For several years we have been hearing about school failure as an increasingly serious problem in Spain, reaching the same indicator of around 30 percent (one of the highest in Europe, surpassed only by Portugal). It is a problem that affects us all and we live, has lived or will live in many of our homes. According to the INCE (National Institute for Quality Assessment), in secondary education 32 percent of pupils repeating grades, 35 percent did not successfully complete 2 of the ESO, 48 percent do not exceed the bachelor and the college dropout is around 50 percent.
What is school failure?
The most accepted definition is “when a student fails the proposed objectives for your level, age and intellectual capacity.”
When a student does not perform properly, it is necessary and urgent to investigate the causes, as to their origin is the first step to overcome and avoid ending in a real school failure. The prognosis worsens commensurate time it takes to detect and act. The causes are multiple, the main learning disabilities (29 percent) and emotional disorders of all kinds (30 percent).
It is also important to mention the process known as test anxiety or anxiety assessment. It is estimated that in Spain, primary and secondary education, between 15-25 percent of students with high levels of separation anxiety, which has a negative effect on their performance. In fact, it is considered that a high number of students suffer educational failure have problems with learning or ability, but is the consequence of this abnormal response against the tests.
Since the sole objective criterion to evaluate the success or failure of children are the qualifications, failure results in suspense, often massive, being the parent in a situation of “not knowing what to do”, triggering high-dose anxiety in children both students and their parents. In these cases we must look to the therapist for help (general practitioner, pediatrician, psychologist, as appropriate), and they can determine if you need some kind of treatment, making appropriate control and monitoring.
But sometimes we think the problem is a matter of few days and resorted to self-medication (antianxiety drugs and sleeping pills at home we can have other treatments, usually in adults), other times we speak of a new substance known as “drug to intellectual performance “such as methylphenidate, used in children diagnosed with hyperactivity disorders, or modafinil, also known as” antisueño pill, which is used to treat narcolepsy and whose mechanism of action, reducing the hours of sleep, not well understood, although it is important to clarify that “eliminating the dream does not mean the body’s need for sleep.” In Spain these drugs are only available by prescription, but can be obtained via the Internet in other countries. If the use of these drugs is often diagnosed in people questioned how much more will be in healthy subjects whose long-term side effects have not yet been studied.
On the other hand, making mediation without control means that the children do not know how to respond to stress without medication, which makes their self-esteem fall further, in this way, do not mature or learn to tolerate frustration.
As always, the best is to prevent school failure and its consequences from an early age, for which we can follow some simple guidelines to everyone.
How to prevent school failure?
- Show your child that you love him not by his successes but by himself.
- Let him make decisions and give age-appropriate responsibilities.
- Never compare him unfavorably with his brothers or friends.
- Never do you feel worthless or guilty, encourage her to trust yourself and valued.
- Teach not get discouraged, at the first failure, you have to be persistent and seek alternatives, to practice to excel.
- It promotes reading as a child, telling stories, making him count them, encourage her when you read something.
- Teach new words and do as a game that will enrich your vocabulary, talk a lot and property.
- Keep an eye on their successes, which are minimal, this will help you excel and feel safe to go.
- Enrich your leisure, you do not see television only when small. Teach appropriate programs, bring to museums, tell stories, get in contact with nature.
- In short, it encourages your child wants to own, you accept, be safe and, above all, be happy.
