School anxiety is common, especially this year. Stress over any number of school-related issues may pop up for students at any time. And for the most part, a little bit of stress isn’t something to worry about. But if a student’s stress is chronic or gets in the way of day-to-day tasks, it should be addressed. And in order to address your child's anxiety, it’s important to know the source. Here are some of the most common issues.
Academic Sources of Anxiety
School-related anxiety is often academic, though it can also be social, environmental, or a combination of all three. Some of the most common academic stressors are:
An emerging or undiagnosed reading or math disability. When students who have otherwise never struggled suddenly have a hard time in school, it can be alarming and confusing. It can also be difficult for adults to pick up on it if the struggle is new. Plus, many children don’t have the tools to communicate when something feels challenging.
Undue pressure from adults. Whether or not they mean to, parents and teachers both sometimes put a lot of pressure on students to succeed. This pressure can be helpful when it motivates a student to go the extra mile with their work. However, more often than not, outside pressure to do well just detracts from the joy of learning. This can actually make it harder for students to excel.
Public speaking. All grades usually expect a certain level of participation and presentation. As students move up through the grades, these expectations become more and more demanding. Many students develop anxiety around presenting in front of their peers.
Increased workload & organization. As students move up through the grades, their workload becomes heavier. They also become more independent, requiring them to develop better organizational skills. Many students, especially those with ADHD or other learning disabilities, struggle with organizing both materials and information, making it difficult to get work done on time.
Lack of support. When students don’t feel they have someone to turn to, or they don’t know how to ask for help, this can lead to feelings of helplessness.
Social Sources of Anxiety
Some school anxiety is caused by social factors. These are most common beginning in middle school, but they can certainly appear in lower grades as well.
Bullying. Whether they are victims or mere witnesses, bullying behavior is always anxiety-inducing. It can be hard to know what to do or say in either situation.
Fitting in. The social pressures that begin to pop up around late elementary to early middle school make many students socially anxious. Students dread the possibility of not fitting in with their peers.
Friend dynamics. The same pressures often exist among friends in the same close social circle. Sources of ‘friend anxiety’ can include conflict, perceived conflict, competition, or just the act of drifting apart.
Unstructured group work. Lots of kids feel anxiety about having to work with peers on academic projects. In younger grades, these are usually heavily structured by the teacher, which leaves little room for uncertainty. But in the upper grades, these projects are frequent and usually quite open-ended.
Overloaded schedule. It is important for all kids to have balance in their lives. This balance needs to include school and homework, family time, time with friends, and alone time. When a child's schedule becomes too packed, one or more of these areas does not get its adequate allotment. This often causes students to lose an outlet they may rely on for stress release.
Environmental Sources of Anxiety
For lots of students, especially those with sensory processing issues, the environment plays a huge role in their ability to thrive. Here are the most common environmental stressors at school:
Noise. This may be an obvious one, but it’s also the most common. Many teachers try to eliminate noise for those students who need quiet. Still, it is simply unrealistic for all sounds to be extinguished during all times when others need concentration. This can be incredibly stressful for those students who really need silence to focus.
Peer learning dynamics. Some students become distracted or anxious when working with or near certain peers.
Teaching style. While most teachers do their best to be adaptable and address all students’ needs, sometimes it’s just not a good match. When a teacher’s teaching style does not jive well with a student’s needs, then it’s unlikely that child will have a positive experience in that class. And if the teacher is unapproachable on top of being incompatible with the student, then that’s a perfect recipe for stress.
Proximity to lesson/teacher/peers. Finally, some students need to be sitting in a certain spot in the room in order to learn best. This might be for reasons as simple as eyesight (they need to be close to the front in order to see the board) or for more complex reasons (like a need to be toward the outside of the room if being in the middle causes feelings of claustrophobia).
If any of these sources of anxiety sound like they could be getting in the way of your child's school success, the best first step is to talk to them about it. Hearing that anxiety and stress is normal and that there are ways to cope with these feelings can go a long way.