Okuhle Nxumalo
Grade 12E3 – Life Orientation source-based task
Activity 1: Coping with the stress that accompanies change
1.1. The term “post-school destination” means the journey that students take after school, in this
context it would be the paths in which the matriculants are going to take after high school. There
are various of reasons why thoughts about post-school destination could be stressful for Matrics
and these are the following reasons:
•
For most learners, the thought of leaving their families behind and starting tertiary
education somewhere else is overbearing. They feel stuck between choosing to further
their studies and careers [meaning they must be brave enough to leave relocate
somewhere else] versus being closer to home but not receiving tertiary education from an
institution that they wished to receive it from but stopped because of fear of leaving.
•
Starting your tertiary life often means starting over and that is because you are probably
not going to be in the same institutions as your friends meaning you must possibly make
new friends [which is a skill some people aren't good at] and adapt to different lectures as
well.
•
High school is completely different from tertiary school. In tertiary students would not
really have educators who run after them as they did in high school, the support structure
completely differs which makes it feel a lot more uncomfortable for learners.
1.2. Communication means to talk or share your thoughts and even feelings about a certain
thing. It is important to have effective communication when dealing with the negative effects of
the constant pressure that come with being in Matric because:
•
Expressing your need for support makes the pressure go down a bit because you would
not be experiencing all the hectic academic pressure and chaotic events of grade 12 all by
yourself instead you could have a strong supportive system from your family, friends and
even teachers.
•
Communicating with your teachers about what dates work for you in terms of completion
of tasks makes a huge difference because you are not just adding more workload to one
date. It is important to make sure that as a matriculant to have effective communication
with your teachers to make sure you are up to date, but you are also at ease with your
mental health.
•
Reflection after tests and examinations require for learners to communicate with their
parents, guardians and teachers to ensure that in the future the learner does better or even
sometimes the communication between the parties is in celebration of the good marks
and achievements the learner received.
1.3. Two psychological signs Matrics could look out for which may indicate that they are
stressed are:
•
Unhealthy eating habits – this could be either you are overeating, not eating enough or
even not having a well-balanced diet.
•
Having headaches back-to-back – having headaches every day or more regularly than
normal may indicate stress because of maybe changed sleep patterns or even
overworking yourself.
1.4. Unhealthy coping mechanisms that Matrics should avoid when trying to deal with the
changes in their lives are:
•
Turning to drugs and alcohol
•
Drinking energy drinks to try stay away instead of getting enough rest
•
Having an eating disorder (overeating or under eating)
•
Self-harming because they cannot handle the pressure that come with being in Matric
1.5. New legal responsibilities they could have to honor to navigate through life after turning
eighteen are:
•
Voting – When learners or anyone turns eighteen, they then have a responsibility
towards their society and country. This responsibility is to vote wisely for whichever
candidate parties they feel, and think are perfect to rule our people in South Africa, this
responsibility is enormous because it involves a thought process of not only thinking
about yourself and family but all South African citizens.
•
Drinking responsibly – In South Africa the age of consent for drinking is 18-year-olds,
these young adults are expected to be fully responsible of their actions especially when
they are under the influence of alcohol as they could be arrested for assault or any
damage they cause.
•
Getting a driver's license – The age of getting a driver's license is from18 years old,
therefore drivers are expected to drive responsibly and adequately, or they could face
legal consequences such as but not limited to fines, arrest and suspension of license.
1.6. Some ways in which Matric learners can view the changes after school in a more positive
manner are:
•
Look at it as the start of their career and achieving their dreams – This perspective allows
a learner to overcome the feelings of fear and uncertainty with joy because of the
excitement they get when they think about their future careers and dreams. It becomes
even more special when the learner is really passionate and focused on their dreams and
goals.
•
Breaking the generational curse – For most students, they grew up in homes where their
family members did not really receive a good tertiary education, and some did not get it
at all. Therefore, a student being the first to push themselves by getting into tertiary
makes it a prouder moment for their families and they inspire other younger siblings,
cousins, nephews and nieces by showing them that it is possible to do it.
•
Making history – Another positive view of the changes after school is that you are
making your forefathers proud as they fought so hard for you to receive good education
and strive for more, for you and your people. You are essentially also a hero in the
making.
1.7. Dealing with a negative transition is difficult but not impossible and these are some ways in
which matriculants can try:
•
Focusing on yourself – Sometimes during stress and worries it is so easy to compare
yourself to someone else, but it is important to always remember that you are in your
own journey and that your story is already written, and it will never be the same as
anyone else. By focusing on yourself you would then be able to achieve greater things
for yourself and help yourself get well adapted by just doing anything you are
passionate about and love as that is the most important thing. Focusing on yourself
means that you are actually bettering yourself each day so you can grow.
•
Ask for help when you need it – This is important because as much as you would like to
be independent and do things alone and feel some sort of accomplishment, it is also
important to acknowledge when you need help because realistically sometimes we all
just cannot do it alone as we need positive influences in our lives. If you are able to put
your pride and ego aside then you will be able to make good connections that might
even take you to greater standards than you would have expected.
Activity 2: Revise study skills to succeed
2.1. A stressor is any event taking place or anything that stresses a person out. Matriculants
could view the NSC as a stressor because:
•
It determines their future – One’s performance in their final grade 12 year examinations
determines whether they can continue to go to university or are taking some sort of
bridging course and most learners do not want to do anything but enter right into varsity.
•
Final examinations are not set and marked by learners' class or subject teachers which
they are used to but by an external person. This is a huge stressor because a learner may
feel as if they are not going to achieve their goals if their marker is strict or the examiner
makes the exam impossible to understand.
•
Lastly, finals are the biggest examinations a learner will ever have to write in their entire
high school career, and it only comes once in matric with no practice which can feel
nerve wrecking.
2.2. These are some effective study method Matriculants can use:
•
Feynman method – studying a topic then teach it to someone else and check whether
there is anything missing (usually works for theoretical subjets).
•
Recall method – This method involves testing yourself all the time after studying.
•
SQ3R study method – This method has five steps which are Survey, Question, Read,
Recite, and Review.
•
Practicing every single day – works for every subject especially mathematics and
physical sciences.
2.3. Physical symptoms:
•
Having stomach pain – This would be difficult because you would probably need to use
the bathroom every 300 minutes which is really disruptive for you and other learners.
Sometimes the pain would be even excruciating, and a learner cannot take it anymore.
•
Suffering from a headache – This symptom is the most common and this could be due to
stress and dehydration, and it makes it difficult for leaners to have deep thoughts in
their exams making them rush to they can rest since they could also suffer from fatigue.
•
Shaking due to anxiety of the exam a learner is about to write – Shaking signifies being
uncomfortable and anxiety in a learner which makes it difficult for them to calm their
body back to normal state so they can write with a calm head.
•
Dark circles around eyes which indicate lack of sleep – It is extremely difficult to do
anything if a learner is running low on sleep because their examinations are long and as a
result they need to fully rest.
2.4.
•
If a learner gets stuck on a question, then they should move on to the next. The last thing
they need is to spend five minutes on a question they do not understand.
•
A learner can start with a section in the exam that they find easier to score many marks
in, then go on to the more difficult parts of the paper, you are most likely to have good
marks all round if you do this.
•
Always look at the mark allocation and scale how much you need to answer according to
that mark allocation. The last thing you need as a learner is to overwrite (sounds like
waffling) or underwrite, you want every point you make to be direct and clear.
•
Writing as fast as possible, this does not mean rush through your paper but many learners
tend to not finish their examination papers. Therefore, it is important to always practice
time management.
2.5.
•
Learners should not take in any information on the day, this could be regarded as last
minute cramming because it disrupts the learners' thoughts and mixing every information
they have already collected during their studies and the last-minute cramming.
•
Get enough sleep because sleeping in the early hours, which is on the day of the exam,
will only make you feel tired and irritable.
•
On the day of your exam, make sure to have a full breakfast. With a full breakfast you
would be able to unlock your brain and remember all the information which you studied,
and your thought process would not be as slow as it would be if you were writing on an
empty stomach.
•
Do not take any substances that will give you ‘energy’ because these energy substances
wear off bad on a person. They first give you energy whilst studying the night before then
they wear off on the day of the exam making a learner feel super drained.
2.6.
•
Communicating with trusted loved ones makes it easier to get all the support and advice
that you need because you might feel it is the end of the world, but it is not. Therefore, it
is important that an external factor, preferably one that you trust, guides you along the
way to what to do.
•
Attending therapy would help because you can then communicate your feelings clearly
without having the fear or judgment by any of your peers or family members making you
feel horrible.
•
It is important to have talks about your feelings because the most common feelings
amongst learners who fail their matric year are isolation and comparison of themselves
with their peers, which is unhealthy.
•
Communications lessens suicidal thoughts that the learner could be experiencing as they
may feel as if they did not “do enough”, which again are symptoms of fear in the
learners.
Activity 3: Life after high school
3.1. The term “job” refers to an occupation that a person applies for in a working field that they
would like or know they could enter without difficult requirements. Learners could:
•
Always checking online for availability of spots in their wanted field - this could be made
easier by the learners creating profiles on LINKED IN where they could meet other
people who are possibly in the career field they want to venture into and get advice.
There are also job opening announcements on the app that they could apply for.
•
Make up a creative CV - Making a detailed curriticulum vitae is important and it has to
align with the role or position you want to apply for.
•
Attending business events - There are many business events that matriculants could
attend for free and get the opportunity to network with experienced people from various
working fields.
3.2.
•
Not achieving a good mark / failed Matric - Most of the time , it is possible that you
cannot get hired after high school because you did not do well in your NSC. This is
because businesses especially now days have a standard requirement that a person should
have at least pass their Matric to be considered a candidate for their job application.
•
Not enough experience / does not have a good CV - Most people feel as if they can just
get through high school and get a job but it is not that eas because coperations want to see
some of the vac work you have done or any experience you might have of working
because it is highly risky to hire an inexperienced employee.
•
Did not further their studies - It is difficult especially in South Africa to have an
occupation if you did not further your studies at a tertiary institution because there are
more people out there who qualify for the job than you.
•
Does not have skills - Many South African learners do not explore their skills which
leads to unemployment because of lack of understanding their own interpersonal skills.
3.3. This could have positive and negative effects to it.
Positive impact:
As a business owner you are able to make a lot of money especially if you put in a lot of hard
work. The salary really depends on your own working scale. Another great impact is that you are
able to set your own rules and times which is not possible if you are working for someone else
because there is a set code of conduct in which they cannot disobey. Lastly as an entrepreneur
you are able to test your own limits because you are constantly allowing your creativity to take
over.
Negative impact:
Being unable to get funding or investments in you business makes it difficult to start one or even
run it meaning that the matriculats failed or passed.