All About IVFFor students, perhaps the one “monster” that evokes the most fear is an examination. We all can identify with feeling anxious right before an interview for a job or giving a performance in front of an audience.
It is rather natural to feel some nervousness before such evaluations. Examinations are not different from such occasions. Being evaluative in nature, they fill most children with many concerns and worries like “what if I fail? What will I do in my future?” or “What will happen if I score a low grade? How will I show my face at home?” or “I must score a 95% so that I get into science, else I am a failure.”
At this time, they need a lot of moral support and understanding from parents. So what can parents do to help their children without letting the anxiety become unbearable and counter-productive? A few tips that can be helpful are:
TALK TO THE CHILD ABOUT HER FEELINGS:
First, when a child shares her anxiety with parents, instead of saying things like “it will be ok” or “don’t worry” it would help the child if she is asked about what makes her so anxious. This will give her a chance to honestly share her concerns related to exams, which can be addressed by the parent in a non-threatening and understanding manner.
REASSURE THAT AN EXAM IS A SMALL PART OF LIFE:
The parents should introspect and dissociate themselves from having any unrealistic expectation from their child, and communicate in a manner which is very reassuring for the child. Often, parents burden their children with their own expectations which may cause great stress. They should convey to the child that an exam is just a small part of a student’s life and has little bearing on the child’s future. After all, aren’t there too many examples we know of who achieved excellence later in life without necessarily being toppers?
ENCOURAGE DE-STRESSING ACTIVITIES:
Taking regular breaks from learning for exams is also as important as learning in a distraction-free environment. Encourage your child to take regular breaks and preferably engage in sports/exercises that he/she enjoys. These breaks will ensure that the monotony is broken, and he can resume the preparation with a fresher mind.
DIVIDE THE SYLLABUS INTO SMALLER PARTS:
It can be very overwhelming for the child to try and finish the whole syllabus quickly. Rather, he should be asked to plan for smaller lengths of time, and achieve as much as possible in that time. For instance, he can be asked to break the syllabus into bits and make goals for every three days.
EFFICIENT TIME MANAGEMENT:
The child can be helped to manage her time efficiently. She should spend more time with difficult topics that need more in-depth understanding, and lesser with simpler topics.
REGULAR REVISION:
Children are anxious to finish the whole syllabus and often forget things that they had already prepared. To avoid that, regular revision of the topics already prepared can be very helpful.
In addition to these, keeping the atmosphere at home as relaxed as possible can go a long way in conveying to the child that her worth is not dependent on any exam, and she is valued irrespective of her performance.
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