Synthesis essay
High school and college students are among the most anxious people in the world today. High-performing students face a lot of pressure to maintain their performance streak. The fear to disappoint parents, fear to fail and the subsequent fear of failing to join college by high school students are some of the reasons why they overwork themselves. This leads to stress which reduces their learning capacity and academic performance, causes mental health issues like depression and anxiety, lack of sleep, drug abuse and later end up dropping out of school. The best way to prevent this nowadays is for students to relax after the study.
High pressure will cause diseases that can affect the normal development and functioning of the brain thus increasing the risk of diseases into adulthood. Researchers argue stress is not always bad but with chronic stress, high cortisol levels can instead impair brain functioning and suppress the immune system, causing long-term damage (Harvard, 2015, para.6). An increase in the stress levels has been rampant since “for many young people, the transition to high school can seem like the start of a stressful, seemingly endless marathon” (Harvard, 2014, para.7). Most high school may face declining grades, and for those who believe that intelligence is a fixed trait this doesn’t change because these students remain fixated on the setback and have difficulty moving forward (Youki Terada, 2018, para.1)
The survey found that the psychological state of most students now is unstable due to stress from education. According to research carried out across OECD countries, 66% of students reported feeling stressed about poor grades and 59% reported that they often worry that taking a test will be difficult (Alexandra G. Parker, 2018, para.2). Such high levels of anxiety and depression have an impact on the general health and well-being of the student. Aside from impairing overall health and well-being, depression and anxiety symptoms can further adversely affect academic achievement (Bernal-Morales, Rodrigues-Landa, and Pulido-Criollo, 2015). The level of depression can reduce if learners are subjected to positive changes in academic life and given enough social aid. Indeed, an Australian randomized control trial reported that a gamified online cognitive behaviour therapy intervention was effective in reducing depressive symptoms in 540 final year secondary students (Perry et al., 2017).
Schools should help students to develop a growth mindset while giving attention to their demands. School counsellors should give both academic and emotional support before and during transitions from one stage to another. Reamy does all that she can to talk to students about deep breathing exercises, the power of positive self-talk, healthy nutrition, yoga, sleep and more (Mary Ellen Flannery, 2018, para.5). Counsellors should be able to discern symptoms of overwhelming anxiety to offer the right solution. Common symptoms include a persistent feeling of dread and jumpiness, frequent panic attacks, as well as headaches, stomach problems, shortness of breath, and fatigue (Mary Ellen Flannery, 2018, para.5). Attention should be shifted towards teens before the problem becomes fixated in their brains. Today’s teens and young adults are the most anxious ever, according to mental-health surveys (Mary Ellen Flannery, 2018, para.5).
In conclusion, students should have breaks in between studies to relieve their brains and academic pressure. Since teens and young adults are mostly affected by anxiety, academic counsellors need to pay attention to these groups to prevent further effects during adulthood. Teens should know that education is not an endless marathon and failure is not the end of life. Relaxing after the study is one of the best ways of reducing academic anxiety.