As we head to the end of Semester One, the Wellbeing Team has had an increase in presentations relating to study stress. These have included anxiety, difficulties with prioritisation, organisation and time management concerns. Each year this trend steadily increases as it follows the progression of the VCE curriculum, i.e. imminent SACs and coursework requirements leading up to exams at the end of the year.

Common concerns presenting to Wellbeing are:

Feeling too far behind to catch up
Tracking well but feeling stressed and disorganised
Not confident with studying and not sure where to start
Time management
Procrastination
Organisational skills
Issues with Prioritising

Youth mental health service ReachOut has released data showing that almost 50 per cent of young people feel extremely or very stressed about their studies indicating that study stress is having a major impact on their mental health and wellbeing (46 per cent).

Reports from affected young people highlight that school itself is a factor but it’s overflow effects are where the real problem lies:

73 per cent had trouble sleeping
42 per cent had to take time off work or study
39 per cent experienced challenges within their relationships
37 per cent experienced poor physical health and sickness.

Our students' ability to manage the extra stressors in their lives eventually become impacted by school as its demand increases. If a student is struggling, whether that be at school or home, eventually something gives and their overall ability to manage is diminished.

At this time it is important to remind our young people that they are not alone and support is available. Parents/guardians play a very important role in these times, particularly in assisting them to manage stress and wellbeing. This can include:

Supporting them to stay active
Encourage positive self talk
Practice relaxation techniques together
Encourage healthy eating
Encourage connection to others
Support good sleep hygiene
Help them to set up a workable study space
Talk about expectations - support them to set realistic goals

For further tips and strategies see - https://headspace.org.au/explore-topics/supporting-a-young-person/school-stress/

It is important to note that stress is a natural human response that helps prompt us to address challenges in our lives. It is NEVER too late to set new study goals and focus on them. Reviewing habits and making a new plan will help reduce the feelings of stress.

Coming up…

As part of the school’s continued commitment to ‘Consent Education’, the Year 12 Program will take place on Friday 9 June from 1:55 - 3:25 facilitated by Elephant Ed1. This year, the program will build on last year’s workshop, by offering students the choice of topics that explore consent education as well as a broader focus on sexual education.

The workshops will run for approximately 90 minutes, 60 minutes of content and 30 minutes allocated for questions and answers. The overall aim of the sessions is to empower students to think critically about intimate relationships, to promote respectful behaviors and encourage personal safety.

We acknowledge that some students may have experienced family/intimate partner violence, including sexual violence and the content may be upsetting. All content will be delivered sensitively. All the facilitators are skilled and caring in their approach and hold current working with student requirements. There will be “trigger” warnings prior to explicit content and school wellbeing staff will be available for support throughout the day and during the workshop. Further wellbeing follow up can be arranged if required.

As consent education is mandatory in all Victorian schools, students are required to attend and can only be exempted with the written permission of a parent/ guardian which must be forwarded to the student’s Mentor prior to the workshop.

If parents/guardians have any questions regarding consent education or any other topic related to the work of the Wellbeing team, please don’t hesitate to get in touch. The email address is: wellbeing@sssc.vic.edu.au

With warm wishes,

Elizabeth Reardon, Leader of Wellbeing

on behalf of the Wellbeing Team

(Summer Read, Michelle Seelig and Fiona Keech)

1 www.elephanted.com.au

The GAT (General Achievement Test)

Mary Skantzos