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School students anxious about the future

15th July 2020
Posted by Aston Avery

The COVID-19 outbreak has been a challenging time for much of the UK. However, one of the groups whose lives have been significantly affected by the current pandemic is teenagers. An entire year group have been unable to sit their GCSE exams this summer and those in earlier year groups have lost valuable GCSE preparation time which is likely to have a big impact on their exams in 2021. From March 20th schools began to close their doors to the majority of their pupils and all exams have since been cancelled. Those who would have otherwise sat long-anticipated exams for which they have spent years preparing will instead receive calculated grades based on their general school performance, with an option to sit the exams as soon as is “reasonably possible” after the beginning of the new academic year.

In recent years the number of pupils leaving school with no qualifications has been on the rise, increasing by 28% since 2015. Before the pandemic 1 in 5 (18%) pupils a year failed to gain 5 GCSEs at grade C or higher (or the equivalent technical qualifications). Economically disadvantaged pupils are already stuck ’18 months behind’. 2020’s year-11’s will be awarded grades that may not reflect their true academic ability.  We are therefore at risk of the number of young people leaving school without sufficient qualifications rising further on account of the pandemic.

Those in year 10 this year, preparing for GCSE exams next year, have lost several months of crucial education. Ofqual are currently looking at what changes will need to be made to 2021’s exams which might include more optional questions. Whatever the outcome, those students who have been supported at home are likely to be disproportionately advantaged, even more than in previous years.

Recent government research shows that children and teens respond more strongly to the stress of a crisis but has suggested this can be reduced by sticking to a routine and planning times for doing school work. For working parents, home-schooling is particularly difficult, and many teenagers have been encouraged to manage their schoolwork independently. For students looking to sit their exams in the coming academic year, whether they have been unable to sit them this summer or are in their earlier years of secondary school, independent learning may be essential to their future academic success.

Aston spoke to Nathan McGurl, founder of Study Buddy to offer advice on how to prevent ourselves and our teenagers becoming anxious about managing studies at home during this uncertain time.

Image by Kimberly Farmer on Unsplash