From panic to pass: how parents, teachers can help children beat BECE and WASSCE exam phobia- Part 2

Walk through any Junior High or Senior High compound in Ghana as the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) or West African Secondary School Certificate Examination (WASSCE) approaches and you will see it.

A bright girl suddenly quiet. A boy who led class debates now sleeping at his desk. A Form three student with stomach pains every Monday morning.

 This is not laziness. This is academic stress. When left unaddressed, it hardens into exam phobia-overwhelming dread that pushes children into burnout, avoidance, and sometimes silence. 

As a mental health professional who sits with these children and their parents at Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Adenta Oyarifa-Teiman, I see the pattern clearly.

Research confirms it. Putwain and Daly (2014) found that high test anxiety predicts lower grades independent of ability. Zeidner (1998) showed that chronic academic pressure raises cortisol, weakens memory recall, and increases school dropout risk. The brain under fear cannot retrieve what it studied. 

The classroom lifeline: What teachers can do before, during and after exams

Teachers, you are the second parent. Seat the anxious child where eye contact is easy. Break instructions into two steps, written and verbal. Allow a 2-minute stretch break after 25 minutes of study movement resets the brain. Before mock exams, do a 60-second breathing exercise with the whole class: in for 4, hold for 4, out for six. It tells the body “we are safe.” Grade effort and method, not only final answers, especially in term work. A child who shows working will try again. A child marked “wrong” only learns to hide. 

Avoid public comparison. “Why can’t you be like Esi?” creates shame, and shame shuts down learning. The goal is competence, not competition. Where possible, link topics to life-compound interest to MTN mobile money, photosynthesis to why Grandma’s backyard garden survives Harmattan. Meaning reduces fear. 

Building back better: Daily habits that prevent burnout and restore joy in learning

Recovery is daily, not dramatic. Families can adopt CPAC’s “3-2-1 Rule” during exam seasons: 3 balanced meals, 2 hours total screen time outside study, 1 hour of non-academic joy-football, dance, church youth, sewing. Joy is not a distraction from success; it is fuel for it. 

Teach the “Name, Tame, Reframe” skill. Name: “I feel my heart beating fast.” Tame: “That’s my body trying to help me focus.” Reframe: “I have prepared. I will answer what I know first.” For children who freeze, teach them to write their name, date, and index number slowly. Motor action unlocks cognition. 

Know when to seek help. If your child vomits before exams, fakes illness weekly, speaks of self-harm, or has not slept properly for two weeks, see a mental health professional. Academic stress that lasts beyond the exam season may mask anxiety disorders or depression. Early support prevents long-term wounds. 

Parents, teachers, churches-our children are not machines for grades. They are minds and hearts we are shaping for life. BECE and WASSCE end in days. But the beliefs they form about themselves during those days last for decades. Let us choose words, routines and compassion that say: “You are more than a score. We see you. We will walk through this with you.”

One calm morning. One chunked topic. One repaired conversation after a meltdown. That is how we move from panic to pass. That is how we raise children who are not only educated, but emotionally whole. 

Resources

– Counsellor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC): Award-winning Clinical Mental Health and Counselling Facility, accredited by the Ghana Psychology Council. 

– School-Based Support: Speak to Guidance & Counselling units, or licensed school counsellors.  E.g. Counsellor Blessing Offei – 0559850604 (School Counsellor).

– Contact CPAC for Parent Coaching/Counselling & Student Therapy: 055 985 0604 / 055 142 8486 

To be continued …