Take a deep breath: after two years of stop-start schooling, the first Wednesday in June sees the beginning of the written papers in this year’s Leaving and Junior Certs.
Five steps to calmer mental health at exam time
It is perfectly normal for anxiety levels to run high during important examinations at any stage of life. Instead of trying to eliminate it, students should try to set about managing it and accepting that certain levels of anxiety are useful when it comes to high-pressure situations such as the Leaving or Junior Cert.
1) Trust in what you have done to date. Anxiety comes from fear of the unknown, and so any situations where you are assessed under pressure, such as a job interview or an exam, amplify this uncertainty. Students can become consumed by unknowns and therefore immobilised by the lack of control they have over the outcome, and this can result in panic.
However, students should concentrate on the “knowns” and attempt to reassure themselves that they have prepared to the best of their ability for exams. They are in a far stronger position to answer the questions which will be asked this year, given the far wider range of choices.
RM Block
2) Focus on your own preparations. Do not compare your preparation to that of others, as you will always judge yourself not to be doing enough or as much as you feel you should.
Always remember that anxiety will only persist for a short period – and soon it will be gone
3) Try to take control of your anxiety. Use it to motivate yourself to consolidate what you know already, rather than allowing it to distract you with worst-case-scenario unknowns.
4) Put your thoughts into perspective. Where the anxious voice in your head is dominating discussions there, remember to invite two other influences to join the conversation, namely “context” and “perspective”. These will help you to counter-argue against your anxious thoughts and manage the unwelcome guest of anxiety in your life.
5) The Leaving Cert is the final challenge of a crazy two years. Always remember that anxiety will only persist for a short period – and soon it will be gone. After this final fence is jumped you will have the summer to relax and be able to look forward to a life of further in-person study in college or employment/apprenticeship in the autumn.
What is the most important thing to do now to prepare?
Organise all your revision notes for all the examination papers in each subject you are scheduled to sit papers in June. Try organising them backwards, starting from your last exam, identifying the periods of time you have available before each paper to finally review your notes and sample answers.
When you have completed this process, you will have a clear picture of how you are going to use every hour available to you over the last weeks of schooling and the gaps between the exams themselves. This will help you make sure time that slots for final revision are identified for all sections of every paper.
Do not be tempted to review with your child errors or omissions they may have made. Simply allow them the time and space to tell their story
Undertaking this simple process will give you back a sense of control over the exams and reduce excess stress.
How can parents help their children get through the next few weeks?
Know your child’s examination schedule. Pin the timetable up prominently at home, with each exam to be taken highlighted. In the stress of the whole exam period, you need to always be aware when your child must be in the examination centre.
Try drawing up a checklist of daily requirements based on a day’s exams. Writing instruments and other necessities such as rulers, erasers and calculators should be checked.
After each day’s exams, parents should allow their child to recount their daily story. Do not be tempted to review with them in detail errors or omissions they may have made. Simply allow them the time and space to tell their story, and move on to the next challenge and the next paper.
[ My daughter suffers from exam anxiety. How will she cope during the Leaving Cert?Opens in new window ]
Help them focus on the next challenge. It can be helpful also to review the paper or papers immediately ahead. Simple questions around the nature of the exams can be very useful in helping your son or daughter to focus on what’s next.
Finally, try not to overhype the importance of any particular exam. Parents need to be aware that youngsters taking The Junior or Leaving Cert can sometimes mistakenly believe their standing in their parents’ eyes is dependent on their success in the exams.
Ensure your child is clear that your unconditional love and regard for them is in no way dependent on how they perform in any exam.
This affirmation is the greatest gift you can give them at the start of this exam period.
