As the first day of school approaches, parents and children gather their backpacks as educators finalize lesson plans and ready their classrooms. The new school year offers a fresh start for students as well as an opportunity for academic success. However, up to 40% of students suffer from test anxiety, which contributes to lower grade point averages and decreased scores in standardized tests. Test anxiety is a multi-dimensional experience associated with cognitive (excessive worry about performance the night before or during the test; worry just after taking the test), physiological (heart racing, difficulty sleeping before the test), and behavioral components (avoidance of study). The cognitive dimension of test anxiety can be exceptionally difficult for students to cope with and reconcile. For example, despite preparing, students may believe that, while taking the test, they aren’t ready for it, and that the content is too challenging for them. Experiencing these thoughts during tests can result in diminished concentration on test material, making it more difficult for students to retrieve the information that they have studied and do well on the test.
Students can experience text anxiety for a number of reasons. Some children have difficulty learning or struggle with paying attention, which intensifies anxiety about tests. Children who seem more concerned about making mistakes, such as playing poorly in sports, or performing in front of others, may also be at risk for test anxiety.
Share This Post!
Heal trauma with rhythm
Anyone who’s soothed a fussing baby knows that gentle rocking often does the trick. The vestibular (balance-related) stimulation that rocking creates is certainly a part of that. Equally important is the rhythm [...]
Will My Child Bounce Back From the Coronavirus Crisis?
With many months of the coronavirus crisis behind us and still more uncertainty and stress ahead, life is tough right now for kids of all ages. Many parents — seeing their children [...]
Trauma in Children During the COVID-19 Pandemic
Across the nation, everyone is being exposed to and reacting to the confusing, stressful, and sometimes frightening situation of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in different ways. But are we, and our [...]
How to Keep Children’s Stress From Turning Into Trauma
By Stacey Steinberg Children may be processing the disruptions in their lives right now in ways the adults around them do not expect: acting out, regressing, retreating or even seeming surprisingly content. [...]
Addressing Race and Trauma in the Classroom: A Resource for Educators
By the National Child Traumatic Stress Network This resource is intended to help educators understand how they might address the interplay of race and trauma and its effects on students in the classroom. [...]
The startling toll on children who witness domestic violence is just now being understood
By Jayne O'Donnel and Mabinty Quarshie USA TODAY SAVANNAH, Ga. – Latrelle Huff says her twins were conceived by rape. Now she blames domestic violence for her children's health problems. The Georgia woman [...]