My daughter is currently revising for her GCSEs and says she’s
‘triggered’ by the upcoming exams. This is urban slang for a negative emotional
response, like fear or panic. “Don’t be daft,” I say. “Just do your best. That’s
all you can do.”
Wisely, I opt not to point out that she spent five hours
coming up with a revision timetable instead of actually revising. And now that very
same timetable hangs, limp and unloved, on her wall, totally forgotten while
she revises whatever catches her fancy. “I’m not in the mood for Russian
History,” she says dolefully, sliding her book closed. To be fair, no-one’s
ever in the mood for Russian History.
I remember my exams at sixteen – O Levels as they were then.
I’m sure I revised for several hours a day, but when I mention that to the offspring
she rolls her eyes. Apparently revising for too long is counterproductive. It’s
supposedly far more efficient to do just half an hour of one subject and then
move on to the next.
Half an hour? That’s not revising. That’s basically reading
a couple of paragraphs and deciding it’s time for a snack. Though I suppose half
an hour is an aeon of time to today’s snapchatting instagramming teenagers. Thirty
minutes to them is probably the equivalent of a long weekend to us.
The one thing I’ve tried to be alert to is my daughter’s mental
health. According to a Girlguiding report in the UK last year, more than two
thirds of girls and young women said exams were the biggest cause of stress in
their lives. Mental well-being is talked about much more openly these days and it is something we've discussed in our household. Some headteachers are concerned that
tougher GCSEs are potentially damaging the mental health of our kids. Arguing
about revising doesn’t make this any easier - there’s obviously a delicate
balance between pushing them to do well, and pushing them too hard.
With the husband working away from home, it’s been left to me to
gently encourage my daughter to revise regularly and consistently. Okay, maybe
not so gently. Apparently you shouldn’t make sweeping statements like: “You’ll
regret it when you open those grades in August,” or “I revised seven hours a
day when I did my exams.”
But now that she’s got into her stride, I’ve been pleasantly
surprised at how diligent she can be. She's working hard, and I know she's smart. I’m just trying to silence that little voice at the back of my head saying “if
only she’d started sooner…”
Anyway, one way or another, it’ll all be over in a few short weeks. Then we can all relax.
Until the results in August. Gulp.
