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Testing with success series

Overcoming test anxiety

Most students experience some level of anxiety during an exam
However, when anxiety affects exam performance it has become a problem.

General preparation/building confidence:
Review your personal situation and skills
Academic counselors can help you in these areas, or refer to our Guides on the topic:

• Developing good study habits and strategies (a link to our directory)
• Managing time
  (dealing with procrastination, distractions, laziness)
• Organizing material to be studied and learned
  Take a step by step approach to build a strategy and not get overwhelmed
• Outside pressures
  success/failure consequences (grades, graduation), peer pressure, competitiveness, etc.
• Reviewing your past performance on tests
  to improve and learn from experience

Test preparation to reduce anxiety:

• Approach the exam with confidence:
  Use whatever strategies you can to personalize success: visualization, logic, talking to your self, practice, team work, journaling, etc.
  View the exam as an opportunity to show how much you've studied and to receive a reward for the studying you've done
• Be prepared!
  Learn your material thoroughly and organize what materials you will need for the test. Use a checklist
• Choose a comfortable location for taking the test
  with good lighting and minimal distractions
• Allow yourself plenty of time,
  especially to do things you need to do before the test and still get there a little early
• Avoid thinking you need to cram just before
• Strive for a relaxed state of concentration
  Avoid speaking with any fellow students who have not prepared, who express negativity, who will distract your preparation
  
• A program of exercise
  is said to sharpen the mind
• Get a good night's sleep
  the night before the exam
• Don't go to the exam with an empty stomach
  Fresh fruits and vegetables are often recommended to reduce stress.
  Stressful foods can include processed foods, artificial sweeteners, carbonated soft drinks, chocolate, eggs, fried foods, junk foods, pork, red meat, sugar, white flour products, chips and similar snack foods, foods containing preservatives or heavy spices
• Take a small snack, or some other nourishment
  to help take your mind off of your anxiety.
  Avoid high sugar content (candy) which may aggravate your condition

During the test:

• Read the directions carefully
• Budget your test taking time
• Change positions to help you relax
  
• If you go blank, skip the question and go on
• If you're taking an essay test
  and you go blank on the whole test, pick a question and start writing. It may trigger the answer in your mind
  
• Don't panic
  when students start handing in their papers. There's no reward for finishing first

Use relaxation techniques
If you find yourself tensing and getting anxious during the test:

Relax; you are in control.
Take slow, deep breaths

Don't think about the fear
Pause: think about the next step and keep on task, step by step

Use positive reinforcement for yourself:
Acknowledge that you have done, and are doing, your best

Expect some anxiety
It's a reminder that you want to do your best and can provide energy
Just keep it manageable

Realize that anxiety can be a "habit"
and that it takes practice to use it as a tool to succeed

After the test, review how you did

• List what worked, and hold onto these strategies
  It does not matter how small the items are: they are building blocks to success
• List what did not work for improvement
• Celebrate that you are on the road to overcoming this obstacle

Check out local centers and resources in your school for assistance!

If you are aware that you have a problem with test anxiety,
be sure your teacher or instructor knows before any testing begins
(and not the hour before!).
There may be other options to evaluate your knowledge or performance within the subject matter.

See also:

Test taking strategies:

Mastering one test | General test preparation | Anticipating test content |
Review tools for tests | Overcoming test anxiety | Organizing for test taking | Cramming | Emergency test preparation