, this is one of those weeks where not much seems to be happening. Mock exam results are mostly in, and everything is settling back to normal. The mocks have dominated the past 8 school weeks, but now they feel firmly in the rearview mirror.
Since there isn’t much new going on this week, let’s talk about two completely different issues affecting students.
Some students are starting to feel a bit stressed about the upcoming exams. Others are finding it hard to stay motivated during this period. Ironically, this lack of motivation can also cause students to feel bad. Let’s talk about the easier one first!
Lack of Motivation Students who feel stressed, look away now! All the reasons why students should feel motivated at this stage are the same reasons others feel stressed. It’s all about time!
As mentioned above, this Wednesday is the halfway point of the term. Does it feel that long since you came back to school after Christmas? I’m guessing the answer is no. Think about this like a 600-meter race—that’s 100 meters for every year most of you have attended secondary school. You’ve completed 575 meters of the race. You’re way around the final bend, getting close to the finish line! You can see the tape. Are you seriously going to slow down now?
Dealing with Stress This is a very serious topic. You might be surprised to hear us use the same argument we used for students lacking motivation.
Time and time again, students tell us they’re stressed because they are worried about running out of time. I always give the same reply: rejoice in the fact that you’re getting close to the end of the race. You’re ready! You’ll be as prepared as you can be by the start of June. Would you feel any more prepared at the end of July? August? Probably NO is the answer!
Think back to how much work you completed before the mocks. You’ll get even more done before the main exams! Allow yourself to picture walking out of the last exam—it feels great! You’ll be feeling that very, very soon!
Because this is such an important topic, I’ve attached a link to an article written by young people on how to handle exam stress. Click on the link below if you want to read it: How to Handle Exam Stress
