England’s teenagers experience the third-highest rate of pressure from school work out of 45 countries, according to new research.
A total proportion of 74 per cent of girls and 63 per cent of boys aged 15 in England felt pressured by school work, a World Health Organisation study shows.
By contrast, less than a third of Germany’s 15-year-old girls (31 per cent) and boys (27 per cent) felt under pressure because of school work.
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The World Health Organisation study says that “adolescents who enjoy being in school and experience school as a nurturing and supportive environment are more engaged with school, leading to improved long-term educational outcomes and higher wellbeing.
“Research has shown that pupils who like school have higher overall life satisfaction, lower risk of substance use and better mental health. It is, therefore, concerning to see that the most consistent changes since the last survey [in 2014] are decreases in liking school and increases in feeling school pressure, with only a few countries/regions showing the opposite trend.”
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Of the countries included in the research, Malta had the highest pressure for 15-year-olds, with 80 per cent of girls reporting school work pressures and 62 per cent of boys. Iceland was second.
The study also reveals that school pressures increased with age for pupils in England. While roughly a third of 11-year-olds - 34 per cent of girls and 36 per cent of boys - felt pressured by work at school, this proportion rose to 58 per cent of girls and 44 per cent of boys by age 13.
“Compared to older students, younger students report liking school more, feel less pressured by school and feel more supported by their teachers,” the report adds.
England had the eighth-highest level of students experiencing bullying aged 15. Some 11 per cent of girls and 15 per cent of boys reported they had been bullied at least twice in the past couple of months.
The study notes that Spain and the UK showed particularly steep declines in pupils’ satisfaction with school as they grew older.
It covers data from Canada and 44 countries within Europe.
