Test Anxiety Tips

You've studied, completed all of your homework, and you think you are ready to ace the test. The instructor hands out the exam, you look at the first question and then you go blank. Suddenly you can't recall any of the information that you knew so well last night. What happened? You just became a victim of test anxiety.

Test anxiety is actually a type of performance anxiety - a feeling someone might have in a situation where performance really counts or when the pressure's on to do well. When you're under stress, your body releases the hormone adrenaline, which prepares it for danger (you may hear this referred to as the "fight or flight" reaction). That's what causes the physical symptoms, such as sweating, a pounding heart, and rapid breathing.

Most people get a little nervous before a test, but for some people, test anxiety interferes with their concentration or performance. I found a great resource for you that can help your students reduce test anxiety.

TestAnxietyTips.com provides 39 articles that will help reduce the effects of test anxiety. There is a lot on the web about test anxiety, but I really like the fact that this site addresses sufficient rest, brain foods to increase alertness, and positive thinking. Every individual student must formulate their own strategies for stress-free test taking and this site has a wealth of knowledge about the different types of test anxiety, as well as strategies for dealing with it. Check out TestAnxietyTips.com.

Also, please check out some of our previous posts that can help your test performance:
Test Anxiety
Study Tips and Skills