You listened very carefully while the lecture was being taught in class, took detailed notes, read each
chapter, and even attended extra study classes after class, so you must do very well on this
big exam, right? But when you start the exam, you may feel so nervous that you leave the answers to even the easiest questions blank. If this
experience sounds familiar, you may be experiencing test anxiety.
Many people experience stress and anxiety before an exam. In fact, a little stress can help you ace
the exam. However, when this stress reaches an extreme level,
it can seriously affect your performance and the exam result may be undesirable.
WHAT IS EXAM ANXIETY?
Exam anxiety is a condition in which people experience excessive stress and worry before and during the exam. What they experience is a psychological situation. While many people experience stress and anxiety to some degree
before and during exams, a person experiencing test anxiety can negatively impact learning and
harm exam results.
Test anxiety is a type of performance anxiety. In situations where the pressure is intense and a good performance
is important, people may be so anxious that they cannot actually
give their best.
Other examples of performance anxiety:
- A high school basketball player is a great performer. It can be very stressful before a match. During the game
he may become so overwhelmed by this stress that he may even miss easy shots.
- A violin student may become extremely anxious before a recital. He may perform very badly at a recital due to his
anxiety.
- A businessman may forget the information he will present to his colleagues and manager
during a presentation at work.
People are actually very poor in such situations. While they have the skills and knowledge to do well, their excessive anxiety
can impair their performance.
The severity of test anxiety can vary significantly from one person to another. Some people
have "butterflies" in their stomachs. While others may find it difficult to concentrate
on the exam.
A little tension can be really helpful, it can help you feel mentally alert. It ensures that you are knowledgeable and ready to solve questions in an exam. The Yerkes-Dodson law suggests that there is a connection between arousal levels
and performance. Essentially, increased arousal levels can help you do better on
exams, but only up to a certain point.
When this stress level crosses the line, the excessive anxiety you may experience can actually reflect badly on exam
performance.
Excessive anxiety can make it difficult to concentrate and you may have difficulty remembering things you are studying. You may suddenly feel like all the information you spent so much time review
is inaccessible in your mind. You leave blank the answers
to the questions you know the answers to. The inability to control and remember information
contributes to greater anxiety and stress, making it much more difficult to focus your attention on the exam.
SYMPTOMS OF TEST ANXIETY
Symptoms of test anxiety can vary significantly and range from mild to It can range from
to severe. Some students experience only mild symptoms of test anxiety and still
can do quite well on exams. Other students act gloomy during exams due to their anxiety
or may have panic attacks before or during exams.
Symptoms of exam anxiety can be physical, behavioral, cognitive and emotional.
Physical symptoms of exam anxiety include sweating, shaking, rapid heartbeat, dry mouth, fainting and nausea may occur. Milder cases of test anxiety may cause "butterflies" in the stomach.
While more serious cases may actually cause students to become physically ill,
Cognitive and behavioral symptoms may include fearful or outright avoidance
of testing situations. In some cases, test anxiety can be so severe that students may say they want to drop out of school to avoid the source of their
fear. They may try to self-medicate their concerns, such as substance abuse and
alcohol. Many
people with test anxiety fail to take the test even though they have studied extensively and are confident they know the answers
to the questions. He stated that they left the questions blank. Negative self-talk and trouble concentrating on the test
are common cognitive symptoms of test anxiety.
Emotional symptoms of test anxiety may include depression, low self-perception, anger, helplessness, and
feelings of hopelessness.
Anyway. However, there are steps students can take to relieve these unpleasant and often harmful symptoms. By learning more
about the possible causes of test anxiety, students can begin to look for useful solutions.
CAUSES OF TEST ANXIETY
Although test anxiety can be very stressful for students who experience it, many people believe that it is actually
You don't realize it's quite common. Nervousness and anxiety are normal
reactions to stress. However, for some people, this fear can be so intense that it actually prevents them from performing
well.
So what causes test anxiety? For many students, this may be a combination
of several things. Poor study habits, previous poor test performance, and an underlying
anxiety problem can all contribute to test anxiety.
Several possible causes of test anxiety include:
● Poor previous test performance. performance. If you failed exams before because you didn't study well
enough or because you were too anxious,
and you couldn't remember the answers, this may be causing you to feel anxious that the same will happen in your next exams.
● Unprepared. to be. If you haven't done well enough, this can
contribute to your feelings of anxiety.
● Fear of failure. If you attribute your sense of self-worth to your test scores,
the pressure you put on yourself can cause serious test anxiety.
Biological Causes
Before and during the anxiety-provoking situation, the body releases a hormone called adrenaline. This
helps prepare the body to deal with what is about to happen and is often accompanied by
"fight or flight" is called the response. Essentially, this response prepares you to either deal with the stress
or escape the situation completely. In many cases, that adrenaline rush is actually a good thing.
It helps you deal with stress effectively, keeping you alert and prepared.
However, for some people, the anxiety symptoms they feel can be so extreme that they make it difficult or even impossible to focus on the exam. . Symptoms such as nausea, sweating and heart palpitations may be observed. It can make people feel even more nervous, especially when they
focus on these test anxiety symptoms.
Mental Causes
In addition to the underlying biological causes of anxiety, there are many
mental factors that may play a role in this condition. Student expectations are an important mental factor. For example, if a student
believes they will perform poorly on a test, they are more likely to worry
before and during the test.
Test anxiety can also become a vicious cycle. After experiencing anxiety during an exam,
students may become so afraid of experiencing it again that they become even more
anxious during the next exam. After enduring test anxiety over and over again, students may begin to feel that they have no power to
change the situation.
DEALING WITH TEST ANXIETY
What exactly can you do to prevent or minimize test anxiety? Here are some strategies to
help you:
● Make sure you are studying enough. This means studying until you
feel very comfortable with the subject. Don't wait until the night before the exam. If you are not sure
how to study, ask your teacher or parent for
help. Preparing will increase your confidence, which will reduce your test anxiety.
● Eliminate negative thoughts. "I'm not good enough", "I haven't worked
enough" or "I can't do this" If you start experiencing anxious or pessimistic thoughts
, push these thoughts away and replace them with positive ones. "I can
do this," "I have a good command of the subject" and "I worked hard".
● Get enough sleep. A good night's sleep will help your concentration and memory.
● Breathe deeply. If you start to feel anxious, n take a deep breath and
exhale slowly through your mouth. Take each question or problem one at a time, taking a deep breath between each
. Making sure you get plenty of oxygen
into your lungs can help you focus and feel
calm.
● Avoid a perfectionist attitude. Don't expect it to be perfect. We all make mistakes
and that's okay. Knowing that you did your best and worked hard,
not perfection, is all that truly matters.
Therapy Can Help
If you need additional support, make an appointment with a psychologist. Depending on the severity of your
symptoms, your psychologist may recommend cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), anxiety medications, or a
combination of both. CBT focuses on helping people change both behaviors and underlying thoughts that contribute to unwanted
behaviors or emotions.
Test anxiety can be unpleasant and stressful, but it is also a treatable condition.
> If you believe that test anxiety is affecting your ability to perform well, you can try using some self
help strategies designed to help you manage and reduce your anxiety level. Despite everything, if you have difficulty managing your anxiety, you can get help from a psychologist.
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