Test Anxiety

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Test Anxiety

• Laura Goodfield
• EDU190

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What is Test Anxiety?

• The University of Alberta defines test anxiety
  as that feeling of ineffective coping of
  inevitable stress before an exam, or the
  emotional reaction of fear that interferes with
  thinking clearly during an exam.

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What does Test Anxiety Cause?

• Test Anxiety usually gives results of the
  inability to clearly focus on material when
  studying and reviewing notes with ultimately
  results in lower test scores and inadequate
  performance in a class.

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What can you do about it?

• You can find suggestions all over, but these
  are really customized to you. Nevertheless, give
  a couple or all of these a try and you might find
  that they work for you.

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What can you do about it?

• Practice diaphragmatic breathing regularly, more
  often when you feel anxious.
• Make a list. Sometimes visualizing and
  prioritizing is all you need to get started.
• Use momentum. Start with easy tasks and use the
  good energy you feel from finishing those
  assignments to push you through and enable you to
  achieve more.
• Get moving! You might find that focusing all
  that nervous energy on something physically
  strenuous could channeling your nervousness away
  from the negative and towards the positive.
• Take responsibility for yourself and what you
  need. You know whats important and how much you
  have to do to succeed!
• Reward yourself for jobs well done.

• Take an hour to worry, then let it go.
• Learn to let go of the past. Remembering how
  terrible a past test may have gone with not help
  you to focus on whats ahead of you.
• Avoid all or nothing thinking. You dont need to
  read everything, do everything, and accomplish
  everything. These unrealistic goals wont make
  you feel better, only worse. Work with what you
  have.
• If your anxiety is overwhelming or debilitating,
  seekprofessional help.
• Dont forget to eat and sleep! We know it can be
  hard when theres so much to do, but it is
  important! Besides, different intakes of sugar
  and caffeine in particular can really mess with
  you if your body is accustomed to certain levels.

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• Remember, with a positive attitude and hard
  work, you can get through anything!

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Resources

• http//www.uofaweb.ualberta.ca/academicsupport/nav
  03.cfm?nav0352237nav0250367nav0159481
• Following these tips from the University of
  Alberta might help you to reduce your test
  anxiety too. Check em out as they have 8 easy
  to understand steps that give real results.
• http//www.iue.edu/administration/advising/tipsfor
  academicsuccess.shtml
• This website from Indiana University East
  suggests tips on academic success in everything,
  not just testing anxiety from talking to
  professors and figuring out schedules to study
  and note taking skills and more.
• http//www.abdsurvivalguide.com/News/121604.htm
• This website from THE ALL-BUT-DISSERTATION
  SURVIVAL GUIDE gives you 10 major tips to help
  you manage anxiety while preparing a
  dissertation. Not preparing a dissertation? You
  could still benefit from its main ideas!
• http//www.academictips.org/acad/stressreductionti
  ps.html
• Academictips.org uses real life stories to
  suggest helpful tips in accomplishing goals.
• http//gwired.gwu.edu/counsel/asc/index.gw/Site_ID
  /46/Page_ID/14567/
• The Academic Success Center gives 10 major tips
  on how you can fight specifically test anxiety.