PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
Experts emphasised that parents should offer support to children and maintain a positive outlook in anticipation of the board examination results. This year, the Uttarakhand Vidyalayi Shiksha Parishad (UVSP) will take the lead by announcing the results for classes X and XII on April 19, ahead of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and ICSE. Specialists have said as the result of board examination is near the pressure on children often escalates and follows after the results of the board examination are released. Such pressure from parents and friends can frequently lead to anxiety, stress and other negative effects on children during this critical time.
Clinical neuropsychologist Dr Sona Kaushal Gupta observed that as exam results approach, students tend to experience an increase in their worries. As a CBSE counsellor, she has noted various issues affecting children, particularly concerns about their careers, expectations regarding their grades and fears of receiving low marks. She pointed out that, in the lead-up to results, pressure from parents intensifies along with their expectations. Students who have taken board examinations often worry about how their peers’ parents or friends will perceive their marks. Further, the pressure of parental expectations can lead to criticism, causing additional stress and anxiety, which ultimately diminishes their self-esteem. To help alleviate this stress and anxiety during this critical period, parents are encouraged to support their children, accept outcomes without criticism, avoid negative comments and create a positive environment.
Criticism should be avoided during this time, and it’s important to foster a positive home environment both before and after the board examination results are released. Additionally, parents need not redirect their ambitions regarding grades and other achievements towards their children.
Clinical psychologist Dr Pratibha Sharma said that as the result approaches near the parents’ expectations and conversations related to this topic tend to increase. Such expectations can heighten stress, anxiety, and panic attacks in children, sometimes leading to issues such as addiction to drugs or mobile devices and, in severe cases, other troubling behaviours. Therefore, parents are advised to refrain from discussing results with their children and instead engage them in different activities during this period. It is crucial for parents to adopt a supportive approach during this time, as effective parenting can significantly impact their children, she emphasised. She further stated that during this period, counselling of parents to overcome their stress, which will directly affect children, plays a very important role.
