Academic Pressure and Fear of Failure

 Academic Pressure and Fear of Failure

Pressure is a phenomenon developed by external force applied. There are different kinds (types) of pressures like kinematic pressure, thermodynamic pressure etc.

One kind is ACADEMIC PRESSURE. This is the pressure that is developed because of desire to excel performance.

Academic pressure is the stress that comes from schooling and academic performance . Often a lot of pressure that comes along with pursuing a degree and one’s education. 

This pressure starts  due to the demands on high school students from outside sources such as family,friends,faculty and also from within.

But during schooling the students may get mental support by parents and their friends. 

The main pressure(academic pressure) they feel is during their college days because at this time students are far from and have very few friends. 

Nowadays competition is at its peak and everyone is in the race of achieving more than each other, this leads to more pressure(academic pressure) in the students of this generation. They want to be the best and start taking stress out of every small situation. This stress(academic stress) also involves the fear of academic failure.

How does academic pressure affect (effect of academic) mental health ? Excessive level of academic stress can result in an increased prevalence of psychological and physical problems like depression, anxiety, nervousness and stress related disorder or mental health , which in turn can affect their academic results.

Depression is becoming the most common mental health problem college students suffer these days. It also reflects one’s academic frustration, academic anxiety, academic conflicts ,academic stress and academic pressure. 

REASONS:

What are the causes of academic pressure?

*These pressures mainly comes from:

*Parental expectations

*Forced to study specific subjects i.e by parents or relatives.

*Fear of failure 

*Issues with time management

*Grades: Seen as the most important part of our life.( how to overcome academic grades pressure?)

1.Parental expectations

Some parents are at their children’s back, daily pushing them to excel academically. Parental pressures to pursue academic success have both positive and negative effects on children.

This usually happens because educating a child is now considered as an investment for their better future or sometimes the parents want their child to be like others (who usually get high scores). 

They find it as a competition. They expect that their children become like the same guy in the newspaper who got 99.99% marks.

But in my view a child’s future will be bright only if he/she doesn't feel any kind of pressure or burden on them. 

And the mental abilities of all are not the same.

Some are quick learners while others are average or poor according to their ability of understanding but this doesn't mean that they can’t do anything. There is talent in everyone, the thing we’ve to do is to find them at the right time.

2.Forced to study specific subjects

Parents always want to live their dream through their children. They want to fulfill all the desires which they left incomplete.

They want their children to work in a profession in which they have a good chance of succeeding economically. 

They feel that the social science and arts in general do not offer as much potential for financial success as engineering, medical, business and law do.

But in this thinking they forget to ask their children about their interest which leads to pressure on them.

As I mentioned above, the ability and talent of every person differ from each other and therefore it is necessary to know it at the right time so that you can overcome the pressure before it happens.

Parents also have to understand that this is not their era where only doctors and engineers are respected and valuable, this is the time of equality and each n every profession have their own identity and importance at their place.

3.Fear of failure

Students want to get good grades so desperately that they sacrifice creativity and choose the easy way out simply to get better grades.

They come to prefer easier tasks not because they are lazy but because they are rational. The race of good grades are so popular that there’s neither an entry form nor any eligibility criteria. 

Everyone from this generation wants to be the best and popular and thanks to social media which teaches everyone that popularity is the most important part of your life(we’ll come to this also).

Sometimes peer pressure also creates the fear of failure. Many parents start comparing their children with others and put pressure on them to be like them and ask them for the same score. 

This makes the students uncomfortable and even after so much hard work they feel the fear of failure.

4.Issues with time management

 Time management is a big issue seen in not   only students but also adults. It is important   to know your schedule and manage your day   according to that. You will find many videos  or articles on “How to do time management?”

  

but the best solution is to make a time-table just like you college or school time table(you can add some brakes too 😉).

Don’t panic if your tasks are pending and you don’t have enough time just take a deep breath and start completing it because taking stress is not a solution it’ll affect your health and will kill your time but try to manage your day as everyone has only 24 hrs.

  5. Grades: Seen as the most important part of our life

      “Grades are just a number it cannot define who you are” 

 Nice. Right? Everyone loves these motivational quotes but only as their status, no one's gonna understand the depth of these quotes.

Grades have become the mirror of a student's knowledge and all of them take it as if this is the only thing which defines their ability.

That’s not the students fault but this is our education system, they have made the grades so important. Yes, the grades are important but it doesn’t define your real potential towards or your interest. You should try to get good scores but you don’t need to collapse for it.

What causes stress in university students? Yes, your high school marks matter in your entrance for college and your college marks matter for your job application but you can find the score which is sufficient for all of these entrances. 

POSITIVE EFFECT OF  ACADEMIC PRESSURE

How does academic pressure affect students ? (healthy) 

Don’t take stress for anything. Pressure can teach you taking responsibility  which can help you in your Job line and can make you flexible at your work.

Academic pressures are positive in many ways as they make you responsible and flexible.

It teaches you interacting with people and sometimes it acts as a motivator to accomplish goals. Stress may lead to motivation causing us to complete a difficult task or event that we must deal with. 

It not only motivates you to do better in tests, work and events but it can also push you to your fullest potential. It helps  learning the best way to overcome and manage stressful situations.

WAY TO REDUCE ACADEMIC PRESSURE

How do you overcome academic pressure?

     1.Join a group study.

2.Take help from seniors and faculties.

3.Utilize your professor as a resource.

4.Make sure to be regular in class.

5.Reduce social commitments & engagements.
6.Do yoga and regular exercise to reduce stress.