As NSW students sit their first Higher School Certificate (HSC) examinations this week, Year 12 exam stress is building across Australia. For school leaders and teachers, the question is not just how to prepare students academically but, more importantly, how to best support them.
According to researchers at the Australian Catholic University (ACU), academic preparation alone is not enough. Stress regulation, social connection, rest, and a grounded sense of what Year 12 actually means for a student’s future deserve equal attention from educators.
Keeping perspective in a high-stakes environment
Dr Kylie Trask-Kerr, a resilience expert at ACU’s School of Education in Melbourne, Victoria, argues that educators play a central role in helping students reframe Year 12. Young people who focus on longer-term goals – relationships, growth, purpose – are better placed to face exams with perspective.
“Remember that education is a lifelong pursuit and is not just about your ATAR,” Dr Trask-Kerr said. “You have achieved so much already, and will have many opportunities for success in the future.”
Exam stress is better managed once students understand the root causes driving their anxiety – often a fear of disappointing parents or teachers. Educators who start that conversation early give students a more effective tool than any last-minute revision session.
The AI question every school leader should be asking
This year’s exam period carries a new dimension: artificial intelligence. Research by education consultancy Learning First in May 2026 found that half of surveyed NSW secondary teachers reported students using AI for schoolwork. Half said they did not know how to prevent AI-related plagiarism or cheating.
Associate Professor Walayat Hussain, an AI researcher at ACU’s Peter Faber Business School in Sydney, New South Wales, warns that AI-assisted cramming creates a false sense of mastery. Students who use AI to generate answers rather than test their own understanding risk being exposed in a supervised exam.
The reframe for school leaders and parents is simple: shift from “Are you using AI?” to “Can you explain this to me without it?”
Structure, rest and managing Year 12 exam stress
Associate Professor Steven Lewis, a standardised assessment expert at ACU’s Institute for Learning Sciences and Teacher Education in Ballarat, Victoria, points to four anchors for exam readiness:
First, planning is essential. Students who map out upcoming assessments and seek out past exams are less likely to be caught off-guard.
Second, rest is not optional. Scheduled downtime improves attention and engagement far more than grinding through fatigue.
Third, staying connected matters. Talking to friends, family, and peers reduces the risk of becoming overwhelmed and isolated during a high-pressure period.
Fourth, perspective. Year 12 results open doors to university, apprenticeships, and work. But they are not the only door, and students can always change direction.
Schools can reinforce these habits. Those that build a whole-school culture of wellbeing for staff and students consistently produce students who are more resilient under exam stress.
What happens when exam stress narrows students’ experience of school?
Associate Professor Jessica Holloway, an education policy researcher at ACU’s Institute for Learning Sciences and Teacher Education in Ballarat, Victoria, raises a broader concern. Senior secondary exams serve a legitimate purpose – they demonstrate learning and determine access to further education. But when results carry so much weight, both students and teachers are incentivised to focus narrowly on what the assessment demands.
“This can narrow students’ experience of education and their sense of what is possible for their future,” Associate Professor Holloway said.
Schools that communicate clearly about the pathways available to students beyond the ATAR help ease that pressure. As Year 12 exam stress intensifies, how school leaders respond – not just academically but structurally – will shape the experience of this entire cohort.