Why isn’t revision more inclusive?

This year, I will be ten years shot of finishing my A Levels: a particularly hellish time for me, where I was anxious, lonely, and burnt out. With the benefit of hindsight, I could cite various reasons for this period being so challenging, but the biggest factor would without a doubt be my undiagnosed ADHD.

It was the first time I was truly academically stretched, and perhaps the first time my executive dysfunction challenges started to show: I was juggling school, revision, my first job, disastrous driving lessons and auditioning for drama schools.

In short, it was the first time I ever felt like I was floundering, and this shift in identity from a high-attaining girl who loved school to a self-professed failure was painful.

I was shamed regularly by peers and staff who expected more of me - greater time management and organisational skills for example – and I also agreed with my teachers: I should be more organised and put together. Couple that with attending a wannabe grammar school that was always competing, and my focus was firmly on grafting to get the highest grades possible.

So when I ran my most recent burnout management workshop for students, it was personal. I’d been there, being repeatedly told that nothing would be as challenging as A Levels, and ‘short-term pain for long-term gain’.

And that is as true as it ever was today. The volume of homework and revision that’s expected for each subject is enormous… then times that by 3, or even 4. I can’t even fathom doing it now. But the main issue that kept coming up? Mattering.

The volume of revision expected, the ways they were told to revise, and being asked to give their all to each subject despite revising for others, left them feeling less like they mattered as an individual. This is a cocktail for burnout.

And this showed with the students: my course, Burnout Management 101, ran six times over two days, with 28/28 students in each session.

Feedback for my course had students saying that:

{it} highlighted the need to personalise coping mechanisms for stress not just follow what others recommended 

{it} was nice to be spoken to as an individual not just a member of the college

There was time to reflect and personalise the ideas

And in doing this – making sure they knew they mattered as a person more than their grades – they were then able to evaluate the best way to revise for them, without tipping into burnout.

And for a neurodiverse student, this often looks like the total opposite of conventional advice.

For example, ways an ADHD-er might work best is to do the following:

-            Revise when they feel like it, not on schedule

-            Revise in short bursts: 5 minutes is fine!

-            Do the fun thing BEFORE the hard task

-            Revise with friends and lots of noise

-            Study with the TV on in the background

-            Study from bed

-            Study on a walk or run

None of this will be advocated for in schools or colleges. But why shouldn’t it be? The best way to revise is the way it works for you.

If you’d like Burnout Management 101 in your institution, please contact me here: I can’t wait to work with you!