Is there more to your matric year than meets the eye?

When you think of your final year of school, what comes to mind? Exams, extra classes, more work, loads of assignments and a lot of stress? Sure, matric has all of these things, but is there more to the year than these first impressions? Stick with me while I take a closer look at this very big year in a teen’s life.

It does not matter which part of the world you’re in, what color skin you have or which education system you’re part of, your final year of school is a big deal. Matric often seems to be all about exams, but I reckon there’s more to it. What about the special treatment you get at school? There’s the Valedictory or Open day, the matric dance, the matric jackets, t-shirts and ties. Some schools even have matric walls, corridors and toilets. Ok, so we don’t all get our own special toilets, but you see what I’m saying – there’s generally some special treatment.

On the other hand, matric brings with it a lot of changes, especially as you reach the end of the year. There’s the closing of one chapter of your life and the opening of a new one. For some it means moving towns and leaving friends behind. You’re looking forward to your first day of varsity or your first day at work. The post-school world is pretty scary, trust me, but it’s also very exciting. When I was in matric, I considered my final year of school as a climax to my life story and I think many people do. But trust me, life after school is different, but there are even more exciting things ahead!

Of course, your matric results can have a big impact on your future in terms of a career and future studies. You might have wanted to go to medical school, always been an A student and now it’s crunch time. There’s a lot of pressure to perform. Although it is important to work hard and do your best so you have the best chance of achieving the dreams you’ve always wanted, you also need to be kind to yourself.

Work hard, do your best and your effort will ‘pay off. Of course, life can be strange and things don’t always turn out quite how we’d like them to. You might work really hard and still not get into medical school, but instead get accepted for a BCom. This might feel like a nightmare and the end of a dream, but when you look at it from another angle, it’s another path that can lead to new opportunities. Sometimes disappointments can lead to new opportunities if we refuse to give up and are determined to seize every good opportunity we get, even when these might not be quite the ones we’d always dreamed about.

It’s very sad that every year we loose young people to suicide when they fail or don’t do as well as they’d hoped in matric. Nothing is worth taking this radical step. If you feel desperate, get help. Find someone to talk to who can help you explore your options – things are often not as dreadful as you think.

Even when they think they’ve aced their exams many matrics lose the plot after all the hard work is over. The after-exam-parties are often an excuse to get drunk, take drugs and hook up and have unprotected sex. But is it really worth it? It seems like a crazy waste of all that hard work to put yourself at risk of an unplanned pregnancy, contracting a sexual transmitted disease or endangering your life by driving under the influence.

Matric is not the end but just the beginning to a whole new world of adventures and excitement. So if you’re in matric for this academic year don’t become a statistic. Work hard, do your best, have an awesome matric dance night. Play clean and you’ll protect your future. Play your cards right and you’ll be set for life. It starts today.

Bright Idea! On the last day of your exams instead of going out and drinking till you lose yourself, why don’t you sit down and plan that holiday getaway with your loved ones. Go and distribute your CV at your nearest shopping centre or local business to line up some work for your 2 month vacation. Then you have some cash to spend to look funky on your first day of work or varsity!

Thinking about peer pressure

When lipstick leaves you broke, it’s time to dig deep and look inside.

There are few things I love as much as hopping from one cosmetics store to the next, checking out all the products, trying them on and wondering if bright pink lipstick really could be the new dark red. It’s not all fun and games when it comes to paying for everything, though. After a shopping spree, my bank account ends up looking seriously sad and I often wonder why I buy all this stuff I hardly need. Of course, I know the answer. I buy because all my gals are buying and they convince me that my social life will fizzle and die if I don’t buy that purple nail polish. I need it and I buy it.

Reading a copy of one of my favorite youth magazines, I take a peer pressure quiz. The verdict? Sometimes peer pressure gets the better of me. Hmm, that’s not something you want to hear about yourself. It’s time to take a closer look at this whole peer pressure thing and get some perspective.

What is peer pressure?
Peer Pressure is when you allow other people to influence your thoughts and actions. Basically, where a group of friends share values, they influence each other’s thoughts and behaviours. In exchange for group membership, you need to think like the group, act like the group and want what the group wants. So, I buy nailpolish I don’t need and end up broke because I wanna by one of the gals.

What are the effects of peer pressure?
Peer Pressure has a powerful influence on teenagers. You want to fit in with those around you and need to feel that you belong. But, the price of belonging is conforming to the group. If you don’t agree with their opinions and go along with the things they do, you will probably experience rejection. Or you fear that if you refuse to give in, you will lose their friendship and respect.

So, is peer pressure always bad?
Peer pressure can be harmful when your friends put pressure on you to do something that you know is wrong or don’t want to do. They may want you to cheat, lie, steal or say or do something that makes you feel uncomfortable. Or, in my case, waste my hard earned cash on nail polish instead of saving up to study. But there is a flipside. Positive peer pressure is when your friends talk you into doing good things, such as helping others, going to teen church or even working harder at school so you can get good marks and get scholarships to study further.

GOLD uses positive peer pressure to pull the plug on HIV by encouraging teenagers to lead healthier, more responsible, happier lives. I know that if I see my friend going for an HIV test, chances are I’ll feel more comfortable about going. If I see people I think are cool actually working hard at their studies, saying they don’t want to get drunk or sleep around, then it makes me think, Wow, maybe you don’t have to mess up your life with drugs to be cool.

So like I always have and always will, I have a choice to say, “No gals! I don’t need new cosmetics or clothes, I can’t afford them right now.” Or I can give in to peer pressure and suffer being broke alone for the rest of the month. So what’s it gonna be? I think I’m going to have to do some talking in the mirror and practice putting DOWN the nailpolish! Now it’s your turn. Will you give in to peer pressure or will you stand up for what you want and believe in and say no when you need to? So what’s it gonna be?