ABSTRACT
This session is an introduction to the area of stress and aims to get students thinking about the sources and symptoms of stress in their own lives. As with the other sessions it is centred around the delivery of information together with discussion. Students are first asked to list the sources of stress in their own lives, and then to assess the effect which they feel this stress has on them. The teacher talks are presented only after the discussion so as not to bias it and also because students tend to learn more when they generate the answers themselves, answers which are meaningful and real to them. As this is the first session, some points need to be made before the session can begin. You will see that the structure of the session is timed very tightly. As students are encouraged in an exam to move on after their allotted time for each question/ essay, so teachers must be disciplined about not going over time on any one aspect of the session as it will mean that students miss out on other aspects of the course. The atmosphere during the sessions should be one of relaxation, fun and exploration. Students should be encouraged to relax and be themselves and to see this class period as different from others.
