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Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday cautioned parents against treating their children's report cards as their own visiting card, while asserting that it is crucial to instill resilience in children to help them cope with pressures and parents and teachers should collectively address challenges faced by them.
Interacting with students, parents and teachers during his annual 'Pariksha Pe Charcha' programme, the prime minister suggested that students should compete with themselves and not others and parents should never sow the seeds of competition and rivalry between siblings.
"It is crucial to instill resilience in our children and help them cope with pressures... We cannot just switch off and the pressure is gone. One must become capable of bearing any kind of pressure. They should believe that pressure keeps on building and one has to prepare oneself," he said during the two-hour interaction.
Prime Minister Modi suggested students to 'always make friends who are more intelligent and work harder'.
"You must be inspired by such friends. Don't let the pressure of studies and examinations overpower you," he said.
Modi said that even though competition and challenges act as inspirations, competition must be healthy.
"A lot of parents keep on giving examples of other children to their children. Parents should avoid doing these things... never sow the seeds of rivalry and competition among students," he said.
"We have also seen that those parents who have not been very successful in their lives have nothing to say or want to tell the world about their successes and achievements, make the report card of their children their visiting card.
"Whenever they meet someone, they will tell them the story of their children," he said at the seventh episode of his outreach programme with students ahead of examinations.
The prime minister explained that the stress faced by students is of three types - induced by peer pressure, by parents and self-induced.
"At times, children take pressure on themselves that they are not performing up to the mark. I suggest that you should set small goals during preparation and gradually improve your performance, this way you will be completely ready before exams," he said.
"We have to make ourselves capable of facing any sort of pressure. Students need to make themselves ready to go through any condition. If we visit any cold place, we make up our minds, and accordingly, we keep ourselves ready... (in the) same way you have to be ready for exams," Modi said.
The prime minister said that the challenges faced by students must be addressed collectively by parents and teachers. He also encouraged teachers to forge strong connections with their students.
"The bond between educators and learners is the foundation for a bright future. If teachers start working on building a relationship with their students from the first day of the year, there won't be any question of tension building up among students at the time of examinations," he said.
"Teachers must expand their connections with students much beyond their subject syllabus so that students can reach out to their teachers even for the smallest of problems. Music teachers can not only help their own students deal with tensions, they can do so for students of the entire school," Modi said.
Replying to questions on balancing studies with a healthy life, Prime Minister Modi said many students use mobile phones and some do it for many hours. He advised students not to use their sleep time for watching reels.
"I get into deep sleep within 30 seconds of lying on the bed on all 365 days. When I am awake, I am fully awake, but I am totally asleep while sleeping. Nutrition is also necessary. Our body must get the required nutrition. A good balance of food and regular exercise for fitness are also necessary," Modi said.
"They should understand that even mobiles need recharge to be used, and similarly, our body also needs to be recharged. On the other hand, some students keep playing all the time, but it is necessary to strike a balance. A healthy body is necessary for a healthy mind. Good and sound sleep is also a must for good health. Don't use your sleep time for watching reels," he said.
Emphasising the need to avoid mistakes due to the over-enthusiasm of parents or over-sincerity of the students, the PM asked the parents not to over-hype the exam day by new clothes, rituals or stationery.
He also asked the students not to keep preparing until the last moment and approach exams with a relaxed mindset.
The prime minister suggested that students read the question paper and plan with time allocation to avoid panic at the last moment. Modi also advised students to practice writing.
"In this age of mobile phones and laptops, students are losing the practice to write while exams are supposed to be handwritten. Of the time dedicated to studies, you should devote at least 50 per cent of time to practise writing with pen and paper," he said.
Asked how he keeps a positive mindset amid the challenges of his job, Modi said it is in his nature to 'challenge every challenge' and asserted that he looked for a way to deal with poverty in the country instead of just sitting on the issue like others.
Describing students as the shapers of India's future, Modi said the Pariksha Pe Charcha programme is like an examination for him too. He also said that students have become more innovative than ever.
Organised by the Ministry of Education, Pariksha Pe Charcha has been engaging students, parents and teachers for the past six years.
This year's event was held in a town hall format at the Bharat Mandapam in New Delhi. An estimated 2.26 crore registrations have taken place on the MyGov portal, highlighting the widespread enthusiasm among students.
The event was also attended by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Ministers of State for Education -- Subhas Sarkar, Annapurna Devi and Rajkumar Ranjan Singh.