academic stress

Causes & Effects:

• Heavy work overload - when students are faced with a heavy work overload, including lots of homework, tight deadlines, and maintaining extracurricular activities, it can lead to an overwhelming amount of stress. 

• Exam stress - exams can be a major source of stress amongst students. It is normal to feel some pressure before an exam, and for some people, it can help keep them focused. For others, this stress is so strong that they are not able to prepare for exams as well as they could. 

• High expectations from parents/teachers - although it is good for both parents and teachers to develop children into better versions of themselves, they can often cause irrational expectations. This pressure can lead to major feelings of stress, with the fear that we are not living up to the expectations set for us. 

How to cope with it:

• Stay organized - this can include doing assignments on time, not procrastinating, and breaking down large tasks into smaller, more manageable ones.

• Make a study timetable before exams - develop a realistic study timetable for yourself by allocating specific time for individual subjects. This will help you to not only stay organized but also to manage your time well before an upcoming exam.

• Take advantage of school resources - many schools offer tutoring, counseling, and other useful resources to help students manage academic stress. Additionally, if you feel unclear about a specific topic, don't hesitate to ask for help from your teachers.

• Understand your concepts well - if you are unclear about the concepts you are learning, it can make studying ten times harder. For this reason, it is important to fully understand what you are doing, and continuously revise.