Ancient languages caused most stress for GCSE students

Design and technology ranks second in a report listing the subjects causing the highest levels of stress in the recent rounds of exams

Julian Owen

Students taking GCSEs in ancient languages reported the highest levels of stress in the recent round of exams, according to a new report.

The finding comes from Access Education’s analysis of posts made in May on The Student Room, the UK’s largest online student community.

Research by the educational software specialists analysed which subjects were creating the most debate – such as exam sitters asking for help and guidance, or venting their frustrations with fellow students – and then ranked them per capita.

Design and technology – a subject renowned for being coursework heavy – was found to be the second most stressful subject, followed by computing.

The least anxiety-inducing courses were the more vocationally-based physical education and food preparation and nutrition.

At A-level, the most stressful subjects for exam takers were maths, economics and law.

Higher than usual levels of stress had been reported across the board for this year’s GCSE and A-level exams.

More than four in five (82%) of headteachers said that this year’s students were reporting greater levels of anxiety than pre-pandemic cohorts, according to a survey in May by the Association of School and College Leaders.

Almost as many (78%) had received a higher number of requests from pupils to complete their papers away from the main exam hall.

“With pupils across the country sitting exams for the first time in three years this summer, monitoring stress and anxiety has been a key focus for schools,” said Emma Slater, Access Education publishing director, and a former English teacher.

“Following the disruption of the past two years, it’s not surprising that students were feeling the pressure, with reports of panic attacks, angry outbursts, self-harm and disengagement on the rise.

“Revision is equally as daunting, especially for students who are unfamiliar with sitting exams and it’s essential that students can work with teachers to effectively track and monitor their progress.”

The 10 GCSE subjects found to be causing the most stress were as follows:

Course	Uptake	Number of GCSE-specific posts on The Student Room	Index
Ancient Languages	11,860	69	100
Design & Technology	82,505	457	95
Computing	77,245	232	52
Biology	171,835	427	43
Physics	164,330	254	27
Mathematics	758,755	1012	23
Music	35,400	44	21
Social Sciences Subjects	39,395	47	21
German	37,035	44	20
Statistics	17,950	21	20

At A-level, the top 10 list reads:

A-Level course	Uptake	Number of A-level specific posts on The Student Room	Index
Mathematics	90,290	1523	100
Economics	32,700	535	97
Law	12,825	178	82
Physics	37,560	482	76
Chemistry	55,485	604	65
Drama	8,670	93	64
Biology	63,765	682	63
Psychology	68,315	664	58
Music	5,045	47	55
Computing	12,930	109	50

The findings have been published in a new report: How has the return to the exam hall affected stress among students?, by Access Education, a software specialist for schools and academies.