Featured in St Catherine’s News, Spring 2023, Head of Barbreck, Ms Karen McArdle shares why balance is essential for optimal academic performance.

Research shows that pressure in the learning environment can have detrimental and long-term effects on academic success. These effects can include obsession with grades, anxiety, extreme competitiveness, changes in appetite, working constantly, sleep difficulties, inability to relax, social isolation, or loss of interest.

As well as the personal effects pressure places on students and their families, it also affects learning. For example, if students feel their results are valued above their efforts, parents are disappointed with a B+ because it was not an A, inadvertently children can attach their personal value with their marks. This can lead to students concentrating on results rather than developing their skills and understanding the knowledge being taught. This constant ‘results stress’ impairs a student’s ability to process material cognitively resulting in the opposite effect to the desired outcome.

In Barbreck, we believe optimal learning occurs when matched to students’ instructional level. This is what we call the Goldilocks Level – not too easy (they can do it independently), not too hard (even with help, they cannot do it) but just right! At this level, girls have the necessary understanding and skill to learn successfully.

Our Barbreck culture supports all our students, ensuring their learning is built upon a solid foundation of skills and knowledge. At Barbreck we believe learning in the primary years should mostly be ‘stress free.’ These years should develop a love for learning, finding where their strengths and interests lie, areas they need to work on and exploring new ways to think and learn through experiences.

Balance is essential to support our girls to achieve their personal best. Complementing our academic program is our diverse co-curricular program that ensures our students learn through experience. Our girls are immersed in Sport, Drama, and Debating along with our specialty subjects in Art, Music, French, Health, and Library. The recent refurbishment of our Sports Centre also provides our girls with outstanding facilities to pursue their passion for sport and develop their love of life-long physical activity. Our Wellbeing Program also supports our girls to develop growth mindsets, organisation, self-care, and valuing a balanced life.

Our Barbreck environment encourages our girls to value their efforts and approach their learning with curiosity and positivity. It supports them to try new things, make mistakes, and discover what works for them. Through this approach our girls develop an intrinsic love of learning that nurtures healthy self-esteem, confidence, and resilience.