HOW TO SUPPORT YOUR CHILD IN PREPARING FOR EXAMS

For parents, supporting your child with exam preparation can feel like a tricky balance to get right.

As we come closer to exam season, the issues that students bring to counselling sessions start to focus more on academic attainment. Year 11 and 13 students in particular are busy with coursework deadlines and exam revision. It’s a stressful time for them - and a time where parental support becomes even more important.

For parents, supporting your child with exam preparation can feel like a tricky balance to get right. You want to ensure that your child is putting in maximum effort to achieve the best result they can, but at the same time, you want to help reduce the stress that your child is experiencing.

As you can see from the Anxiety Curve diagram on the left, too much stress can lead to exhaustion and an inability to focus, which will not help your child do well in their exams.

However, there are multiple ways in which you can support your child to experience positive stress, rather than distress.

1. First, ask your child whether they have made a plan for their study schedule. This will help them feel confident that they will cover all the material they need to revise, in turn helping to reduce their anxiety.

2. Once your child is a week or two into their plan, it is helpful to discuss with them how the schedule is working out. Are they able to achieve the goals they set for themselves? It may be that the plan should be modified, but as the student gets into a routine of working, the modifications needed will hopefully become clear.

3. Ensure that your child has a plan for rest, as well as work. Have they scheduled regular, short breaks into their daily schedule? During their breaks, are they able to switch off from work in a way that enables them to come back refreshed and ready to learn more? Ideally, your child should be away from their screen for most of their revision breaks.

In the lead up to exams, common messages about getting enough sleep, eating well, and exercising become even more important for students to take on-board. However, how parents reinforce these messages with their children is equally important.

Parents that don’t allow their children space to study in peace can add to the child’s distress and impair their ability to learn. At the same time, students need to feel the support of their parents during this difficult time.

Parents can achieve a balance by monitoring the child’s focus and emotional balance, checking in with them, and offering support or guidance when you think it is needed. This will help to make the child feel secure, but also free to revise in a way that suits them.

Matthew Greenwood Social-Emotional Counsellor