High school is an exciting, if sometimes scary and demanding, stage of a young person’s life, and it requires of them to balance a daily focus on learning and academic work while also continuously considering their future and where they are headed.
These competing considerations can cause uncertainty and anxiety, but using a framework on the way can have a significant impact on creating peace of mind and successful outcomes, says Dr Gillian Mooney, Dean: Academic Development and Support at The Independent Institute of Education.
Keep on top of things every day
Make sure you master the work done in class every day. Do your homework to the best of your ability, and if there are concepts you don’t understand, ask for help and assistance until you do. Don’t push things to the side and think you are going to deal with them later, because later you may just have too many things to deal with and then you’ll start feeling overwhelmed.
Don’t go off the rails – ask for help
High school comes with a host of firsts – good ones and not so good ones, notes Dr Mooney.
“You’ll be faced with exciting new opportunities but also temptations. Don’t lose sight of what you are building towards, and always consider how your choices will impact on your future. Your freedom will be increasing, but so will your responsibilities. Make wise choices and enjoy your journey towards adulthood, while also being careful not to make choices that can turn into hurdles down the line. In particular, be extremely circumspect where social media is concerned as small missteps can have huge consequences.”
Constantly evaluate where you are headed
You may have an idea of what you want to do when you matriculate, or you may not. Whichever it is, junior high school provides the opportunity for you to consider your options while you still have plenty of time.
“Keep in mind that you will need to make subject choices in grade nine, which will impact greatly on your options after you finish school,” says Dr Mooney.
So as you progress through the days, weeks and months of junior high, consider where your strengths lie, and how these might match up to a future career.
“This is why it is important to not leave your investigation of your future studies until matric, because by then you may have dropped the subjects you would have needed to apply for your qualification of choice. If you think you are terrible at Maths and want to drop it as soon as you are able to, consider which careers you will be ruling out if you do so.
Start to broaden your horizons
The world is evolving rapidly and by the time junior high learners matriculate, it will look completely different from the way it looks today.
In junior high, young people should start developing themselves holistically, and start learning about things outside of their current field of experience and frame of reference. For instance, they can start keeping up with the daily news so that they know what’s going on in the country and the rest of the world. They could also start cultivating a hobby to develop their creative side and ensure they get regular exercise through group or individual sport.
