How to deal with Test Anxiety?

Author: Aditya J

Editor: Sameet T

The idea of having test anxiety

I'm sure we're all familiar with the feeling of test anxiety. It's that feeling in your stomach, racing heartbeat, rapid breathing, etc. Text anxiety is just another form of performance anxiety, where you feel pressured to do good when the stakes are high. For students, this occurs right before an important exam comes up. Teens often feel extreme stress in these situations.

How it can hurt you and why should you fix it?

Test anxiety will have adverse effects on students as they are taking tests. For example, while taking the test, students will have impaired concentration and less recall of previously learned information during tests. Even if you had studied all the test material, you will tend to ‘freeze” during the test and forget all that you have learned. Fixing your test anxiety is vital to ensuring that your studying results are good grades.

Ways to help deal with test anxiety?

Personally, I cope with test anxiety by thinking about how insignificant a test will be in the long run. For example, I believe that “even if I get an F on this quiz, my average will only drop 2 points”. That lessens the burden on me. Of course, this does not really apply to any important exams such as midterms and final exams. For these exams, there are other methods to combat test anxiety. For example, if you get plenty of sleep, such as 8-9 hours, the day before a test can help. Also, learning how to study efficiently, eating healthy before the day of the test, and getting exercise have been shown to aid in students dealing with test anxiety.

Conclusion

Overall, a little test anxiety can be beneficial to your studying habits. A little pressure to do good can motivate you to perform better. However, it is of utmost importance to keep your test anxiety in check so that it doesn't overwhelm you. By utilizing the methods mentioned, above, you can minimize your test anxiety to maximize your test scores.