Madurai: With a few days to go for state board exams, Madurai corporation schools are organizing sessions for their students to help them cope with the exam season and do well. As many as 1,524 students from 24 corporation schools have taken part in a special sensitization and motivational program organized by the corporation, HCL Foundation, and M S Chellamuthu Trust & Research Foundation under the ‘Happy Schooling’ initiative.
“Over the past three months, we have been organizing ‘Excellence in Examinations’ sessions, and have covered all Class XII students while sessions for Class XI and Class X students are ongoing,” said S Selvamani, project director. “The focus is on reducing stress and fear of exams among students and guiding them in their preparations,” he said. Stressed students were identified for counselors to offer support, he added.
The sessions also address the expectation gap between students and their parents. “One of the major things we stress is to avoid comparison with others while enforcing positive discipline during preparation,” said Selvamani. The ‘Speak 2 Us’ helpline (93754-93754) operated by MS Chellamuthu Trust and Research Foundation is also receiving calls from anxious students with volunteers providing support and guidance. Students who want to be anonymous are encouraged to use the helpline in times of distress.
In government schools, sessions under the Naan Mudhalvan scheme (career guidance) have been useful for students in managing exam stress, said teachers. “The sessions helped students to be more informed about the different fields and opportunities,” said the headmaster of a government higher secondary school.
