GCSE and A-Level Goblin: Keeping Your Exams in Perspective
“Hi peeps. Don’t listen to Garry, you already have enough people telling you how important exams are. In fact, I’m here to talk about how normal these exams are, and how going inside-out because of stress over them really isn’t worth it.
Why is it Important to Keep My Exams in Perspective?
As a GCSE or A-Level student, you will already know how often teachers and parents talk about how important your exams are. You hear about it daily, in every lesson, and often more than once. The effect of this, over even a week, is to raise your anxiety to unhelpful levels. After a year or two of this, it is really common for young people to be at the ‘holding-your-breath-without-realising-it’ stage of managing stress.
Filling your heart up with anxiety is not good preparation for anything, but especially not a situation where you need to concentrate and perform well under pressure. That’s why it’s important to keep things in perspective. Your exams are important, and people will care about the results, but they are not even close to the level of life-changing importance people say they are.
What are People Told About GCSE’s and A-Levels?
Here are some things I was told, and some things my students have been told, about their exams:
“These are the most important exams you will ever take” - Ok, tell that to someone who takes tests to become an astronaut.
“If you don’t do well, you will only be able to get a job pushing Tesco trollies” - Yeah, no. Also, that’s incredibly rude to people who do an important job at Tesco.
“You won’t be able to go to University if you don’t do well in your exams” - Not true!
“If you fail these, that’s it.” - You don’t explode if you fail an academic exam.
“How well you do in these determines the rest of your life". - That is both wrong and also very dramatic.
What is the Truth About GCSEs and A-Levels?
Well, to start off with, none of the stuff in the previous section is true. So, let’s run through the facts:
You will take ‘important’ tests and assessments throughout your whole life. People don’t just decide you are good or bad as a teenager and then stop checking.
Generally speaking, the most recent test you have taken in a subject or career is the most important one. Otherwise, we would just stop at GCSE, right?
If you are unlucky enough to have a bad day and fail an exam, you can just resit it.
GCSE and A-Level exams don’t just take place in the summer. It’s possible to take them in the winter or spring as well, so you can have another go (or 2 or 3).
If you fail your English or Maths GCSE, schools must keep offering you the exams, and tutoring, until you are 18 (and finish that academic year).
Being fantastic at creative writing isn’t especially important for a person who plans to work in science or carpentry.
When you apply for a university place, they do not really care what your GCSEs are. If they aren’t very good but your A-levels are fantastic, that just proves you found a way to study more effectively and worked hard. That’s a positive thing.
Many colleges and sixth forms accept students who have not passed their GCSE English as long as you aren’t applying to study A-Level English. They offer GCSE catch-up at the same time as A-Level classes to applicants who are really keen to learn a subject at their school.
Even if you failed all your GCSEs, retook them, and then failed them all again, you could pay to have another go. If you fail them all again, which is pretty unlikely, there are fantastic educational opportunities like technical colleges and even paid apprenticeships directly with companies. There are also tons of jobs, that earn very nicely, that don’t require formal exams. There’s not much need for French when you run a small hold farm.
And finally: If you get into the habit of living two years of your life 100% focused on the results of an exam, this habit will follow you through your young life. There are always exams, and you will always be postponing life experiences for some imaginary time in the future.
How Can I Keep My Exams in Perspective?
I, and many of my students, have found that keeping these things in mind is a really helpful way of seeing important exams as the normal part of life that they are:
Teachers are assessed based on how well their students do in exams, so it’s their own job they are worrying about.
Parents worry constantly about their kids’ futures because they always worry about being good enough parents.
Your GCSEs are important until you get your A-Levels, then only your A-Levels really matter. Then it’s your undergraduate degree, then it’s your job title, then it’s something else.
Stuff goes wrong sometimes, and you have to retake an exam. This is a drama-free situation that doesn’t really change your life much.
The worst-case scenario is repeating a year of your education. Nobody wants that (unless the kids in the year below have better parties than the ones in your year), but will you care about spending one extra year in school when you are 42? No. Trust me, you will not care, and nobody will know or remember.
Universities and employers value students and employees who are human beings with personal interests and life experience. Nobody wants to work with a perfect robot.
Summing Up
Your exams are important, but so is your mental health. Doing your best is also important, but it doesn’t mean studying every minute of every day and having no private life. Your GCSEs and A-Levels are important when you are still young, but your mental health is important for your entire life. Take rest, accept that some days are better than others, and do the best you can in the situation you are in. Sometimes that means protecting your own sanity with a little bit of healthy perspective! Do study, but also go out, see films, make friends, play sports, build mad inventions, paint murals - have a life!
That was a rather serious article from me…I’m going to go and throw lava at Garry now to make up for it.”
