Examining Times

With GCSEs looming large in the Coleman household, Rowan takes the long view on exams

Exam season is upon us, and my daughter is facing the first year of a new system of GCSEs. It’s hardly surprising that she feels anxious, nervous and deeply worried that she isn’t good enough. Every day I remind her how hard she has worked for two years, how bright she is, how she revises diligently, but most of all, I remind her that if by some amazing turn events she does really terribly it doesn’t actually matter. That her route through life might take a slightly unconventional turn but there is much more to achieving success and happiness than passing box-ticking exams.