See UPDATE at the end of the story
The point of Rachel Corbett’s recent article attacking the current Year 12 students undertaking their exams right now seems to be missing. It’s an angry, unnecessary rant aimed at 60,000 stressed-out teens who are taking part in exams that will impact the rest of their lives.
They’ve been studying and being tested for two years now to reach this stage (it’s way more than the couple of months Corbett claimed it to be). And that three-hour Italian exam, or four hours of English will form a whopping 50 per cent of their final mark which will determine what they can do at university.
Research has confirmed that this time of our kids’ lives is one of the most stressful ever and has even been linked with youth suicide – so it’s a tricky time for our kids. And anyone who can cast their mind back to their own Year 12 exams is probably shuddering right now.
So when Corbett wrote her “opinion” piece saying kids need to toughen up and grow up etc and amazingly got this piece published just as the Year 12s were heading into their exam hell, she should have expected to cop some flack.
Obviously she didn’t. When students, understandably irked by her comments, jumped on her Instagram account and posted rows of snake emojis, Corbett didn’t toughen up and weather the storm she set out to create but instead changed the settings on her Instagram account so the angry Year 12s (and their parents, I’d suggest) could no longer tell her how they felt about her rant.
If you’re going to “troll” a whole year group of stressed-out teens in a public article, be prepared to take the heat. Why else would anyone write such a piece filled with emotive language? Surely to get a reaction. If you’re going to advise this large cohort to “toughen up” and then call them out as trolls when they angrily swarm to your social media accounts, don’t run away from this and close down your social media accounts.
Corbett’s Twitter page is still up, and, sure, there are a few more nasty or sweary comments aimed at the writer, but in the most part they’re telling her not to write opinion pieces about topics she obviously doesn’t know that much about, and filling it with jibes and accusations just in the hope of getting a reaction she won’t be able to handle.
Here are a few of the tweets (yes, I’ve selected the ones that suit my argument).
I should point out that I am a parent of a current “whingeing” and “pathetic” Year 12 – my second child to go through this process. I am not a helicopter, tiger or snow plough parent, but I am blown away by the stress our kids (and their parents) go through in order to get a number that will allow them to (or not) enter extremely expensive higher education.
But don’t take it from me. We collated some scientific data and spoke to an expert to see if we are raising a weak generation, as suggested.
In an article in The Conversation, authors had this to say about Year 12: “Major school assessments like the HSC are classed as high-stakes assessments, where the results of exams could have major consequences for the student. In Australia, student performance in Year 12 determines university entry, which means marks might determine career paths and earning potential.
“Students can feel academic pressure when the perceived level of expectation or consequence exceeds what they believe they can achieve. This can lead to stress and altered learning behaviours. Even worse, it can make the smartest students do poorly on their exams.”
The paper then listed the results of a survey of Year 12 students from a range of schools in Sydney. Of the 722 students surveyed, 42 per cent registered high-level anxiety symptoms, high enough to be of clinical concern. This proportion is nearly double the population norm and larger than earlier studies.
Of the total survey group, 16 per cent of students reported extremely severe levels of anxiety, while 37 per cent registered above-average levels of stress. Stress, anxiety and pressure levels were highest amongst girls, and higher still in gifted girls.
There are heaps more of figures and findings in this article which show just how kids are responding to what the authors acknowledge is immense stress. Here’s an interesting line which flies in the face of these kids being weak or pathetic: “When pressure was high, 41 per cent of students attempted more hours of study and 35 per cent reported working harder.”
So then we spoke to an expert in the area of teens and stress, clinical psychologist Lissa Johnson, of Dr Lissa Johnson & Associates
“HSC stress, and helping students to navigate it, is a serious subject. It is not an issue that should be trivialised or ridiculed,” Lissa said.
“Not only is the HSC a highly pressured time, in which students can end up feeling that their life, identity and future hangs on their ATAR, but it comes at a particularly challenging period of psychological and physical development. Brain changes during the teen years, for example, make the demands of the HSC especially onerous for many young people.
And she pointed out this very grave and serious statistic. “In fact, HSC stress has been linked to youth suicide. A 2003 a study conducted for the NSW Committee on Children and Young People found that pressure to perform in the HSC contributed to 1 in 11 youth suicides.”
And she has this to say to people who want to insult, belittle or shame Year 12s. “Adults should not chastise young people for their HSC stress, nor or for seeking support, or imply that they weak if they suffer and reach out. Quite the reverse. Young people asking for help during the HSC should be affirmed and encouraged. They are acting wisely and prudently by taking preventative care of themselves and their mental health.”
And if letting off some steam on a Facebook page aimed only at those students doing Year 12 helps kids manage their stress in any even tiny way, then let them have it.
**It has since been brought to our attention that the trolling the writer received extended to threats of physical violence that made her fear for her safety. This kind of online abuse is never OK or warranted, and if you are feeling victimised, bullied or threatened online there are several organisations you ca contact including the e-Safety Commissioner and Lifeline on 13 11 14.
Fiona Baker is a mum-of-three and supporting her second child through the HSC process.
