Posted by: Professor David
Putwain
School and college qualifications are
important, whether GCSEs, A levels, Applied Generals or other
vocational and technical qualifications. It is no surprise, then,
that teachers and parents spend a lot of time talking to young
people about the importance of achievement – and often the flip
side: what failure can result
in.
All these messages are
well-intentioned. After all, who does not want young people to
achieve their potential and take the next step of their lives and
careers?
For 2022 Youth Mental Health
Day, we asked Professor David Putwain of Liverpool John
Moores University how teachers and parents can approach talking
to young people about their education and exams in ways that
support their mental wellbeing.
What the research shows
There is now an accumulated body of
evidence to show that students can react in remarkably different
ways to messages about the importance of their GCSEs and other
studies. On the one hand there are students who respond well to
such messages, which act as a reminder for why it is important to
work hard. On the other hand, there are students for whom such
messages intensify pressure around study and act as a trigger for
anxiety.
Consider, for example, what a Year 11
student told me when I asked if this was a topic worth
researching:
Every time a teacher tells me exams
are near, or if you fail you risk not getting a good job, I get
so scared and sometimes I get so scared and stressed I feel like
crying. We should just be told to try our best because
pressurising a student can stress them and so they end up doing
worse.
Research studies of students in Years
10 and 11 have shown that the different ways in which students
respond to messages about the importance of
exams do matter.
Students’ responses can, and do, impact motivation, engagement,
and ultimately achievement. Students who respond positively to
such messages are more hopeful and optimistic about their exams,
are more motivated and engaged, and achieve higher grades.
Students who respond negatively to these messages are more
anxious about their exams, which interferes with motivation and
engagement, and they achieve lower
grades.
Different students need different messages
So what, if anything, can we do to
ensure we are talking to and advising students in the most
effective way?
The answer is not simply to stop using
such messages. That would be denying those students who respond
positively the benefit. The solution is to get the right message
to the right student, and at the right time. This may mean
reconsidering those messages delivered in a group setting, such
as an assembly or whole class as there will inevitably be some
students for whom this will result in negative emotional and
motivational reactions. However, individualised messages could be
directed to specific students, or even those in small groups, who
will respond positively.
So do we know which students will
respond effectively? As students’ reactions to these messages are
largely private experiences, they can be difficult to gauge from
how someone is behaving. The answer to this question can, in
part, be drawn from the theme of 2022 Youth Mental Health Day: “connect meaningfully”. Those best placed to be able to
anticipate, and judge, students’ reactions are those that know
them the best. At home this is likely parents, carers, or other
family members. And in a school or college setting – at least in
relation to learning – it ought to be their
teachers.
Connecting meaningfully
There is no substitute for teachers
getting to know their students the best that they can within a
professional and supportive context. Teachers who do this will be
able to understand students’ motivations, aspirations and fears
more effectively, and judge how and when to use motivating
messages to their greatest effect. Taking the time to talk to
students, showing an interest in them, and being non-judgemental,
empathetic and supportive will help to build these important
positive relationships.
In the educational literature,
developing positive teacher-student relationships is described as
“relational” support. Alongside instructional support (effective
teaching and learning) and behavioural support (effective
classroom structure and behaviour management), relational support
is the cornerstone of developing motivated, engaged, and positive
students. All of which contribute to a student’s sense of
wellbeing at school or college. That setting is the place where
they feel valued, can flourish, and achieve their
aspirations.
It therefore follows that it is
important for teachers to take a little time to reflect on what
they say, when they say it, and to
whom.
The best way to judge all this is by
getting to know a student well in a professional capacity. In
doing so, it is possible to make a positive contribution to not
only their learning and achievement, but also their mental
wellbeing.
Professor David Putwain, School of Education, Liverpool
John Moores University
