Re: PAST HSC'ERS: What advice would give to parents who kids are starting Prelim & HS
For me, I had parents on both ends of the spectrum - one insanely supportive and the other was a complete wad about everything I did (at one point, the latter and I had a massive argument about my HSC subjects and why I wasn't doing 3 sciences, complete baloney)
My mum (the supportive one) always encouraged me to do my best, which I found really good, but sometimes really annoying/disheartening at the same time because at some points of my senior years, I was really disappointed with some of my marks and stuff, and expected a more stern response than "don't stress, you're fine" type of thing. (Tbf, I have extremely high expectations of myself, as pointed out by almost everyone around me, so my mum was probably right in saying the things she does say to me) I think she had (and still has, hopefully) confidence in my ability to "reach for the stars" and all that inspirational bs, which relieved the concern of me stuffing up for her, as she's never been like, "oh you must get 100% in each test" or "be a doctor or you're shame", etc., which has made HS a lot easier because I don't have those parental expectations, much like my peers, many of whom are coerced into doing med and stuff by disillusioned parents, that don't recognise their child's true capacities (i.e. I have friends passionate about the arts, but are forced into med).
I was also encouraged a lot to do sport and stuff by my mum, which was great because I have that break amongst study. So there's the balanced lifestyle bit
I think with that being said, parents should recognise their child's true capabilities and likes, etc, rather than force or pressure them into things they don't like. (That's what my dad did, and wanted me to change my subjects to doing 3 sciences instead of stuff I was passionate about, and made derogatory comments about almost all my subjects and everything I did. I was also compared a lot to child prodigies, whose achievements were beyond my field of expertise, i.e. being compared to a BMus prodigy, despite having no genuine interest in pursuing my instruments to a higher level. Was not appreciated at all and hated it, made some days a living nightmare.)
So to summarise my ramble and rant, I think parents really need to be there for their child and offer advice to them that is really sound, without being too "nice". I think they also need to know when to back off and not to push it, otherwise their child can harbour resentment (lol me) and that can strain future relations and stuff post HSC, which can be pretty bad
They should also recognise their child's capabilities and not coerce them into doing things they don't want to do.
Hope that helped