An estimated 5% of all examinees tend to skip their board exams due to stress, worried that they might perform poorly.
In Chittoor district, of the total 1.07 lakh candidates taking both the first and second year Intermediate exams, as many as 2,550 candidates were reportedly absent on the opening day.
Senior officials of the education department observe that the number of absentees indicates that the stress level has risen sharply.
As many as 53,024 candidates are set to appear for the Class X exams in the district.
District Educational Officer K. Pandurangaswamy said that for the first time in the State, an exclusive ‘Life Skills Programme’ was introduced in schools in Chittoor district for the academic year 2018-19. The programme involved about 50 resource persons, drafted from the physical education and biological sciences teachers. These personnel had been specially trained by the faculty of education and psychology departments of Sri Padmavathi Mahila University in Tirupati.
The trained staff had conducted a series of programmes, covering all Class IX and X students, with the prime objective of removing the stress factor in them, and creating awareness about the bodily and psychological changes in the adolescent phase, which play a major role in formation of stress.
The official said that another exclusive programme ‘Vijaya Sadhana’ was introduced in Chittoor district alone. "By conducting periodical tests from the beginning of the academic year, we could lessen the factors of fear and stress among the students. This year, we want to achieve 100% attendance at the examinations," he said.