Letters

Varsity students need help to cope with stress, anxiety

LETTERS: It is undeniable that higher education institutions are affected by the Movement Control Order (MCO) as the teaching and learning processes are disrupted.

As a solution, the Higher Education Ministry has encouraged universities to use online teaching and learning methods. They include Massive Open Online Learning, Open Educational Resources and online Flipped Classroom, as well as any open applications available.

However, there are other constraints, such as limited access to the Internet for students in rural areas and how far lecturers and students are willing to use online teaching and learning.

Students are also affected by psychological issues, such as stress, depression, anxiety and low resilience. They are affected as many activities cannot be carried out, like having gatherings, during the MCO.

The impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on university students can be seen from two aspects, such as students' readiness for online teaching and learning and the impact of psychological factors, namely fear and extreme anxiety.

These effects are likely to persist until the MCO is over as these students need psychosocial support.

The challenge for students is to manage several issues at once, including online teaching and learning readiness.

Other factors include their ability to complete industrial training or internship, complete group work, prepare for exams, missing family and being able to complete their programme as planned.

The psychological and social effects students face during a crisis can lead to dysfunction in daily activities.

When a crisis lasts for an extended period of time, it will amplify their anxiety and fears as uncertainties grow. Students experience stress due to excessive expectations, too.

Apart from accessing social support (an external factor), a person's resilience (an internal factor) also needs to be strengthened as this will affect how an individual fares when experiencing difficulties and hardships.

Someone with high resilience will be able to manage stress and anxiety and solve the complex problems they encounter during a crisis, in addition to having the ability to get out of traumatic situations.

There are two suggestions for university authorities to consider to help students.

First, provide and improve psychosocial assistance to students, such as counselling psychotherapy and psychological first aid.

Second, establish collaborations between social workers, counsellors, clinical psychologists, psychiatrists and medical doctors to provide more effective psychosocial services.

Social support will increase confidence, sense of belonging and shared values. Universities need to provide social support not only to students, but also to university staff during the MCO period.

University communities need psychosocial support to help them manage anxiety, stress and emotional disturbances that affect their daily functioning.

This assistance can reduce anxiety and the extreme fear felt by university communities, especially students.

Associate Professor Dr Mohd Izwan Mahmud

Centre for Educational Diversity, Faculty of Education,

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia


The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect those of the New Straits Times

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