Matric: Plea to parents to be sensitive, supportive
KwaZulu-Natal Childline and the SA Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) advised pupils and parents on how to deal with disappointment. KwaZulu-Natal Childline and the SA Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) advised pupils and parents on how to deal with disappointment.
Durban - As matriculants celebrate their achievements on Wednesday, organisations that deal with mental health will be busy helping those who failed or did not get the desired results.
KwaZulu-Natal Childline and the SA Depression and Anxiety Group (Sadag) advised pupils and parents on how to deal with disappointment.
Adeshini Naicker, KZN operations manager for Childline, said parents needed to be sensitive to how they react to their children’s poor results and to be supportive.
“Parents need to educate themselves on the various options available to children who did not perform well. We always get calls from concerned pupils before results are released. The calls seem to increase close to the results’ release date and this indicates a troubled state of mind,’’ Naicker said.
Sadag advised parents to comfort their children, telling them it was
not the end of the world and there were options available after getting poor results.
“As a parent, one needs to validate their child on the importance of trying again, or striving to do better. We can only learn from our downfalls,” the organisation said.
It advised parents and loved ones to look out for signs of depression from disappointed matriculants.
Some of these include feelings of hopelessness, pessimism, guilt, worthlessness, helplessness and self-reproach, and thoughts of death or suicide.
Sadag said it was normal to feel disappointed, angry or numb after getting unexpected results.
“The problem is when these feelings continue after two or more weeks,” it said.
The Department of Social Development is using its Gender-Based Violence Command Centre to help matriculants struggling with mental issues after their schooling careers. It is manned by trained social workers.
Social Development spokesperson Lumka Oliphant said anxiety and depression were common among matriculants who passed or failed.
“We have found that those who pass also become prone to depression because they do not know where they would like to study or if they have the funding to continue their studies,” she said.
Education expert Jackie Carroll from Media Worx said the Department of Basic Education offered a Second Chance programme.
“The Second Chance programme enables pupils to write supplementary exams for a maximum of two subjects in order to meet the pass requirements of the NSC examinations. These exams are written after pupils have received a total of 12 hours of face-to-face classes to give them the best chance of passing,” Carroll said.
For those older than 21 and who did not pass, Carroll said they could get an Amended Senior Certificate (ASC). It is based solely on exam results and does not have non-examinable subjects like life orientation.
“But in every respect, the ASC is a matric qualification that is recognised by employers. It can also grant you entry to tertiary education as long as you have the necessary qualifying symbols,” Carroll said.
Pupils can contact:
Sadag: 0800567567 or 0800456789
Childline: 0800055555
The Command Centre: 0800428428 Additional reporting by Kelyn Blackburn