Exam anxiety
Students of Delhi schools are geared up to fight the exam anxiety and at the same time they are concerned about global terrorism
NEW DELHI: In this age of information explosion mainly brought about by smartphones and various social media sites, today’s children, especially school students who are already battling exam anxiety during this time of the year, are also concerned or disturbed — so to speak — about global events mainly related to threats of war and terrorism.
School Times talked to several students in Delhi schools to get their views on how war and terrorism affect their studies and found mixed responses from them – with most of them being worried about their studies and at the same time many of t hem being concer ned about increasing war and terrorism in the world.
A survey published recently in The Guardian, a British daily, reveals the number of children worrying about war, terrorism and global events has increased significantly, saying one in three children aged nine to 16 is more worried about conflict in the world than anything else.
Arun of Class 7A, Suraj Bhan DAV Public School, Vasant Vihar, is one of those ‘exam anxiety’ children who are not so worried about war and terrorism. “I feel anxiety before an exam and before the day of results. Now, the exam month is coming and I’m stressed. I don’t worry much about war and terrorism but global events sometimes do worry me. The recent threats of nuclear war by North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump are worrisome.”
But unlike Arun, Suryansh Khatri of Class 9A, Amrita Vidyalayam, Saket, is worried about global events. “What would happen to mankind if a war breaks out? It is nothing but a means to show one’s ego and superiority. Has anyone ever benefited from war? The answer is a simple no. J Robert Oppenheimer, father of the atom bomb, was mentally shaken by the destruction caused by his creation,” says Suryansh.
Expressing serious concern over the issue of war and terrorism, Suryansh says, “Terrorists are never born, society makes them take to violence. We must try to finish crime, not criminals. We say we must avenge the death of our soldiers, but do we realise what pain we will cause to those on the other side of the border? Even they have families who would be eagerly waiting for their loved ones to arrive for some happy events. True patriotism is not shown by fighting against someone for the country’s sake; it lies in ceasing war to save not only the nation, but also the globe.”
Other ‘exam anxiety’ students are Ayush Chaudhary of Class 9B, VVDAV Public School, Vikaspuri, and Preeti of Class 10B, Govt Coed Sec School, Vikaspuri. “Some subjects like science and social science give me stress because they are theoretical and I am not able to understand them easily,” says Ayush.
Echoing similar views, Preeti says she too is worried about her studies, adding she doesn’t understand mathematics and this causes stress to her.
But at the same time, both Ayush and Preeti are concerned about the global events also. “I am worried about war and terrorism because I love my country and don’t want terrorist attacks. Whenever a soldier is killed in a terrorist attack, we feel sad and angry,” says Ayush while Preeti too says that she feels sad whenever terrorists attack India and soldiers are killed.
Younger children are worried about a variety of things. Siya Sinha of Class 3C, Delhi Public School, Dwarka, says, “The thought of an earthquake worries me. Buildings will fall and high waves of water come out of oceans. These thoughts scare me a lot.”
As for war and terrorism, Siya says she gets worried. “When two countries fight, a lot of people die. People of two countries should visit each other with passports. They should talk and not fight,” she adds. The number of children worrying about war, terrorism and global events has increased significantly, says a study conducted by the research company Childwise which was published in The Guardian.
The survey found children tended to get their information from friends, family and social media.
Children in Delhi school are aware of global events and are concerned about violence in Kashmir and the threats of nuclear war between North Korea and the USA.
Global events were not the only thing troubling youngsters: 79% said they felt stressed by school work, 72% experienced feelings of worry or anxiety, 58% had fears they were not good enough and 57% felt they did not look good enough. For older children, the concern about their mental health was also a big issue. Those aged 16 were as worried about their own state of mind as global events, the survey reveals.
As it is the examination season in Delhi, school students are anxious about their studies.
They have to give up their little pleasures find out time to focus on their studies.