State of Education Report 2017 state-of-education-booklet-Final-WEB | Page 26

Social media and exams: the greatest pressures
In some primary settings, the burden of accountability and
performance measures felt at school level might be filtering down to
Pupils are battling a wider range of pressures than five years ago, pupils, with 14% of leaders here saying that school expectations are
according to more than nine in 10 (93%) school leaders. When we the greatest pressure on pupils. In secondary settings, 13% of leaders
asked leaders what they consider to be the greatest pressure on think that uncertainty over the future is the greatest pressure.
pupils today, social media came top for four in 10 (39%), followed by
As we move towards an increasingly exam-focused system, it is
examinations and tests for a quarter (26%).
perhaps not surprising that four out of five (81%) school leaders worry
What do you think is the greatest pressure on pupils today?
more about pupils’ mental health during assessment periods now than
they did two years ago. It is concerning that 83% are witnessing signs
39%
Social media
26%
of mental health issues increasing among pupils at these points (91% of
secondary school leaders and 82% of primary leaders).
Exams/tests
“I worry more about pupils’ mental health during exam/
assessment periods now than two years ago”
2%
12%
Peers
6%
Uncertainty
over their
future
Parental expectations
2%
Don’t know
1%
%
1%
30
Other
Strongly agree
Tend to agree
4%
3%
<1%
6%
School expectations
5%
<1%
Neither agree nor disagree
Tend to disagree
Strongly disagree
Don’t know
None
How young people are perceived in the media
Employment
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