Abstract
The latest report by the National Crime Records Bureau has positioned Tamil Nadu as the Indian state with highest suicide rate. At least in part, this is happening due to exam pressure among adolescents, emphasizing the imperative need to understand the pattern of anxiety and various factors contributing to it among students. The present study was conducted to analyze the level of state anxiety among board exam attending school students in Tamil Nadu, India. A group of 100 students containing 50 boys and 50 girls from 10th and 12th grades participated in the study and their state anxiety before board exams was measured by Westside Test Anxiety Scale. We found that all board exam going students had increased level of anxiety, which was particularly higher among boys and 12th standard board exam going students. Analysis of various demographic variables showed that students from nuclear families presented higher anxiety levels compared to their desired competitive group. Overall, our results showing the prevalence of state anxiety among board exam going students in Tamil Nadu, India, support the recent attempt taken by Tamil Nadu government to improve student's academic performance in a healthier manner by appointing psychologists in all government schools.
Highlights
The educational standards of school children in India are primarily evaluated based on written examinations
The percentage of each of the 10 original Westside Test Anxiety Scale items selected by the male and female students of 10th and 12th grades was measured (Table 5) and we found that the male students at both grades showed higher mean values than female students (Table 6)
Since high test anxiety is inversely correlated with the academic achievements and the factors influencing student performance have always been a quest for educational researchers [22], we have correlated various demographic variables with student anxiety levels
Summary
The educational standards of school children in India are primarily evaluated based on written examinations. The scores obtained in the 10th board exams are necessary to get admission in good higher secondary schools and to choose the preferred main stream of higher secondary education. Since the number of seats in high quality schools is limited compared to the number of students passing out of the 10th grade, competition to get higher secondary admission is always fierce. There are several colleges in Tamil Nadu, only few of them are preferred by students [2], making the admission process very competitive. Higher education being a prerequisite for successful future, the board exams have been the source of stress and anxiety for several students. In addition to the struggle to meet their own set values, today’s students have to satisfy the demand of their parents and the society, which adds further stress and anxiety
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