Students having panic attacks, experiencing copious amounts of stress and anxiety in the run up to GCSEs and A-levels, isn't necessarily a new thing (unfortunately), but the recent surge of depleted mental health of said students, is beginning to take a concerning turn.

 

Testing a student's knowledge through a series of questions and an alotted time is a method that can be traced back centuries, but as time progresses, these tests get more difficult, and the pressures that come with these examinations may no longer be compatible. With lockdown having disrupted the normal flow of exams, the return and reality of these may have hit candidates stronger than imagined.

 

It can be said that in this day and age, we fall victims to stress regularly and have grown accustomed to its presence in our everyday lives. But when we are unable to do anything for almost two years and are then expected to return back to the norm as though no time was really lost, well, it's logical that mental health and wellbeing are going to be more fragile. The transition from online-learning to normal schooling seemed smooth at first, but with A-levels and GCSEs finally here, it is revealed that this change was anything but.

What is perhaps the most troubling element regarding this situation, might be the solution, since currently, it is undeterminable if there even is one. Of course it would be beneficial to utilise the school councillors and wellbeing programs that schools invest in, but in the long-run, how useful can it be to provide only a "quick-fix" for when one is finally overwhelmed?

And that is the worst thing, because right know, their is no effective answer, students will continue to suffer through these exams, which could potentially affect their careers in the future, and only be able to "grin and bear it" whilst receiving real help on the side.