The “new semester syndrome” comes from stress in the process of adopting themselves to new circumstances. (image: kobizmedia)
SEOUL, Korea, Feb 19 (Korea Bizwire) – Ahead of beginning a new semester in March, many parents are busy preparing for their kids’ entering school such as school bags, uniforms and stationeries. Still it’s not enough, of course, especially when their kids become first graders of elementary schools.
This year, as many as 480,000 kids who were born in 2007, the year of the Golden Boar, are entering elementary schools. For the first-grade schoolers, there is an important thing that parents need to bear in mind and be ready. It’s the “new semester syndrome.”
The “new semester syndrome” comes from stress in the process of adopting themselves to new circumstances. Especially, for the first graders, as they can easily feel anxiety while being separated from their parents, suffer more from the syndrome.
It doesn’t come to only elementary school children. According to a recent survey, 83 percent of middle and high school students feel the same syndrome as they are under stress while seeking their academic results and getting along with new friends.
The symptoms can be appeared both psychologically and physically. When they suffer from the new semester stress, they hate going to school and cannot concentrate in class. Some feel separation anxiety, insomnia, evacuation disorder, and so on. Also, tensional headache, stomachache, reduced stamina from declining of immunity, cold and even depression can be included.
When anxiety and tension from the stress intensify, it can be developed into tic disorder. In that case, the students feel harder to concentrate on their study and form friendly relationship with their school mates. According to a National Health Insurance Service survey in 2011, elementary school students accounted for 45 percent of the tic disorder patients.
Dr. Lee Kyu-bak, psychiatrist at Cheongshim International Hospital, said, “To overcome the new semester syndrome, parents should have more talks with the kids opening their ears. Talking on new school and new class, parents are needed to grow expectations on new school life and ease anxiety.”
“Rather than scolding the kids who don’t want to go to school, parents need to show sympathetic attitude to the kids and encourage them to ease their psychological burden,” he added.
Also, before attending school, to make them accustomed to a regular life following the new school life and to let them have adequate practice are recommended to ease the symptoms.
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