Use diagrams, maps to prevent brain freeze
Have you ever felt that your mind
freezes during the exam? Have you ever been in a situation when you sit down at
the examination desk and realise that all that you’ve been revising for the
past few months is forgotten? Does your heart race or do you find it hard to
breathe during exams? This particular form of stress is known as exam anxiety,
and some people are more susceptible to it than others.
In
a study published by Martyn Denscombe (2000) found teenagers suffer from exam
stress due to four reasons: the future occupational consequences associated
with the outcome of the exam; they related their selfesteem with the grades
(students are likely to have higher selfesteem if they have higher grades);
unrealistic expectations from parents and teachers leading to performance
pressure; and fear of getting judged by their peers.
RECOGNIZE
THE NEGATIVE EMOTIONS To deal with exam- related stress, it is essential that
children recognize the negative thoughts. Once they examine these thoughts,
they will be able to see how unrealistic they are. Challenge the thoughts that
say you are a failure and can’t succeed. Replace self- criticism with self-
correction.
Instead
of getting discouraged by the result of the previous exam, children must
identify their weak areas and work on them. Indulge in more positive self- talk
like ‘I can do it,’ ‘It is just an exam.’
TIME
MANAGEMENT All work, no play leads to exam stress. Teachers and parents should
help children identify their concentration span and facilitate their studies
with appropriate breaks during the exam.
Time
management plan can be made for all the subjects so that adequate time can be
given to all the subjects and revision time is adequately sought. Children
should build in their timetables with activities which they enjoy like watching
their favourite TV programme, going out with their friends, going to play
football in the park or listening to their favourite music for an hour.
‘ACTIVE’ STUDY STRATEGIES There are active strategies which can be employed by
the students while preparing for their exams. Students can teach or explain the
lesson to someone else which can be implemented efficiently in group studies.
Think about the questions expected in the exam and write the answers. Students
can prepare graphic designs and semantic maps which offer a visual
representation of ideas.
When
abstract information is laid in concrete, and visual form such as a chart, diagram,
word, map event, scene, experiment or character (from a story) are readily
retrieved later.
ROLE
OF PARENTS Jane D Hull stated that ‘At the end of the day, the most
overwhelming key to a child’s success is the positive involvement of the
parents.’ Parents must acknowledge that children can sometimes fail to do well
if they are unable to cope with the stress. They should provide a conducive
environment to their children which is positively reinforced.
They
should commend their child’s performance with positive statements like ‘well
done,’ ‘you can do better’ rather than saying ‘that was not enough.’ Parents
should celebrate the efforts of their child instead of solely focusing on the
result.
They
must avoid setting unrealistic expectations on their children as it enhances
stress and performance pressure on children. ENSURE THAT YOU ARE HEALTHY There
is a famous quote which says that the body achieves what the mind believes.
There is a close connection between our mind and body. The simple rule is that
children should listen to their body during exams: Eat when you’re hungry, rest
when you are tired, relax when you are stressed and step back when you feel
overwhelmed. It is seen that during exam, some students start binge eating
while some don’t feel like eating.
Parents
must ensure that their kids are eating a healthy diet which includes green
salad and fruits. Children also face problems related to irregular sleep cycles
or insomnia during exams. Parents should make sure that their kids try to keep
a fixed time for sleeping as far as possible. Children should avoid afternoon
prolonged sleeping; a short nap may be helpful. They should avoid taking any
food or liquid which contains caffeine and chocolate three hours before their
sleep time. Most children complaint that they have no time for play and
exercise during exams. Whereas, exercise is all the more necessary during exams
because they act as ‘stress buster.’ Simple exercises such as stretching,
jogging and running relieve the stress and ensure physical fitness during
exams.
Source | Hindustan
Times | 22nd November 2017
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Knowledge Repository
Khaitan & Co
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