Hi-fives and celebratory squeals that resonated across the city after the class XII CBSE examination results were declared on Monday, saw those disappointed with their results withdrawing into a shell — apprehensive of being judged by society.
Some of them, despite scoring well over 90 per cent, were not out celebrating, shying away from the hoopla surrounding the examination ‘scores’.
“Despite teaching class XII students for over 15 years, the day the results are out is always one of the toughest days in the year. One has to strike a balance between congratulating and feeling happy for those who have done well and telling those students who are disappointed not to feel bad,” says Srishti Bhola, a Mathematics teacher.
Tough task
It is toughest to console those who have been consistently good throughout the year but have scored less than what they were expecting, adds Ms Bhola.
Many parents who have been pushing their children to study all through their school life add to the pressure of disappointment as they expect their children to perform beyond their potential, says Deepak Ganguly an English teacher.
After the results come out, some parents try to console their children by making them look at the brighter side of the results but often, it is too late as the children themselves do not want to take calls from relatives, friends and others who want to find out about their scores.
This leads them to depression. Many parents even lie about the results by adding a few marks to bolster the scores, but this makes it worse as other students from the school end up looking at their friends’ marks as well, adds Mr. Ganguly.
Talking about the impact that post-result stress can have on children, psychologist Samir Parikh says that family and friends have an essential role to play, as to identify a student in crisis and help him out.
He says that parents, apart from being supportive, should also stay vigilant of the child’s behaviour and in case the child starts showing withdrawn symptoms they should be immediately considered for a scrutiny by a psychiatrist and due management.
