„Boys benefit from more regular testing as this allows them to better self-regulate and focus on schoolwork. Yet, this might also be due to girls’ increased anxiety about frequent testing and induced competition.“
OECD (Hrsg.), Teaching in Focus 39 (April 2021), S. 4.

„The 2018 Resilience Report defined emotionally resilient students also in terms of schoolwork-related anxiety. Students can be defined as emotionally resilient also in terms of fear of failure, when they reported that they 'disagree' or 'strongly disagree' with the statement 'When I am failing, this makes me doubt my plans for the future'. When looking at emotional resilience in terms of fear of failure, the share of emotionally resilient immigrant students decreased to 56 % on average across OECD countries (and 53 % across EU countries) in 2018.“
Dr. Lucie Cerna u. a., The resilience of students with an immigrant background (2021), S. 24.
In Österreich waren es 2018 nur 44,1 %. (Quelle: ibidem, Table 2.1.)

„It is noteworthy that in all countries, girls reported greater schoolwork-related anxiety than boys and anxiety about schoolwork, homework and tests is negatively related to performance.“
OECD (Hrsg.), Learning from the Past, Looking for the Future (2021), S. 38.

„Immer häufiger berichten Studierende von stressbedingten Schwierigkeiten und/oder psychischen Beschwerden, vor allem von stressbedingten gesundheitlichen Beschwerden, fehlender Studienmotivation, Versagens-/Prüfungsangst, Lern- und Konzentrationsschwierigkeiten. […] Im Vergleich zur Erhebung 2015 ist der Anteil Studierender, die mindestens eine studienerschwerende psychische Beschwerde genannt haben, von 42 % im Jahr 2015 auf 48 % im Jahr 2019 gestiegen. Auch bei stressbedingten Schwierigkeiten im Studium lässt sich in diesem Zeitraum ein deutlicher Anstieg – von 49 % auf 57 % – verzeichnen.“
IHS (Hrsg.), Studierenden-Sozialerhebung 2019 (2020), S. 303-305.

„In East Asia […] tutoring is more likely to be received by pupils who are already performing well but whose families wish to maintain or further enhance their performance in the competitive society.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Mark Bray, Shadow Education in Europe: Growing Prevalence, Underlying Forces, and Policy Implications. In: ECNU Review of Education (2020), S. 10.

„High stakes tests, which are often a key component of accountability systems, have been linked to undesirable effects such as the narrowing of the curriculum, reducing effective teaching time to the expense of test-taking skills, lower levels of motivation and increased stress.“
EU-Kommission (Hrsg.), Equity in school education in Europe (2020), S. 161.

„Admission to postsecondary education is based on upper-secondary school grades and, often, entrance examinations.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Juho Härkönen u. a., Educational Transitions and Educational Inequality. In: European Sociological Review, 2020, Vol. 36, No. 5, S. 705.

„The dominant pedagogical orientation in China’s schools is related to the prevalence of the exam-oriented culture. High-stakes summative assessments are an important part of the educational experience, in addition to the selective national examinations.“
OECD (Hrsg.), Benchmarking the Performance of China's Education System (2020), S. 23.

„Unusually high rates of maladaptive behaviors are found among affluent youth beginning around seventh grade, including substance abuse, eating disorders, and even suicide attempts. These are thought to be a function of high rates of stress associated with a culture of competition and peer pressure, coupled with inattentive or permissive parenting in the context of depersonalized school settings.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Linda Darling-Hammond u. a., Implications for educational practice of the science of learning and development (2019), S. 105.

China: „The race for good grades starts at a young age. In nursery schools, educators push children hard to learn English and to study multiplication tables. Wealthy parents aim to secure a head start from their children by sending them to elite kindergartens.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Matthias Doepke u. a., „Love, Money and Parenting“ (2019), S. 282

„The organization of the Chinese school system places immense psychological pressure on parents, teachers, and pupils. Its effectiveness is a contentious issue.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Matthias Doepke u. a., „Love, Money and Parenting“ (2019), S. 284

„In PISA 2015, Chinese students score among the lowest in the world in terms of self-reported life satisfaction. Stress and dissatisfaction can sometimes lead to tragic consequences. According to the 2014 edition of the Annual Report of China’s Education, a high share of teenagers who committed suicide were pushed to the brink by the heavy pressure of tests and exams.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Matthias Doepke u. a., „Love, Money and Parenting“ (2019), S. 286

China: „A study that examined a set of teenage suicide cases in 2013 concluded that 93 percent of them are related to pressure and anxiety associated with exam preparation.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Matthias Doepke u. a., „Love, Money and Parenting“ (2019), S. 287

Japans „Escalator Schools“: „The selective admission process for escalator schools puts a great strain on families. […] Children start preparing for this high-stakes exam when they are just three years old. The admission process is very competitive. Around 8 percent of the five-year-old kids in Tokyo attend escalator schools, but many more would like to.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Matthias Doepke u. a., „Love, Money and Parenting“ (2019), S. 289

„Many private schools – particularly the best-known – are highly selective academically in determining their intake, with an ability to pay the fees often being inly the first hurdle to jump.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Francis Green u. a., Engines of Privilege (2019), S. 8.

„23 per cent of the privately educated – as opposed to 32 per cent of those in state schools – said that it was 'true/sometimes true' that they 'didn’t enjoy anything at all'. The image of an especially stressed and unhappy private school child is illusory.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Francis Green u. a., Engines of Privilege (2019), S. 99.

Südkorea: „Secondary students spend more hours studying than in any other OECD country that participated in the 2015 PISA programme: 51 hours, compared to the 44 hour average.“
OECD (Hrsg.), Investing in Youth. Korea (2019), S. 14.

„Nine out of ten Korean parents hope that they or their child will obtain a four-year university degree at a minimum. This preference pushes students to attend even subpar tertiary institutions and puts much pressure on the shoulders of young Koreans.“
OECD (Hrsg.), Investing in Youth. Korea (2019), S. 11.

„Data from the 2015 OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) […] indicate that Korea has the lowest share of young people reporting high life satisfaction among OECD countries and the second-highest share of those reporting low satisfaction.“
OECD (Hrsg.), Investing in Youth. Korea (2019), S. 30.

PISA 2018: „In a majority of school systems, students who expressed a greater fear of failure scored higher in reading, but reported less satisfaction with life, than students expressing less concern about failing, after accounting for the socio-economic profile of students and schools.“
OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2018 Results. What School Life Means for Students’ Lives“ (2019), S. 16

PISA 2018: „Students in many Asian countries and economies expressed the greatest fear of failure, while students in many European countries expressed the least fear.“
OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2018 Results. What School Life Means for Students’ Lives“ (2019), S. 190
In Österreich haben 15-Jährige unter allen OECD-Staaten (hinter den Niederlanden, Deutschland und der Schweiz) am viertwenigsten Angst vor dem Versagen. (Quelle: OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2018 Results. What School Life Means for Students’ Lives“ (2019), Table III.B1.13.2)

PISA 2018: „A large number of English-speaking and East Asian education systems were amongst those whose students were both more likely to report a fear of failure and to be high performers in reading. […] Similar results were observed in relation to mathematics and science performance.“
OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2018 Results. What School Life Means for Students’ Lives“ (2019), S. 193f

PISA 2018: „In 69 out of 71 school systems, students reported less satisfaction with life when they expressed a greater fear of failure, after accounting for students‘ and schools‘ socio-economic profile“
OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2018 Results. What School Life Means for Students’ Lives“ (2019), S. 195

„Reflected by PISA data, the main problems facing China’s educational sector include the overburdening of students at school, emphasis on knowledge acquisition during the teaching process, and the prevalence of extracurricular tuition.“
Wenjie Yang u. a., „Post-PISA Education Reforms in China: Policy Response Beyond the Digital Governance of PISA“. In: „ECNU Review of Education“, 2019, Vol. 2(3), S. 297

„Koreanische Eltern zahlen bis zu 20 Millionen Won pro Jahr, umgerechnet 15 000 Euro, für einen solchen Kindergartenplatz. Drei- bis viermal mehr als für eine Vorschule, in der nur Koreanisch gesprochen wird. Schon seit 1995 gibt es in Korea Kindergarten-Versionen bekannter Englisch-Sprachtests.“

Süddeutsche Zeitung online am 23. Jänner 2018

Südkorea: „Wenn Eltern für eine möglichst optimale Ausbildung ihrer Kinder kämpfen, dann nicht nur, weil Bildung in dieser Nation, die den Buchdruck lange vor Gutenberg erfand, einen sehr hohen Stellenwert hat. Sie tun es auch deshalb, weil die Aufnahmeprüfung für die Universität über ihren künftigen Lebensstandard mitentscheidet. Dafür müssen schon die Kleinsten pauken.“

Süddeutsche Zeitung online am 23. Jänner 2018

„Students in some of the world’s most high-performing jurisdictions on international large-scale assessments such as Shanghai, South Korea, and Hong Kong have reported 'relatively low satisfaction with life'. Internationally, there is growing concern that excessive pressure for high test scores (and to avoid low test scores) can cause ill-being.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Andy Hargreaves u. a., Leading from the Middle (2018), S. 55.

„The selection of the new students is mostly based on matriculation examination, entrance examination or, very often, a combination of these two. The decisions about the selection procedures are under the control of the HE (Anm.: higher education) institutions and are therefore institution and discipline centred. The competition is harsh, as the number of applicants is still multiple in relation to the available study positions.“
Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sonja Kosunen u. a., Preparatory course market and access to higher education in Finland (2018), S. 4.

Südkorea: „Despite the highly competitive education system, only a moderate share of 15-year-olds in Korea report feeling anxious about school tests even when well-prepared (55 %, the same as the OECD average).“
Dr. Olivier Thévenon u. a., „Tackling child poverty in Korea“ (2018), S. 35

„Während im Schnitt der OECD-Länder 66 Prozent der Schüler angaben, Angst vor schlechten Noten zu haben, fürchten sich in Singapur 86 Prozent der Befragten davor. 76 Prozent der Singapurer berichteten, dass sie – selbst wenn sie gut vorbereitet sind – Angst vor Tests und Prüfungen haben. Im OECD-Schnitt sagten das nur 55 Prozent der Kinder.“

Luzerner Zeitung online am 26. August 2017

„Der Gaokao bestimmt, ob und an welcher Universität studiert werden kann, und ist […] zukunftsentscheidend für chinesische Schulabgängerinnen und -abgänger. Bestimmte obere Mittelschulen sind bekannt dafür, optimal auf die Hochschuleingangsprüfung vorzubereiten; allerdings müssen Jugendliche hervorragende Leistungen in der Eingangsprüfung für die obere Mittelschule (chinesisch zhongkao) erbringen, um an diesen exzellenten Schulen aufgenommen werden zu können. Diese beiden Prüfungen – Gaokao und Zhongkao – setzen einen Abwärtsdruck in Gang, da diese Elite-Mittelschulen renommierte untere Mittelschulen voraussetzen, die wiederum nur aus exzellenten Grundschulen rekrutieren. Für viele Eltern beginnt die Planung der Bildungskarriere ihres Kindes somit mit der Wahl des richtigen Kindergartens, der auf ein durch Leistungs- und Prüfungsdruck geprägtes Schulleben vorbereiten soll.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Barbara Schulte, „China“ (2017), S. 10

China: „The students participating in PISA 2015 spent twenty-seven hours a week with studying outside school, probably to a large extent at cram schools.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Barbara Schulte, „Private schools in the People's Republic of China: Development, modalities and contradictions“ (2017), S. 7

Shanghai, Südkorea, Taiwan: „In these Asian countries/economies, spending many hours on homework and in additional instruction seems to be central to the life of top-performing students.“

OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2015. Students’ Well-Being“ (2017), S. 76

„PISA results show that countries where students are highly motivated to achieve also tend to be the countries where many students feel anxious about a test, even if they are well prepared for it.“

OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2015. Students’ Well-Being“ (2017), S. 6

„Im internationalen Vergleich gehört Österreich zu den HBSC-Ländern mit dem geringsten Anteil schulisch belasteter Schüler/innen. In Finnland beispielsweise ist dieser Anteil sehr hoch.“

BM für Gesundheit (Hrsg.), „Österreichischer Kinder- und Gesundheitsbericht“ (2016), S. 73

„South Korea’s suicide rate is one of the highest among developing countries, with suicide being the fourth leading cause of death in the nation and the leading cause of death among teens. Moreover, these suicide rates spike in November, when college entrance exams are held.“

Mercedes Schneider, „School Choice. The End of Public Education?“ (2016), S. 3

Japan: „The high levels of stress are reflected in Japan’s suicide rates, which are among the highest in the world, including among younger generations.“

UNESCO (Hrsg.), „Happy Schools!” (2016), S. 28

Südkorea: „Despite being one of the highest performing countries in PISA, 2012 results also showed that Korean 15-year-olds reported being the unhappiest among all participating countries. This unhappiness among Korean children appears to stem from the education system and, more specifically, from the pressure they face to excel academically.“

UNESCO (Hrsg.), „Happy Schools!” (2016), S. 29

Südkorea: „Although more than 60 per cent of students reported that they hoped to rest at home after school, in reality less than 6 per cent reported doing so. Similarly, while almost half of the children reported that they hoped to play with friends after school, only around 23 per cent did so in reality.“

UNESCO (Hrsg.), „Happy Schools!” (2016), S. 29

„Students in Shanghai report more unhappiness and parental pressure compared with their international peers.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), Executive Summary, S. XXIV

„At the end of lower secondary school (ninth grade), all students must take the Lower Secondary School Graduation Examination in Shanghai. The subjects tested include Chinese, math, English, physics, and chemistry. Physical education, lab operations, and moral ethics of students also factor into students’ final exam scores. The exam serves the dual purposes of selection into high schools and providing information on the overall performance of the basic education system. The total score on the exam determines the type of high school in which students will enroll: admission into highly selective comprehensive schools requires outstanding performance on the exam. […] Because of its primary purpose as a mechanism for selection into high school, the zhong kao has become increasingly high stakes for children in Shanghai. The test ultimately determines in which type of high school ninth-grade graduates can enroll.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), S. 90f

„Students in Shanghai participate in the national college entrance exams (gao kao). Gao kao is a highly competitive and rigorous exam that students across the nation have to take at the end of high school (twelfth grade) to progress to tertiary education in China.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), S. 92

„It will be increasingly important for Shanghai to find a healthier balance between academic excellence and students’ social and emotional well-being.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), S. 143

„Students in Shanghai report a high level of parental pressure and unhappiness when compared with their international peers.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), S. 143

Shanghai: „The high stakes zhong kao at the end of ninth grade and the gao kao at high school graduation have tremendous downstream effects on the lower levels of education and continue to influence teaching and learning for testing purposes only.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), S. 82

Shanghai: „Students undergo intensive preparation for gao kao, dedicating the last year of high school almost exclusively to demanding school drills, practice tests, and after-school tutoring sessions.“

Weltbank (Hrsg.), „How Shanghai Does It“ (2016), S. 94

„Während in der OECD 10,8 Prozent der Kinder über viel Druck aus der Schule klagen, sind es in Deutschland nur 3,9 und in Österreich 4 Prozent.“

Die Presse online am 14. Oktober 2015

„Suicide was the No. 1 cause of death among teens and young people in South Korea in 2013, with the suicide rate rising over the past decade. […] 61.4 percent of young people between the ages 13 and 24 said they suffered from chronic stress in 2014, with pressure from school and work being the main contributors.“

Yonhap News Agency online am 28. April 2015

„Students in most of the highest-performing countries/economies in PISA, such as Hong Kong-China, Japan, Korea, Macao-China, Shanghai-China, Singapore and Chinese Taipei, reported higher levels of anxiety than would have been expected given their performance.“

OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA in Focus 48“ (Februar 2015), S. 1

„Die PISA-Ergebnisse von Shanghai sind mit die besten. Aber wie zufrieden sind denn die Schüler, die oben auf der Rangliste sind? Chinesische Grundschüler haben weltweit mit die höchste Selbstmordrate, chinesische Studenten mit die höchste Burnout-Rate. Sie sind extrem erfolgreich bei PISA, aber nicht zufrieden mit ihrem Leben.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Klaus Zierer in Nida-Rümelin u. a., „Auf dem Weg in eine neue deutsche Bildungskatastrophe“ (2015), S. 107

Indien: „Most of the students (63.5 %) reportedly felt stressed because of academic pressure. […] About two-thirds (66.0 %) of the students reported that their parents pressurize them for better academic performance.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sibnath Deb u. a., „Academic Stress, Parental Pressure, Anxiety and Mental Health among Indian High School Students“. In: „International Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences“ 2015, 5(1), S. 28f

Indien: „Parental pressure for better academic performance was found to be mostly responsible for academic stress, as reported by 66.0 % of the students. The majority of the parents criticized their children by comparing the latter’s performance with that of the best performer in the class.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sibnath Deb u. a., „Academic Stress, Parental Pressure, Anxiety and Mental Health among Indian High School Students“. In: „International Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences“ 2015, 5(1), S. 31

Indien: „Pushed by the parents to ‘be the best’ in art or music lessons and under pressure to score well in school, some students cannot cope with the demands anymore and emotionally collapse when the stress is high. Constantly pushed to perform better in both academic and extra-curricular activities, some children develop deep rooted nervous disorders in early childhood.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sibnath Deb u. a., „Academic Stress, Parental Pressure, Anxiety and Mental Health among Indian High School Students“. In: „International Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences“ 2015, 5(1), S. 31

Indien: „More than half of the parents appoint 3 to 4 private tutors or even more for their wards. On days when there are no academic tuitions, there are art or music lessons. The students hardly get time to watch TV, to play or to interact with neighbours freely or even to get adequate sleep. Naturally such students end up being nervous wrecks when the examination pressure mounts.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Sibnath Deb u. a., „Academic Stress, Parental Pressure, Anxiety and Mental Health among Indian High School Students“. In: „International Journal of Psychology and Behavioral Sciences“ 2015, 5(1), S. 31

„OECD data indicate that there are a number of high-achieving nations where many students are not happy with school. These high achievement/low engagement systems include Korea, where students describe their secondary school experience as ‚Examination Hell‘, and Finland.“

OECD (Hrsg.), „Improving Schools in Scotland“ (2015), S. 121

„Students in North America and 15-year-old students in Great Britain consistently report higher school pressure than students from other regions. In contrast, students from Germanic countries report the lowest levels of school pressure.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Don A. Klinger u. a., „Cross-national trends in perceived school pressure by gender and age from 1994 to 2010“ in „European Journal of Public Health“, Vol. 25, Suppl. 2, 2015, S. 54

„While some pressure may have a positive effect on students’ educational outcomes, too much pressure is not desirable. […] The variation across OECD countries is high, with almost 30 % in Turkey feeling pressured as compared to only 4 % in Germany and Austria.“

OECD (Hrsg.), „How’s Life? 2015“ (2015), S. 168

Peking: „Beijinger Schüler, die sich auf die verschiedenen Prüfungen vorbereiten müssen, verbringen oft über vierzehn Stunden täglich an öffentlichen und privaten schulischen Einrichtungen, sodass für andere Aktivitäten – geschweige denn für solche mit geringem ‚pädagogischen‘ Wert – selten Zeit bleibt.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Barbara Schulte, „Chinas Bildungssystem im Wandel: Elitenbildung, Ungleichheiten, Reformversuche“ (2014), S. 17

„South Korea was ranked at 64th (Anm.: unter 65 Teilnehmerstaaten) when children were asked how happy they were in school. Other indicators such as suicide rates among children and adolescents have also shown that children in Korea are not happy.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Bong Joo Lee u. a., „Children's Worlds National Report South Korea“ (2014), S. 3

„In Austria, France, Hungary and the Netherlands children are at least pressured by school work and are also in the best performing group in liking school a lot. Contrast this with Finland which has one of the highest proportions of young people feeling pressured by school work and one of the lowest proportions of liking school a lot.“

UNICEF (Hrsg.), „Children’s Subjective Well-being in Rich Countries“ (2013), S. 13

„Tutoring is driven by competitive pressures in an increasingly globalised world. Many governments pay strong heed to rankings in cross-national assessments. […] Some governments in turn promote competition through public ranking of achievement by schools; and schools promote competition through public ranking of achievement by pupils.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Mark Bray, „Shadow Education: Comparative Perspectives on the Expansion and Implications of Private Supplementary Tutoring“ in „Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences“ 77 (2013) S. 416

„Governments see education as an instrument for competitiveness in international markets, and this view gets translated into pressure on young people to achieve grades by all means including private tutoring.“

Univ.-Prof. Dr. Mark Bray, „Shadow Education: Comparative Perspectives on the Expansion and Implications of Private Supplementary Tutoring“ in „Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences“ 77 (2013) S. 416

Südkorea: „In the highly competitive Korean society, parental pressure is high and the burden of private tutoring increases every year.“

Kyung Suk Chang, „Language education in Japan and Korea“. In: OECD (Hrsg.), „Languages in a Global World“ (2012), S. 284

PISA 2018: „In a majority of school systems, students who expressed a greater fear of failure scored higher in reading than students expressing less concern about failing, after accounting for the socio-economic profile of students and schools.“
OECD (Hrsg.), „PISA 2018 Results. What School Life Means for Students’ Lives“ (2019), S. 192