Further Classroom Implications- Test Anxiety
Test anxiety is a stream of performance anxiety. It is caused by the release of adrenaline into the blood stream which prepares the affected for the “fight or flight” reaction (D’Arcy Lyness 2010). The increase of adrenaline in the body produces physical symptoms, such as sweating, heavy breathing, a racing heartbeat and may even cause fainting or vomiting (2010). Test anxiety often affects students who aspire to be perfectionists and can often become a cyclical pattern. Test anxiety can become a real problem for students who get so anxious that they cannot move past their behaviors to focus on their test questions (2010). As discussed prior, it is important to be aware of student difficulties and aide in diagnosis as soon as possible.
Students can grapple with test anxiety in more than one way. There are the phsycial symptoms as mentioned above, emotional symptoms like excessive feelings of fear, helplessness, depression, anger, and crying, as well as behavioural symptoms like fidgeting, pacing, and avoidance. The final implications are cognitive. Cognitive symptoms include racing thoughts, 'going- blank', difficulty concentrating, negative self-talk, feelings of dread, comparing onesself to others, and difficulty organizing thoughts (anxietybc).