ASAP:
Test Taking
Managing Test Anxiety Everyone becomes
anxious before an exam. A certain amount of anxiety is a healthy
thing and improves performance. But when your anxiety interferes
with your performance, it is time to do some soul searching and
to confront the thought process that leads to excess anxiety.
Here are some common pitfalls and solutions:
- “I am worried because my friends are
studying for the exam, but I’m done.” Or, “I
am worried because my friends are done studying for the exam,
but I am not.”
Solution: Everyone studies at their own pace.
Focus on whether you feel you learned the material for the exam.
Do not worry about your friends’ learning style.
- “I am worried because I did not study
enough for this exam.”
Solution: Okay, so you didn’t study enough.
Table the issue and walk into the exam with the purpose of using
everything you know to your advantage. Be doubly certain to
use good test taking techniques and plan to study more effectively
for the next exam.
- “I become anxious as I walk to the exam.”
Or, “I become anxious when I am waiting for the exam to
be passed out.”
Solution: Examine what you are thinking and
doing at these times. If you are anxious about how you will
do in comparison to others, distract yourself with a planned
activity. For instance, talk to friends or listen to music.
- “I am anxious because this exam is so
important to my future.”
Solution: Remember that no one’s future
truly rides on a single exam. Find a way to make peace with
the reality that not all exams will go your way. Think of several
ways to achieve your goal rather than expecting to move from
point A to B at a rapid pace and in a straight line. There are
many benefits to taking a more circuitous route.
- “I am anxious because I’ve frozen
on exams before. Now it is becoming a pattern.”
Solution: Anxiety feeds on itself. Freezing
on an exam once or twice can turn into a chronic issue. Find
techniques to reduce your anxiety. For instance, you could talk
to the professor before the exam and let the professor know
that you are struggling in this way. Ask the professor for permission
to leave the room if you freeze. If you feel you cannot talk
with the professor, then learn a relaxation technique that incorporates
deep breathing. Three minutes spent on deep breathing even in
the middle of an exam will be well worth the time if it helps
you overcome severe test anxiety.
- “I am anxious because I never do well
on exams, even though I study hard.”
Solution: Take a hard look at your exams. Take
out three exams and examine them carefully, point by point.
What habitual mistakes are costing you points? Often students
feel time pressure during exams. These students sometimes do
not read directions slowly and carefully or make small errors
in math and copying information. If this is the issue for you,
give yourself positive, anxiety-reducing messages while you
are taking the exam. Tell yourself, “I have enough time
to read the directions carefully.” Or, “this exam
is going well, I have time to carefully copy over this information.”
Students who are good test takers make these sorts of statements
to themselves.
- “I am anxious because I graduated from
a high school or college that is not as ‘good’ as
those that my peers have come from.”
Solution: First of all, you have been selected
for the U of C because it was determined that you could be competitive
in this environment. Second, you might need a little time to
adjust to the demands of a school like the U of C. So, focus
on improving over time and give yourself a pat on the back for
taking on a challenge like the U of C.
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