Generally, we all experience some level of nervousness or tension before tests or other important events in our lives. A little nervousness can actually help motivate us; however, too much of it can become a problem — especially if it interferes with our ability to prepare for and perform on tests.
Pick one or two of the many tips below that sound good to you. Prepare them, practice them and use them on your next test. Add more as needed.
Prepare.
Do not over-study.
Avoid caffeine.
Slow down .
Plan not to know.
Easiest first.
Read carefully.
Patience.
Avoid distractions.
The absolutely most important, first-line-of-defense strategy for managing test anxiety is: Know the Material! Otherwise your anxiety is simply realistic rather than an obstacle to performance. Back to Tips
Prepare adequately and thoroughly, but do not over-study. Staying up all night before the test is almost sure to result in decreased performance. Your brain will be tired and won't work as well. Over-studying can also occur if you put the rest of your life on hold while you study intensely for days on end to get ready for the test, barely taking time out for meals. You will do much better to organize your study time into blocks, and allow plenty of time for other activities. Back to Tips
If taking an exam normally raises your anxiety level (which it does for most of us), the addition of caffeine may push you beyond the threshold of "useful anxiety" (a moderate amount is beneficial and improves performance) into the arena of "debilitating anxiety." Back to Tips
There is a very useful breathing technique which can be used when you find that you are thinking and working too fast. It takes about 30 seconds. The times when it is most needed, however, are likely to be the times when you least feel you can afford to take 30 seconds. You will be far ahead of the game, however, if you can slow yourself down to a clear-headed, productive pace rather than continuing to work in a rushed, headlong manner which produces errors. Back to Tips
Sit back in your chair and inhale as much air as you can. Hold your breath while you count to 10 at a one-count-per-second rate. Exhale while you count to 10 at the same rate. Then repeat - inhale, hold for a count of 10 and exhale for a count of 10. Return to the test. Back to Tips
This technique provides two important benefits. First, it interrupts the frantic rush and allows you a few moments to slow down and regroup. Second, it oxygenates your brain enabling you to begin thinking more clearly again. We all have a tendency when anxious either to forget to breathe or to breathe rapidly but shallowly. If you hold your breath, your brain is not getting the oxygen it needs to do its work. If you breathe rapidly but shallowly, you double the problem both by decreasing the volume of oxygen taken in and also by exhaling large amounts of carbon dioxide which can eventually result in panicky feelings as your body begins to sense the oxygen/carbon dioxide balance becoming disturbed. The last thing you need during a test is to compound your test anxiety with these panicky feelings.
In general, remember to breathe normally during your tests and, if you find yourself working too rapidly, slow yourself back down by using the breathing technique described above. Back to Tips
Create a mind-set in which you expect not to know some of the answers on the test. This is much more realistic than going in to the test telling yourself "I studied hard for this test and there's no reason for me to miss anything." Students who expect to know every answer are much more likely to become upset, anxious and to begin condemning themselves when they encounter even one question that throws them, especially if it happens early in the test. Back to Tips
Do the questions and problems you are able to do and skip the others. Do not spend a lot of time plugging away at one that is difficult. If you have time left at the end, come back to the questions that were difficult. But make sure you have first utilized the knowledge and skills that you do have. Back to Tips
When you read a question, read it slowly and carefully enough to be sure that you are answering the question that is being asked, rather than one you erroneously thought was being asked. The danger of misreading a question is greatest at those times when you are rushing. If you sense yourself beginning to work too fast, slow back down. Use the breathing technique to help. Back to Tips
When you know you know the right answer but it just won't come to mind, move on rather than trying to force it. Rely on the likelihood that the answer will be triggered by something farther on in the test. In fact, you may find the answer itself father on in the test. It is not uncommon for a professor to unwittingly include the answer to a previous question in a later question.
If you have read the question carefully and you are still not sure what is being asked, ask the instructor. There is an art to writing test questions and not everyone has mastered it. Back to Tips
A distraction is anything that takes your mind away from a fully absorbed focus on the test. In general, anything, repeat anything, you can do that helps you focus completely on one single test question at a time, that eliminates all else from your mind and your awareness except for that single question, is to the good!
The Clock: Constantly checking the time (some students report they check it every few seconds during a test!) is a constant interruption of your thought processes and is certain to be detrimental to your results. Set a reasonable pace for yourself, allow for longer questions that may need more time, and check the clock perhaps every 10 to 15 minutes just to make sure you are in the ballpark.
If you find that you are behind, STAY CALM, and increase your pace moderately. You do not need to complete all of the items on most tests in order to pass successfully. You will be far better off to respond intelligently and thoughtfully to questions than to rush pell mell with the first thoughts that flash semi-coherently through your brain. If you get too speeded up, stop for 30 seconds and use the breathing technique. Back to Tips
Looking Ahead At The Test Items: How to handle the problem of whether to look ahead in the test or not depends entirely on what works best for you. The problem arises the moment that the test is placed on your desk. You have the option of looking ahead to see what is in it, or to simply begin with item #1 without looking ahead. Some people get very anxious as a result of looking ahead. They see how many items there are, they may see some items that raise doubts about their ability to answer, and they may feel overwhelmed by the task as a result of seeing the whole thing all at once.Other students get anxious if they don't look ahead. They worry about what is coming and can't settle down and concentrate until they have surveyed the task.
Do whatever works best for you. In general, most students seem to do well if they look ahead only to see the general structure of the test. It can be important to know, for example, whether a big question worth lots of points is at the end of the test. Knowing it is there can help you allocate your time. It is not useful to look ahead at specific questions if your mind then becomes occupied with searching for the answers to them when you need to be concentrating elsewhere. Back to Tips
Peripheral Vision: Ignore what the people beside you are doing! How fast they are going has no bearing on how well you will do. The important thing is to work at your steady, productive pace and ignore what those around you are doing. The "peripheral vision" effect is especially troublesome when you feel a sense of competition with those next to you. Your best bet is to ignore what your peripheral vision sees. If you can find a seat which removes other students from your peripheral vision, do it. And remember also to ignore your "peripheral hearing" when you hear pages being turned behind you, causing you to wonder if those people are going a lot faster than you. Back to Tips
Ignore When Other Students Finish: This can be an even bigger distraction than those supplied by your peripheral vision. This distraction occurs when you are working diligently on your test and you become aware that one or more other students have finished, are putting their papers away, are putting on their coats, and are making their way out of the aisles to hand in their tests and leave. Your mind can now virtually erupt with worries that you are way behind, you don't know the material, and you are failing for sure.
Relax. Continue to work at your steady, productive pace. Researchers have investigated the results of those students who finish quickly and found that they are likely either to be ace-ing the test, or failing it. How quickly they leave is irrelevant to how well you will do personally. Ignore them.
Take all the time you are allowed. If you finish ahead of time, use the extra to check your answers, review your grammar and spelling, or look for "silly mistakes" like forgetting to change a plus sign to a minus sign. Those silly mistakes usually result from working too fast.
You may find that you can minimize the distraction of those who finish early by choosing your seat carefully. Some students say that a seat in the front row helps them ignore those who are leaving. Others say that the noise behind them is too distracting, and find that they do best by sitting in the back. If a row of seats can be exited at both ends, a seat in the middle can minimize the number of times that a student who is leaving has to push past your knees. Back to Tips
Copyright © 2002 - 2006 Western Washington University: page updated 05.22.2008