For some students, academic challenges aren’t just struggling to get an A on an exam or passing the SATs—for some, it can seem like an impossible obstacle that can’t be overcome. Students with learning differences, like ADHD, can sometimes slip under the radar in typical schools, never getting the help they need to thrive.
Being in an environment that supports these students and guides them towards overcoming this adverse experience has been shown in studies to increase the chances of a student’s success later in life.
How struggle can lead to future success
Many researchers argue that “resilience”–the ability to recover quickly from setbacks and challenges–is learned, you’re not born with it. This means that through deliberate actions, thoughts, and processes, you can acquire that skill.
A recent study found that in some cases “learning to set and adjust goals and cope with adversity is more important for life success than improving cognition.” Now, they’re not saying to stop reading or learning how to do calculus, they’re saying that these types of “resiliency” skills are incredibly important for thriving in life.
Think about it–we all go through hard times. It’s extremely unlikely for anyone to go their entire life without having at least one “bad” thing happen to them. Whether that bad thing is losing someone you love, getting in a car accident, getting fired, or failing an important class.
For teens, the latter can be devastating if they don’t have the right support system and thought processes. For example, take a student who already struggles with self-confidence because they have an undiagnosed learning disability. They studied as hard as they could and still failed the very important exam–now they feels even worse about herself and may even develop depression or anxiety.
The researchers in this study believe that training these teens who are prone to academic challenges and adversity could help them get through it more effectively. They discovered that by teaching struggling teens self regulation–such as setting goals or learning from their mistakes–helped them perform better in school and in life. While academic challenges take place in school, they’re often linked to outside issues that need to be dealt with.
If you believe your daughter’s academic challenges are the result of deeper issues, it’s important to reach out to a professional for further guidance.
Solstice is here for your daughter
Solstice is a groundbreaking residential treatment center for girls, ages 14 to 18. Our girls and assigned female at birth often grapple with depression, academic challenges, anxiety, trauma, ADHD, and other emotional or behavioral problems when they come to us.
Through a unique combination of therapeutic programs based upon both traditional and holistic mental health treatment, we treat our clients with age and gender specific techniques. We strive to empower teenage people with the ability to believe in themselves and provide the tools and motivation required to instill these beliefs for life.
For more information about how we help with academic challenges at Solstice, please contact us at (866) 278-3345.
