Dog helps to ease A-level students’ exam nerves in Brighton

The Year 13 students at Brighton Girls GDST in Montpelier Road have never sat a public exam, despite being in their final year of school.

They were due to sit their GCSE exams in summer 2020 but when Covid struck in the spring, the academic year was thrown into chaos and their exams were cancelled.

To help ease their worries Pip the cavapoo has been drafted in to help smooth frayed nerves as they enter their final weeks of revision.

Pip is a cross between a Cavalier King Charles spaniel and a miniature poodle

“It has been an incredibly tough time for Year 13s over the last two years,” said headteacher Rosie McColl.

“They were the ones who had to deal with the mental blow of having their GCSEs cancelled when the pandemic first hit and consequently, they have had no experience of what it’s like to sit an external exam.

“Pip’s presence really changes the atmosphere when they are revising – and the girls really seem to respond to that in terms of their mental health.”

Pip, a cross between a Cavalier King Charles spaniel and a miniature poodle, will sit in on exam classes at the senior school as well as helping younger pupils with their reading groups.

Year 13 students at Brighton Girls GDST in Montpelier Road have never sat a public exam, despite being in their final year of school

Ms McColl said: “There is growing evidence of the benefit of a school dog for children’s and adults’ social and emotional wellbeing and what better time for Pip to hang out with the girls than exam time.”

Molly Kronhamn, 17, who is studying A-levels in history, classics and English literature and hoping to go to University of York, said: "Having never officially sat our GCSEs, it's the process and the formality of the A-levels that feel a bit overwhelming as they approach.

“I have been OK with the revision, it's just the thought of the actual moment of the exams that has been nerve wracking. So it was lovely to have Pip with us when we have been revising - she is a calming distraction and takes your mind off what's ahead for a little while so you come back to work with a fresh mind."

Molly Kronhamn is one of the students who has been helped by Pip

Cluny Graham, 17, who is studying for A-levels in biology, economics and sports science and aims to go to Oxford Brookes University, said: "While I like the learning side of my studies, I strongly dislike the actual exams and the stress they bring. It's been a difficult time and Pip has been a lovely calming influence during revision.”

Dogs in schools have been growing in popularity since educationalist Sir Anthony Seldon, a former head of Brighton College, declared he believed all schools should have a dog or other pet in order to reduce stress in the classroom.

Cluny Graham said Pip had been a calming influence

In 2019, he told a conference: “The quickest and biggest hit that we can make to improve mental health in our schools and to make them feel safe for children is to have at least one dog in every single school in the country.”