Stressed out or sleeping in, students are skipping school
STRESS and anxiety are the main reasons teenagers skip school, with nearly 50 per cent of students “taking mental health days”.
This is according to a new landmark report that shows other reasons include to catch up on sleep, play video games or recover from a hangover.
A report by school leavers’ website Year13 surveyed 4500 young Australians and found 46 per cent of students nominated mental health as their key motive for taking a day off, and 31 per cent say their mental health is a barrier to pursuing their passion.
It comes after News Corp revealed anxiety rates were soaring in primary school students, with NAPLAN one of the biggest drivers of stress.
With NAPLAN results due, along with a major overhaul of the My School website to make it more user-friendly, further data from Cluey Learning shows the skills test is confusing for students
So much so, in fact, that three-quarters of students did not know what it is for and nearly one-third of parents do not know why their child is doing NAPLAN.
Chief learning officer at Cluey Learning Dr Selina Samuels encouraged parents to better understand the test.
“Don’t be afraid to mention NAPLAN as it opens up an opportunity to discuss how to best manage the test and, by extension, other stressful experiences they will encounter,” Dr Samuels said.
Not understanding the purpose behind education is a factor behind students’ lack of motivation, according to Year13’s ‘ATAR 3: The Role of Passion and Purpose in Connecting Youth to Meaningful Education and Employment’ report.
The report looked into the state of youth’s mental health in schools and the role that passion and purpose can play and found 50 per cent of students say most of what they learn at school is pointless, and just two in five teachers explaining how they can apply what they’re learning at school in the real world.