Test anxiety and stress have become increasingly prevalent among students, but it doesn’t have to be that way.
A recent study reported that around 16% of students experience high levels of exam stress.
It’s important to help children understand that exam anxiety is normal and offer them support during testing season. However, exam anxiety is not a given, and there are numerous methods you can use to help kids reduce stress and anxiety during exam season.
Understanding Exam Anxiety
Test anxiety is both a cognitive and emotional issue. The cognitive aspect is the thought. It may manifest as a belief such as, ‘I can’t do this’, or, ‘I’m going to fail this.’ More extreme cognitive anxiety will also stray into what is known as test-irrelevant thoughts, such as ‘If I fail, my future is going to change for the worse.’
The emotional part is the feeling, which might be experienced as a sense of distress or tension. These feelings may also become physical and manifest as nausea or jitters. This emotional and physical feeling is all caused by the cognitive aspect of the anxiety, and to remedy it, children must confront the thoughts and beliefs behind the cognitive component of exam anxiety.
The strategies for reducing stress and anxiety during exams are ultimately methods for gaining control over these thoughts, allowing them to think more clearly and use their skills and memory effectively, especially in an exam setting. This will not only be a huge asset to their academic performance, but professional performance later in life, too.
Planning Pre- and Post-Exam routines
A Pre-Exam Routine
Creating a pre-exam routine is crucial as it sets the foundation for the positive thoughts that accompany success. Encourage children to avoid cramming and focus on cultivating a positive mindset, with some light revision of notes, if at all. New material is likely to add a level of test anxiety close to the examination.
Take advantage of the pre-exam time to control some of the variables. For instance, do your children have a water bottle and an appropriate pencil case for materials? Making sure these things are in place will reduce the possibility for exam anxiety. Some studies suggest that dressing formally also puts a student in the right headspace for exams through a phenomenon called enclothed cognition.
A Post-Exam Reflection Routine
A post-exam reflection routine allows students to learn from their exam experience, identify areas for improvement, and celebrate their achievements. Allow children a moment to decompress and relax after the exam before encouraging them to reflect on the performance objectively, focusing on strengths and weaknesses.
Analyse the types of questions that posed challenges and consider strategies for improvement. Celebrate accomplishments, regardless of the outcome, and use the reflection as a guide for future exam preparation.
Implement Positive Self-Talk
The first step of positive self-talk is recognising the negative thoughts. Help children identify the specific negative beliefs they have about themselves and challenge them with different mantras.
For example, a common belief such as “I always make mistakes,” can be reframed with a simple statement, such as ‘I’m always learning from my mistakes’, or, ‘mistakes are a great way for me to learn and improve.’ It’s helpful for children to hear these statements, but it’s even better if they can say it to themselves.
This study showed that positive self-talk improved their academic performance. On the journey to school, or once they’ve come home try saying a positive affirmation together.
Create a Supportive Study Environment
Ensure that your child has a supportive and conducive study environment at home by:
- Helping them set up a dedicated study area that is quiet, well-lit.
- Removing or minimising potential interruptions, such as noise from other family members or electronic devices.
- Providing them with the necessary study materials, such as textbooks, notebooks, and stationery, so they can get creative.
- Encouraging them to keep their study area clean, organized, and personalized with motivational quotes or pictures.
- Experimenting with music, and seeing what works. Studies suggest that it can encourage a sense of calm, but it doesn’t work for everyone and some find it distracting.
- Placing positive affirmations, ‘I am capable of showing my skills’, as discussed above, in eye line so your children are more likely to deploy these affirmations when it counts.
Practice Relaxation Techniques
Mindfulness techniques can be a fantastic way to de-escalate a moment of panic. Introduce your children to deep breathing exercises, where they take slow, deep breaths in through their nose, hold it for a few seconds, and then exhale slowly through their mouth.
You could also use progressive muscle relaxation. It involves systematically tensing and releasing different muscle groups to bring awareness to the body. The more children practise this, the easier it will become to shift their thoughts, even in challenging circumstances.
In the context of an exam, a minute of slow breaths may seem like a lot of time to take out, but it may also provide them with a refreshed state of clarity to confront a complex question.
Research from the Journal of Student Research demonstrated that those who practised meditation before bed or in class had a significant reduction in exam anxiety.
Break Down Study Material
It’s easy for kids to see the scale of study material and experience premature exam anxiety. Turn this feeling into a teaching moment by giving them structure that will reduce stress and anxiety during exam season.
A study schedule or plan that outlines specific goals for each study session is a good technique. Encourage them to set realistic study goals and allocate sufficient time to cover each topic or subject. Breaking down the material into smaller portions helps prevent exam anxiety and allows for more focused and effective studying.
We also recommend using timers that both motivate children to study with intention, but also limit the potential for burnout. It’s a well-known fact that deep focus tends to decay after 20 minutes, but that number can be different for different people. Try out 30 or 45 minutes periods of revision and see if your child prefers it.
Provide Test-Taking Strategies
Exam strategy is as much an asset as the actual knowledge needed to answer them. Collaborate on a plan that plays to their strengths. For example, in a multiple-choice test, it may be best to approach questions they don’t understand by answering them quickly, but starring them so they can return to them if they have time at the end to use a process of elimination.
In English or Arts exam, the language of the question is very important. Many exam candidates don’t properly digest the language of the question and interpret the meaning differently from the examiner’s intention. For instance, the sentence ‘evaluate the claim’ and ‘do you agree?’ are asking for different answers. One wants a fair assessment of the claim in question, and the other wants an argument made in favour or against.
For essay-based exams, a strategy for time-management is key. The obvious marks are the easiest to attain, and they’re often fulfilled by answering the basics of a question. Trying to gain all the marks of one question but leaving little time to answer the rest is a surefire way to get a disappointing mark. Instead, it is best to allocate time according to the weight of the question and encourage children to be strict with themselves about moving on to a new question. Many students know this, but lose sight of the principle in the stress of an exam. Reiterate it with your children to increase the likelihood of them using it.
It is crucial to acknowledge that exam anxiety and nerves can manifest in any subject, but they can all be resolved with attention to positive habits and thoughts. Remember that each child is unique, and it may take time to find the most effective strategies for your child.
My Performance Learning have years of experience with communicating the importance of these strategies to children and giving them an accessible way of incorporating them into their exam routine. Check out what we offer in our live events and see how we reduce stress and anxiety during exam season.
