FROM PANIC TO PASS: How Parents and Teachers Can Help Children Beat BECE and WASSCE Exam Phobia - By Counselor Prince Offei!
- Counselor Prince Offei (Psy)
- May 7
- 5 min read
Walk through any Junior High or Senior High compound in Ghana as BECE or WASSCE approaches and you will see it. A bright girl suddenly quiet. A boy who led class debates now sleeping at his desk. A Form 3 student with stomach pains every Monday morning. This is not laziness. This is academic stress. When left unaddressed, it hardens into exam phobia—overwhelming dread that pushes children into burnout, avoidance, and sometimes silence.
As a mental health professional who sits with these children and their parents at Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC) in Adenta Oyarifa-Teiman, I see the pattern clearly. Research confirms it. Putwain and Daly (2014) found that high test anxiety predicts lower grades independent of ability. Zeidner (1998) showed that chronic academic pressure raises cortisol, weakens memory recall, and increases school dropout risk. The brain under fear cannot retrieve what it studied.
- By Counselor Prince Offei, Author | Published in The SPECTATOR NEWSPAPER, 2nd May, 2026 and NEWS GHANA (GHANA NEWS)!
Understanding the Storm: What Academic Stress Really Looks Like
Exam phobia is not just “being nervous.” It shows up as headaches before mocks, sudden anger when books are mentioned, night-time insomnia, or perfectionism that ends in blank scripts. Some children over-study until 2 a.m. and forget everything by 9 a.m. Others avoid books completely, scrolling phones instead. Both are distress signals. Dr. Kenneth Ginsburg, a paediatrician specialising in adolescent resilience, notes: “Stress is not the enemy; feeling alone with stress is.” Too many Ghanaian children feel alone with it.
The Home Front: How Parents and Couples Become Safe Havens, Not Extra Pressure
The first antidote is at home. Structure beats shouting. Set a predictable study slot—same time, same place, with water and a light snack. Then protect sleep like you protect school fees. A tired brain fails faster than an unprepared one. Use the “15-minute start rule”: “Just sit for 15 minutes. If you still can’t, we close and try after a walk.” Often, starting is the hardest part.
Couples must watch their language. “Don’t disgrace us” plants fear. Replace it with “We see your effort. What part feels hardest today?” Praise process, not only position: “You revised three topics and asked for help—that is maturity.” Research by Dweck (2006) confirms that process praise builds resilience while outcome praise increases anxiety.
For caregivers, check your own anxiety. Children borrow our nervous system. If BECE makes you panic, they will panic. One parent grounds—keeps meals, prayer, and bedtime steady. The other pivots—talks to teachers, adjusts timetables, arranges counselling. Both protect rest. An empty cup cannot pour calm.
The Classroom Lifeline: What Teachers Can Do Before, During and After Exams
Teachers, you are the second parent. Seat the anxious child where eye contact is easy. Break instructions into two steps, written and verbal. Allow a 2-minute stretch break after 25 minutes of study—movement resets the brain. Before mock exams, do a 60-second breathing exercise with the whole class: in for 4, hold for 4, out for 6. It tells the body “we are safe.” Grade effort and method, not only final answers, especially in term work. A child who shows working will try again. A child marked “wrong” only learns to hide.
Avoid public comparison. “Why can’t you be like Esi?” creates shame, and shame shuts down learning. The goal is competence, not competition. Where possible, link topics to life—compound interest to MTN mobile money, photosynthesis to why Grandma’s backyard garden survives Harmattan. Meaning reduces fear.
Building Back Better: Daily Habits That Prevent Burnout and Restore Joy in Learning
Recovery is daily, not dramatic. Families can adopt CPAC’s “3-2-1 Rule” during exam seasons: 3 balanced meals, 2 hours total screen time outside study, 1 hour of non-academic joy—football, dance, church youth, sewing. Joy is not a distraction from success; it is fuel for it.
Teach the “Name, Tame, Reframe” skill. Name: “I feel my heart beating fast.” Tame: “That’s my body trying to help me focus.” Reframe: “I have prepared. I will answer what I know first.” For children who freeze, teach them to write their name, date, and index number slowly. Motor action unlocks cognition.
Know when to seek help. If your child vomits before exams, fakes illness weekly, speaks of self-harm, or has not slept properly for two weeks, see a mental health professional. Academic stress that lasts beyond the exam season may mask anxiety disorders or depression. Early support prevents long-term wounds.
Parents, teachers, churches—our children are not machines for grades. They are minds and hearts we are shaping for life. BECE and WASSCE end in days. But the beliefs they form about themselves during those days last for decades. Let us choose words, routines and compassion that say: “You are more than a score. We see you. We will walk through this with you.”
One calm morning. One chunked topic. One repaired conversation after a meltdown. That is how we move from panic to pass. That is how we raise children who are not only educated, but emotionally whole.
Resources
Counselor Prince & Associates Consult (CPAC): Award-winning Clinical Mental Health and Counselling Facility, accredited by the Ghana Psychology Council.
School-Based Support: Speak to Guidance & Counselling units, or licensed school counsellors. E.g. Counsellor Blessing Offei - 0559850604 (School Counsellor).
Contact CPAC for Parent Coaching/Counselling & Student Therapy: 055 985 0604 / 055 142 8486.
References
Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.
Ginsburg, K. R. (2011). Building resilience in children and teens: Giving kids roots and wings. American Academy of Pediatrics.
Putwain, D., & Daly, A. L. (2014). Test anxiety prevalence and gender differences in a sample of English secondary school students. Educational Studies, 40(5), 554–570.
Zeidner, M. (1998). Test anxiety: The state of the art. Plenum Press.
Source:
REV. COUNSELOR PRINCE OFFEI’s insights on handling academic stress, relationships, mental health, mediation, supporting special needs children, and parenting in Ghana. He is a leading Mental Health Professional, Certified Professional Mediator & Arbitrator, Lecturer, renowned Author, Marriage Counsellor, Spectator Newspaper Columnist, and TV Personality at COUNSELOR PRINCE & ASSOCIATES CONSULT (CPAC COUNSELLOR TRAINING INSTITUTE) – 0551428486 / 0559850604.
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