Pressure, What Pressure? Fahad Hussain, Hampton School

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It is that time of year again when selective schools have their 11+ entrance examinations. The goal? A place at the high table and a perceived head start in life- a place at a school, be it grammar or private, which people may spend hundreds of thousands of pounds extra buying houses just to be near. It is an incredibly stressful time for all involved. But what does the process feel like for those at the heart of it, the children. Do the feelings of achieving that place justify the stress one has to go through?

It is undeniable that leading up to an exam, most people would feel the pressure to perform well, and the pressure to achieve the goals set for them, be that by their parents or themselves. In the 11+ exams, the pressure is heightened as, in a child’s perception, passing could be seen as the only path to success, instilled in their minds by a parent, friends or themselves. Omer, a student who passed these exams, said that the preparations for the examinations was ‘a daunting experience knowing that there’s every chance you can fail’. The exams can also seem incredibly intimidating for most, as in many cases thousands of children can be competing for just two hundred places at a school, figures that could certainly leave a child distressed.

 

The feeling of relief and joy at receiving the letter, or nowadays an email, confirming a place at the school of your choice can be like no other- seeing years of hard work pay off and the tension just immediately released. The evaporation of stress, knowing that your goals, and most likely your parents’ goals, had been achieved, can be one of the best feelings in the world for many. Another student who passed these exams, Rohan, said that he was ‘excited and confident for the future’, and his parents felt similarly, they were ‘incredibly proud that [his] hard work had paid off’.

 

Real or imagined, this is the harsh world we live in. A lucky few have the opportunity, support and ability to aim for something denied to the vast majority. For those who make it, it’s all worthwhile-the academic support, the sport and extra-curricular activities provided are a world away from that which most schools can provide.

 

What of the others? Those who at the age of 11 have been told, directly or indirectly, you’ve failed. They too worked hard and had supportive parents but on one arbitrarily appointed day, they did not perform as well as a few of their peers. This is the jarring reality they face at the age of 11. It won’t feel like at the time but in a week, month, or a year the pain of rejection will be much, much reduced.

 

It is perhaps worth remembering that the school does not make the person. It’s what the child does when they get there that counts. Whichever school they go to and wherever it is, the future is theirs and what they make of it.

 





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