When test anxiety affects your performance, it s time to work on curing it. Most experts believe that failure in a past testing situation can lead to anxiety. Another factor is the importance of a course. If you are taking a test in a course in your major, the stakes can be very high, so there s a lot of pressure to do well. Some students suffer test anxiety for one kind of test but not for others.
Oral tests can cause anxiety for many students, while others find essay tests stressful.
Students have the opportunity to cure test anxiety before, during, and after a test, as described below. Before the test, it is extremely important to prepare well for the test. This means going to class, taking good notes, reading the text and all handouts, finding out what kind of test will be given, and studying by making practice exams. It s important to know what kind of test will be given so you can adapt your studying to that particular kind of test. Also before the test, learn some relaxation techniques such as four-square breathing, a technique of breathing in on count one, holding for count two, breathing out on count three, and holding for count four.