Have you ever felt scared, anxious, and nervous when facing a test? Things like a fear of failing, getting a bad result, and the anxiety of not being able to do well on the test, do you ever? In fact, the test is something that we can’t avoid in education. Tests are a way to measure our abilities and understanding of the material we have learned.
However, some of us find ourselves experiencing test anxiety. Recent estimates have suggested that between 15% and 22% of students exhibit high levels of test anxiety (Putwain and Daly, 2014; Thomas et al., 2017).
Test anxiety is a psychological condition in which students experience extreme distress and anxiety in test situations. Test anxiety is a feeling that can be experiences by someone before or during an exam. One area in which test anxiety can be affected is academic performance.
Test anxiety can present both an opportunity and a threat to academic success, mainly in terms of academic performance. When test anxiety is effectively handled, it might be a chance to enhance academic performance. On the other side, if test anxiety is not managed well, it can worsen academic performance.
The relationship between test anxiety and academics is not always about worsen performance. Test anxiety can push us to study harder as an opportunity. Sometimes, we need a bit of anxiety that will help us to be more motivated and to work harder to learn.
When we experience test anxiety, we will be motivated to learn the material better to achieve satisfactory results. In this way, test anxiety can improve our academic performance. On the downside, if test anxiety is not handled well, it can become a threat that can reduce academic performance.
A little bit of anxiety indeed is needed, but if test anxiety becomes too strong and dominant, it won’t help us in the test. Strong test anxiety endangers attention span because anxious feelings can occupy parts of the working memory needed in problem-solving.
However, it will harm our test. It will detract from our tests, both during the test process and on the results later. Overly much and dominant test anxiety can cause physical and psychological disorders. These disorders can interfere with our concentration and focus when studying and facing exams. As a result, we may experience a decline in academic performance.
While anxiety in test conditions can help individuals perform better, it is also disruptive and contributes to lower performance. As a result, test anxiety is determined by how we approach it.
If we don’t handle it properly, it will lead to terrible consequences. It will be advantageous if we organize it carefully. Decide for yourself, then. Which course of action will you select if test anxiety strikes?.
Penulis: Tsabita Amalina Firdausa
Mahasiswa Psikologi Universitas Pendidikan Indonesia
Editor: Ika Ayuni Lestari
Bahasa: Rahmat Al Kafi
Ikuti berita terbaru di Google News
References
Zheng, Y., & Cheng, L. (2018). How does anxiety influence language performance? From the perspectives of foreign language classroom anxiety and cognitive test anxiety. Language Testing in Asia, 8(1), 1-19.
Gerwing, T. G., Rash, J. A., Allen Gerwing, A. M., Bramble, B., & Landine, J. (2015). Perceptions and Incidence of Test Anxiety. The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 6(3).
Spielberger, C. D., Anton, W. D., & Bedell, J. (2015). The nature and treatment of test anxiety. Emotions and anxiety: New concepts, methods, and applications, 10(2), 317-344.
Von der Embse, N., Jester, D., Roy, D., & Post, J. (2018). Test anxiety effects, predictors, and correlates: A 30-year meta-analytic review. Journal of affective disorders, 227, 483-493.
Alemu, B. M., & Feyssa, T. (2020). The Relationship between Test Anxiety and Academic Achievement of Grade Ten Students of Shirka Woreda, Oromia Regional State, Ethiopia. African Educational Research Journal, 8(3), 540-550.
