In the 2009 Rajkumar Hirani film ‘3 Idiots’, the protagonist Rancho exclaims, “And this is a college, not a pressure cooker!” This quote holds quite the relevance today. The education system and pervasive construct that rewards academic performance often results in students fearing exam seasons. Our educational institutions have created an unhealthy narrative in which one must perform well on exams in order to be successful in life. Exam results are scrutinised and dissected because teachers, family members, and relatives associate exams with career opportunities, a better life, and, sadly, even a person’s worth.

Aarya Dhungana, 16, is a SEE aspirant this year. Despite the fact that she and her friends have spent months preparing for the exam, she says the pressure that builds up at the end is sometimes unbearable. “Even though I try not to care, they cause me a lot of anxiety or stress. I sometimes sleep through my anxiety or cry uncontrollably,” she says.

Pranjal Pokharel, 22, is an undergraduate student. Exams flood him with stress because they put enormous pressure on him to perform well and meet his own expectations, but more importantly, the validation of his parents.

“As children, we are naturally praised for doing something good, such as excelling in academics, which we internalise as validation,” says Sworup Adhikari, a 23-year-old graduate. He believes that by seeing tests and exams as simply a means for us to demonstrate how much we know and a sort of ‘check-post’ removes the need for self-validation, which instead becomes self-affirming.

“Dealing with academic pressure is all about understanding where the pressure is coming from,” says clinical psychologist Ram Pukar Sah. He recognises that today’s society does not view education as a life-long learning process. Grades are directly associated with the idea of education, so teachers, parents, society, and relatives are all involved in this process. According to Sah, once you associate a certain grade or percentage with education, the academic pressure begins to build. As soon as you reach a specific academic level, such as SEE, plus two or even Bachelor’s, all eyes are on you to see how well you perform. The environment surrounding you, from academic to societal, affects how you perceive exams.

The origin of the pressure

The root cause of examination pressure lies in the comparison that is constantly thrown at students on various levels. You are compared to previous students’ performances, your siblings and sometimes even your own previous performances. There are conversations like, ‘your brother scored an A, you should score higher’ or ‘you are capable of so much more’, which add to the negative connotation with exams. In classrooms, exams become a medium for competition. When done in a healthy way, competitions help students achieve more. But often, exams turn into a battlefield once this feeling of competition becomes unhealthy.

Most students are indeed aware of their academic capabilities to a certain extent. When they realise their academic standing before an exam, the pressure builds. However, when you are publicly chastised, labelled a ‘weak student,’ or are constantly reminded that exams add all the value to your future, the dread turns nasty.

“With all the distractions of social media and other means of entertainment, the feeling of ‘maybe I’ll start tomorrow’ is widely prevalent amidst students, including myself,” says Pokharel, adding that he thinks procrastination may lead to a lot of exam stress in students. When you are underprepared, the stress regarding exams comes naturally. So, a proper study plan to deal with exam stress is necessary.

However, there are also cases when despite ample preparation, unwanted external stress also exhausts students. According to Sah, a person appearing for an important exam doesn’t have to relinquish all their entertainment sources. Schools and colleges have this tendency of taking away all the extra-curricular activities from students during exam seasons. In some households, students are even expected to study 15-16 hours without any breaks or entertainment. With all this pressure and the fear of the results, exams become a trigger point for a mental breakdown for many students, says Sah.

Dealing with exam stress

“Most of the time, schools focus on the preparation for exams but not on life skills required to enhance exam performances,” Sah says. Pressure is something that is very subjective to individuals. How each student reacts to examinations is different. So, it is necessary to recognise your own pattern of thinking. You should set realistic expectations and prepare accordingly. Once your expectations start to take over, the performance anxiety creeps in.

“The simple way to have control over your exam stress is you need to back yourself up,” says Sah. “It is important to consider exams as any other normal day in your life.” For anyone who is appearing for exams, try normalising the process. Remind yourself that you have given a lot of exams, and it is not the end of the world if you mess up a particular one. Even in the worst-case scenario, you must be mindful and praise yourself for your efforts.

During exams, if anxiety creeps in, Sah suggests deep breathing techniques to calm yourself down. “You should drink water, take a break and start again,” he says. It is always important to have a positive mindset regarding exams, although it doesn’t come that easily. Students tend to sabotage the rest of the exams by lingering on the ones that they mess up. It is always necessary to keep the big picture in mind. Even if you mess up a question worth ten marks, it is important to keep an eye out for the remaining marks that you can attempt.

The significance of familial support

The student's family also plays a critical role in creating a positive environment. “When students put a lot of pressure on themselves, it manifests into physical sickness,” says Sah. You might get common cold, diarrhoea, nausea or other gastrointestinal problems during exams. Families need to take care of the student’s health. It is important to support them with words of affirmation like ‘You are doing great’, ‘Exams are quite normal, take it easy’, and ‘We are here for you.’ The environment around them needs to help the students release the pressure.

When discussing exams, we cannot ignore the school ecosystem. Because teachers have such a strong influence on students, they must refrain from equating the school’s reputation with exam results. Demeaning remarks such as, ‘If you don’t pass, you'll waste your life,’ should be avoided. “Once everyone in the social sphere understands and accepts that exams are tests of academic skills rather than knowledge, the pressure may be relieved,” says Sah.

An exam tests your memory, your ability to write, and to handle pressure. It is not a declaration of whether you pass or fail in life. The number, rank, or letter grade associated with exams does not define your years of investment in education. Exam stress may be reduced to a certain extent once you recognise and accept exams as a normal part of your life.