Student in India is more stressed than ever. It is a growing problem not only in India but all over the world. India has one of the highest suicide rates among those aged 15 to 29. According to The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Every hour one student commits suicide in India, an average of Twenty-eight students commit suicide every 24 hours during 2022. India saw 1.3 lakh suicides in 2022, of which students made up 8%, while 10% of them were unemployed people. The reasons are countless, but failure in examination, unemployment, and depression are the major ones. The Psychologists assert that students suffer from anxiety and traumatic disorder relating to fear of examination and peer pressure from parents to push their children into getting better grades. Let’s check out the 5 main major reasons behind the increment in stress:
Indian Education System:
The Indian education system is more inclined towards memorization. It focuses on long, systematic study hours, leaving less time for recreational activities and socialisation, which is a crucial part of the child’s development. The results of a 12th-grade student determine the choice of college or university he/she will get admission to. Students from the science stream face more stress because of very high competition in the entrance exams for different universities and colleges.
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Parents Pressure:
Students withstand their parent’s pressure to score well in the exams. The fear of failing to do well in studies causes anxiety among students, which negatively affects their academic and social success. Parents’ tendency to compare their children affects the self-worth of a child. The dignity of a student is determined merely by grades, not based on individual qualities they already possess. Parents remove cable connections, internet, and computer and take the student’s cell phones to make their children concentrate and get better grades.
In a recent survey, two-thirds (66%) of students reported that their parents pressurize them for better academic performance. The pressure from non-graduate parents was more compared to parents who were graduates and postgraduates. Sleep deprivation, eating disorders, excessive worrying, cheating, burnout, loss of interest in hobbies, withdrawal from friends and family, smoking and usage of narcotics can be among the consequences of excess pressure. Every day, 6.23 students commit suicide due to peer pressure; there must be something wrong that we do not understand.
Focus on Grades, not on learning
Grades centric education system and parents’ mindset make the students forget the fun element of learning. If taught well, creatively or with live examples, studies can become interesting. The teacher’s ability to sustain the interest of students in the subject is essential. Sadly, it’s not only the students who underperform, but teachers also underperform too, and there are no criteria to judge teacher performance. More than 50% of 12th students admitted to having more than 3 private tutors.
Improper Guidance
Their parents pressurize children to choose the career they want due to the orthodox thinking of parents who believe in putting their ward in traditional courses like engineering and medical courses instead of asking what their child wants resulting in choosing the wrong course for their child after 12th Class. Students find themselves studying courses they have no interest in because of the future financial benefits. This leads to further stress on students in graduation as well as after. Inefficiency to study properly and getting good grades reduces his chances to earn a good job. It leads to unemployment. Many This leaves the student stressed/mentally ill in college as well as after.
Lack of Support
One of the major key stress and anxiety causes for college students is being at the university itself. The diversity in people, cultures, and experiences can sometimes be an overload for students from different backgrounds, states, or countries. It’s even more difficult because many students also find themselves physically cut off from their support systems and comfort zones and in a new environment with its own rules and regulations. As soon as you are in college, you are expected to be apt and responsible for all your everyday needs such as laundry, feeding, health, bank transactions, formal applications etc. Realising your inadequacies and limitations could result in crippling anxiety and depression.
Financial Pressure
Coming from a middle-class family means that the bulk of your parents’ savings goes into your higher education, which means failing or not performing well is the same as pouring their money, life’s work and dreams down the drain. The financial pressure on college students is immense. Financial worry leaves many students stressed, anxious and often depressed because they have to think about the strain money has on their lives and the tension it leaves on their families.
How do help students get rid of stress?
Reduction of stress starts at home. Positive parenting is key to reducing the pressure on children. Parents should encourage their children. Encouraging child stepping stone to child’s success. Parents should interact with their children by playing, laughing, and participating in fun or leisure activities. This builds a friendship with the child. Any advice from parents should not sound like a commandment. At school, the teacher should introspect their way of teaching. They should focus on making the studies more interactive and interesting.
A teacher should also console the parents on promoting the child learning at home as every student has his own learning pace. Both parents and teachers could help the students to develop their own learning methods. Understanding that stress is a natural part of the experience can be comforting and a motivator to teach students the skills required to minimise the stress and combat it in instances where it can’t be controlled.