Comprehension (A)
To get through these pressures, many students seek ways to obtain stress relief. But instead of opting for healthy activities like sports or exercising to decompress, some students turn to the use of drugs. Students often find using drugs as an escape or a coping mechanism without being aware of detrimental consequences. The risk, of course,is that they may sabotage their education, or make their lives worse. Parents are the largest influence of external pressure for their young adult. The level of anxiety that families have about the studies and future goals of their siblings can adversely affect the progress and overall development of children. Pressure on developing minds has the potential to 'affect the nervous system and brain and can place youth at greater risk for abuse of drugs. Parental interference and pressure is, therefore, one of the most significant external trigger for pressures and can lead to a high- risk environment for mental illness and addiction in students.
But for parents, the door swings both ways. Parents can influence their children through healthy dialogue about risk factors, stress, and the dangers of drug use. As custodians, parents should wish their children to be successful and not succumb to their demands. Children learn more by what their parents do than what they say, and, if they see that their parents cope with pressure in a negative way; it sends a powerful message to their children. The pressure that adults put on themselves both as individuals and parents, trickles down to kids. We must start early to help teens develop a positive self-image and create healthy approaches to dealing with life.
Questions:
i. Provide a summary of each paragraph and suggest a title for each.
ii. Interpret the expressions "decompress" and "the door swings both ways" as used in the passage.
iii. How the use of drugs is presented as a coping mechanism in the passage. What are the potential consequences discussed?
iv. Identify a theme related to the influence of parents on students' mental health and discuss how it is developed in the passage.
v. From the author's perspective, how does parental pressure contribute to the risk of mental illness and addiction in students? Provide examples from the text.
vi. In what ways can parents positively influence their children, according to the passage? How can a healthy dialogue about risk factors, stress, and the dangers of drug use be implemented by parents?
