Do you often think
you are going to fail an exam?
In
our five-part series, Making Sense of Exams, we’ll discuss the
purpose of exams, whether they can be done online, overcoming exam anxiety, and
effective revision techniques.
Do you feel like your mind freezes
during exams? Do you find yourself thinking “I really can’t do this”? Does your
heart race fast or do you find it hard to breathe during exams?
Most people feel anxious when taking
an exam, but research shows that some people are more likely to
suffer from exam anxiety than others. So why is this? And what can you do to
calm your nerves?
What
is exam anxiety?
Exam anxiety is the experience of
feeling an intense moment of fear or panic before and/or during an exam or
assessment.
There are two types of anxiety:
·
Low anxiety: students who experience
low anxiety may feel a little nervous about an upcoming exam but are still able
to focus their attention on their studies or the questions asked during the
assessment. Usually low anxiety students are not struck with intrusive thoughts
or feel debilitated by the exam.
·
High anxiety: students who experience
high anxiety show an immediate anxiety reaction when exposed to the feared test
situation. They attempt to avoid the situation by not showing up to the exam,
or may endure it but with extreme fear. High anxiety can tip some into a sense
of panic: “I just really can’t do this!”
Students with either high or low
anxiety can respond to tests in different ways. But research shows that managing anxiety effectively
can actually help with exam performance.
The challenge is to recognise when
your anxiety has increased past an optimal level so that it starts to impact
your ability to complete the exam - this is a high level of anxiety.
Some physical responses of high
anxiety include a speeding heart, damp hands, shortness or rapid breath, and
feeling queasy.
The physical response is usually
experienced in high levels of anxiety when the “fight or flight” response is
triggered. This is how our bodies respond to a perceived threat – and while
uncomfortable, it is not harmful.
Impact
of high anxiety on performance
Research has shown that people who
experience high levels of anxiety in exams can also see their performance
decline in evaluation situations.
These people tend to perceive exams
as threatening and respond with intense emotional responses, making it
difficult to focus on the task.
Assessment situations also evoke
worry responses that interfere with effective performance on cognitive and
intellectual tasks. This then impacts on the person’s chance of performing
their best on the exam.
Exam anxiety may also interfere with
your ability to show your academic and cognitive capabilities.
So,
how can I cool my exam nerves?
If you identify high anxiety in
yourself, you can learn ways to manage it so that it doesn’t take over your
exam performance.
The skills you find most helpful in
managing your exam anxiety will vary depending on what triggers may be
contributing to your high levels of anxiety.
If students experience high levels of
anxiety before an exam, they should engage in self-care strategies during this
time by keeping an eye on sleeping through the night, nutrition, exercise, and
implementing a few relaxation routines.
Students sometimes forget these small
steps as they can feel consumed by the fear of the exam.
Relaxation
training
Psychologists and well-being teams at
school have a range of techniques to help manage test anxiety – and can also
recommend ways to improve your study skills.
The goals of the techniques are to
help students understand the nature of their anxiety so that they can cope more
effectively with upcoming evaluations.
Mindfulness is
where a student tries to focus on the present moment, while calmly
acknowledging and accepting their anxious feelings, thoughts, and physical
reactions.
Relaxation training can be used
alongside a process of systematic desensitisation – this is where a person
visualises a scene while completely relaxed, and the mental image evokes some
of the feelings of the real scene.
The idea is that if you learn to
relax while visualising yourself taking the exam, you can also learn to be
relaxed while actually taking the exam.
Tips
for coping with exam anxiety
When getting ready for exams try to:
·
Prepare ahead of time by working on
sections of the content each day
·
Use practice exam papers as an
opportunity to manage anxiety
·
Identify your anxiety early by
noticing your physical responses
·
Try replacing unhelpful thoughts with
more encouraging self-talk by challenging your worried and negative thoughts
·
Practice focusing your attention on
the task at hand (mindfulness), rather than getting tangled in your anxiety and
thinking of the “what if?”
·
Learn a few skills for reducing your physical
reactions of anxiety
o Remember good self-care: pay attention to your sleep, nutrition,
exercise, relaxation routines, and reach out for social support