A thesis statement is a must.

Generally, it should be present in the last sentence

of your introduction. Here is how a thesis can look like:

Nutrition is directly linked to the level of stress in an individual. / Workplace

stress can lead to depression among employees.

Define stress. Provide a dictionary definition of stress or select one from the
articles you have studied. Your reader should understand the concept of stress
clearly. Remember that there are different types of stress based on its causes.
Discuss the consequences of stress, referring to the sources you have selected.
Address the physical and emotional outcomes of stress.
Discuss the potential ways of dealing with stress. According to the purpose of your
paper, address one or several methods in detail. What are the positive changes an
individual can feel after these interventions? Reflect on this question, too.
Remember to support your claims with evidence from the sources you have studied.
Cite the literature properly using citation style guide.
Your concluding paragraph should restate the main arguments of the paper. Avoid
adding new information or in-text citations in this section.
Please feel free to analyze our free samples and get the best ideas for your essay!
Introduction
Students who manage their time well are more likely to cope with the stress
associated with the increased academic and co-curricular demands of school life. As
students scale the academic ladder, they will inevitably encounter increased
workloads in line with their higher academic status.

With this increased workload comes a degree of stress that if not handled and dealt
with, can seriously affect the overall health of a student. At the heart of the
stress, managing strategy is effective time management. Through planning of events
to avoid last minute rashes and clashes in activities, a student can reduce his or
her chances of being stressed.

The major causes of stress among high school students

One of the causes of stress among high school students and college students is the
difficulty in interacting with a completely new set of students and an even larger
social group within the body of the learning institution (Shaffer 925).

Whether a student is moving from junior high school to high school or from high
school to college, he/she has to deal with a completely new set of people. Shaffer
et al. state that, the pressure to conform to real or imagined new standards can be
overwhelming for some students.

This need to belong affects nearly all students and may lead some to be withdrawn
and develop stress due to a perceived lack of belonging. As students try to
establish a sort of balance between making friends and exploring the different
social groups available at a new learning institution, the student’s academic
performance may suffer and this will likely lead to conflicts with parents and
teachers.

Coping with a larger group of students and teachers, coupled with having to learn
more complex academic materials can be especially difficult for students who move
to a new state or immigrant students who may have difficulties in communicating
with other students.

Another source of stress for students in high schools and even colleges is the
increased expectations from parents or guardians. Diaz identifies the pressure to
pass exams as the most significant source of stress for high school students (29).
Many high school students are especially easily angered and are generally unsocial
during the week preceding major exams.
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One major cause of stress related to exams is the high expectation placed on
students to do well in examinations. This expectation is mostly from parents. The
pressure and subsequent stress can be particularly intense in students enrolled in
academic programs designed for gifted students like the International Baccalaureate
(IB) program.

Students in these programs are expected to maintain high academic standards

throughout a school term or semester, and this can be very stressful for them,
especially since the expectation comes from both teachers and parents. Students who
are sponsored by organizations and even well-wishers also experience more stress
during exam periods since most of the time their sponsorship is pegged on
maintaining a certain academic performance standard.

The increased workload associated with a higher academic level is also a major
source of stress for students. According to Shannon, Niebling, and Heckert, many
studies indicate an increase in stress levels for students as they move from one
level of education to a higher one (312).

This can mostly be attributed to the increased workload that the students have to
cope with (Ranjita and McKean 42). Further, students may be engaged in many
different activities in high school and this may contribute to a workload increase
that may prove hard to handle for the students. Many high school students actively
engaged in a sport will have to work harder just to be at par with other students
in his or her class who are not engaged in any sport or other time-demanding co-
curricular activity.

Reduced physical activity has been a major factor in increased levels of stress
amongst high school and college students. Spruijt-Metz states that there is a
direct connection between the stress levels of high school students and their level
of physical activity (180). The students who are less physically active are more
likely to have higher stress levels, and vice versa.