Prominent Australians have joined a campaign by leading online youth mental health organisation ReachOut.com to show Year 12 students that There’s Life After Year 12 Exams.
Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull, Opposition Leader Bill Shorten, Minister for Small Business Kelly O’Dwyer and Australia’s first Indigenous Minister Ken Wyatt have added their voices to a chorus of support for Year 12 students, joining other MPs and Australians such as Melissa Doyle, Osher Günsberg, Conrad Sewell, Jeremy Fernandez and many more.
‘There’s Life After Year 12 Exams is a national campaign that’s designed to help Year 12 students manage stress and anxiety at exam time,’ ReachOut Australia CEO Jono Nicholas said today.
‘Year 12 students often feel like there is only one path to their future, when there are many different options, opportunities and career paths,’ Mr Nicholas said.
‘We’re expecting to see large numbers of young people turn to ReachOut.com over the coming months. There were more than 80,000 visits by young Australians during 2014’s exam period, and views of  study- and stress-related content increased by more than 500 per cent.’
Mr Nicholas said while the approach to mental health support in Australian schools varies, there were some outstanding schools in Australia providing excellent wellbeing support for students, particularly those in Year 12.
Oxley College in Burradoo provides one-on-one student-to-teacher mentoring for Year 12 students, a dedicated Year 12 study area, specialist teachers to help develop student literacy and exam techniques, and a regular meditation and mindfulness course.
Head Boy at Oxley, Zac Moran, said that Oxley was a collaborative community where challenges were resolved with the help of someone with whom a student feels most comfortable, whether that be a teacher, psychologist or peer.
‘I felt supported because I knew someone was always looking out for me and would check in on a weekly basis,’ Mr Moran said.
Mr Nicholas said Year 12 student stress levels tend to go up around assessment times and then fall quickly.
‘Throughout Year 12, students keep going through cycles of heightened stress followed by sharp relief, which can be tiring and take its toll.’
ReachOut's tips for getting through Year 12 exams include:
- Exam time can be really tough on your body. But taking care of yourself is actually as simple as everyone says: sleep lots, eat good food and keep moving. [Fact Sheet]
- It’s normal to feel a whole range of things before or after you get your exam results. There are ways you can deal with the pressure of expectations. No exam result is so important that it will stop you achieving your goals in the long term. [Fact Sheet]
- Making efforts to balance study and relaxation is not only important for your state of mind, but for the quality of your study as well. [Fact Sheet]
- Substances like coffee and No Doz are only a short-term fix – a healthy body is more valuable at exam time. [Fact Sheet]
ReachOut invites all Australians to share their message of support for Year 12 students this October and November. Reach out to a student this month to let them know there’s life after Year 12 exams by sharing a video from ReachOut.com/thereslifeafter, or create your own video and share it with the hashtag #thereslifeafter.
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More information
Key Facts and Quotes: There’s Life After Year 12 Exams
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