With the ACT this weekend signaling the opening of the Fall testing season, emotions are beginning to escalate for test taking students. One of the most common feelings students feel as the test approaches is a sense of anxiety and stress. While a little test anxiety is normal, being too stressed can negatively affect performance come test day. Take a look at the following tips to help you de-stress before Saturday!
- 1. Don’t panic: If you are working through a test and you feel like the test is harder than the practice tests you have worked through, don’t panic! If indeed the test is harder for you, it is harder for everyone, which will likely be reflected in the scale. Just continue to work through the test knowing that you have prepared as best you can.
- 2. Give yourself a confidence boost: If you are finding yourself struggling with a question or passage and are beginning to feel flustered, skip it! Move ahead until you find a question type you recognize or a passage that clicks. Working through these questions will calm your jitters and help you re-focus. Worse comes to worst, go back to a question you have already solved and re-solve it until you can get your mind back on track!
- 3. Go easy on the caffeine: If you don’t normally drink coffee or energy drinks, don’t pick test day to start! Too much caffeine can lead to anxiety and feeling jittery, which is the last thing you need when trying to focus and remain calm for 4 hours.
Finally, always remember that no single test date is the be all, end all of your standardized testing. You can almost always take the test again, even if that means updating your applications when scores come out. Stay focused and calm and you will be fine. Good luck!
