Bokaro: Students are filled with anxiety as the board examination approaches, and the fear of not performing well makes them anxious. It is important that students are calm during examinations, and deal strongly with any distressing emotions that may arise. In order to overcome stress and anxiety caused during examinations and competitions, an interactive workshop on stress management and exam anxiety was held at the Guru Gobind Singh Public School (GGPS) on Friday, for students in Grade XII.
The objective of the workshop was to equip the young aspirants of class XII with skills and strategies to deal with exam stress, provide them with different ways they can deal with stress and most importantly, prepare them to be confident and at ease for the upcoming board examinations.
An eminent psychiatrist, Dr.K.N.Thakur conducted the workshop. Students should know how to deal with anxiety, because it is part of human nature. The interactive session covered the types of stress and how to deal with them, using real-life examples to help students relate to and understand. Furthermore, he stressed the importance of stress relaxation techniques such as yoga, walking and using scents and gum, which the students can easily follow.
During his address, he discussed the ‘three Ps’: Planning, Preparation, and Practice to overcome challenges and the importance of having a well-defined goal. He also adviced students to always share their problems with someone they trust. He also suggested them to be interactive during the session and ask questions fearlessly. The students shared their issues with regards to concentration and focus, and got their questions answered appropriately.
This session, thus provided an opportunity to share and practice how to prevent and manage the stress during examination. The session came to an end and helped the students in generating self-awareness and positivity among them and deals with exam stress like winners. Principal of GGPS, Soumen Chakraborty also gave practical advice to the students, on recognising the early sign of stress and to adopt a holistic approach to cope with the inevitable stress of exams.
Meanwhile, Pentecostal School Assembly is also taking neccessary steps to keep students calm and build their confidence. Principal of the school, Dr Karuna Prasad said “many have developed anxiety issues, because high marks in online exams have hardly built their confidence in their own abilities. Performance anxiety is hightened because children have no clarity about where they stand”.
In this context, we are continually striving to build the confidence of every student. Telling them that they can do it. Group Counseling sessions have focused on the idea that ‘Marks don’t define you, Your attitude does’. The fear of exam can only be overcome by facing the exam, she added.
