Book (2022)/Test Anxiety

A test result can also be influenced by the examinee's emotions. The most talked about in this context is anxiety (test anxiety, exam stress).

Most people experience some level of stress or anxiety before an exam. It can even motivate some individuals to perform better. However, if the level of stress is such that it negatively affects the test-taker's performance during the exam, we’re dealing with test anxiety.

Fig. No. 11.1.1 Yerkes-Dodson law, describing the relationship between stimulation and performance. It seems, meanwhile, that for the performance of more complex activities, a lower level of stimulation is optimal than for simpler activities.

Examining the relationship between performance and stress in general, it has been shown that different items require different levels of stimulation for optimal performance. For example, difficult or intellectually demanding items require lower levels of stimulation (to facilitate concentration), while items requiring endurance are better performed with higher levels of stimulation (increased motivation). The Yerkes-Dodson law, which describes the relationship between stimulation (motivation, stress) and performance, suggests that an individual's performance increases only up to a certain degree of excitation. Further increasing the level of motivation and excitement begins to reduce performance, while the threshold level of useful excitation is individual. The mechanism is probably related to the action of stress hormones. Situations that are new, unpredictable, beyond the individual's control, or carry the risk of negative social evaluation (exclusion) lead to the induction of stress. However, changes in performance do not manifest themselves in the same way for all its types. For example, stress improves the memorization of factual data, but at the same time creative functions deteriorate. Speed increases, but accuracy decreases. A load of appropriate intensity can improve performance, or at least some of its components, in the learning phase. However, if we accept the fact that the tests are primarily intended to test understanding and skills, not just the recall of isolated facts, we require the involvement of higher (“more creative”) cognitive functions during the test. Thus, even mild stress appears to impair performance during testing. As much as we may debate the appropriateness of the load during instruction, it is generally accepted that we should keep stressors to a minimum during the time of examination and testing.

Test anxiety is one of the factors that reduce the reliability of the test. It is one of the forms of so-called academic anxiety. It is triggered on the one hand by context-specific stimuli (e.g. briefing before a test) and on the other hand by reactions specific to an academic subject (e.g. anxiety about mathematics). Test anxiety is estimated to affect about 15 to 22% of students.

The degree of test anxiety usually depends on the type and meaning of the exam. The largest is usually for exams of great importance. It is affected by a number of factors. During the more than fifty years that test anxiety has been studied in more detail, a number of theoretical models of the phenomenon have emerged. Most are based on the two oldest concepts. The interference model of test anxiety posits that poorer performance on a test can be explained by factors (e.g., emotions or worries) that interfere with recalling and working with information. In contrast, the deficit model of test anxiety assumes that test anxiety is a consequence of insufficient knowledge and skills, including, for example, the ability to study effectively, the perception of one's own abilities (self-efficacy), motivation, or mastering strategies for completing the test. Neither of these two models can fully explain the variability and dynamics of test anxiety, so other theoretical concepts arise. Newer approaches also include external environmental influences as well as social influences, for example the environment in which education takes place and the relationships between students and teachers and students with each other.

It can be generalized, to a large degree, that text anxiety is milder in students who:

• have better study results
• had better results on entrance exams
• have better cognitive and verbal skills
• have greater self-confidence
• expect the test to be easier or consider it easier

The connection with motivation is interesting. A student's internal motivation to study reduces test anxiety. On the other hand, test anxiety is increased by external motivation, especially when it comes to negative motivation (e.g. emphasizing the possible consequences of failure).

Similarly, test anxiety is related to problem-solving skills. It is lower in people who, when overcoming obstacles, use strategies aimed at eliminating or overcoming the stressor. In contrast, individuals who choose avoidant strategies show greater levels of test anxiety.

The level of test anxiety also correlates with some demographic predictors. Females tend to have greater test anxiety, although when comparing different studies, it seems that the gender dependence gradually weakens. However, people who perceive themselves as members of a certain minority are significantly more affected by test anxiety.

Prevention and mitigation of the effects of test anxiety

Test anxiety reduces the reliability of the test. It impairs the performance of some test takers and does not allow them to fully utilize the knowledge and skills they have when completing the test. At the same time, it manifests itself to a different extent in different test subjects, so it becomes a source of variability that cannot be overlooked in the final test score. It is therefore desirable to prevent test anxiety, or to minimize its effects.

Strategies for the prevention and management of test anxiety can be divided into measures on the part of the teacher (organizer of the test) and measures on the side of the test taker.

The approaches recommended for students affected by test anxiety are mostly based on sufficient preparation for the test, psychohygiene, relaxation techniques, increasing self-confidence, overcoming unrealistic fears, etc. Some educational institutions organize programs in which they try to intervene with students affected by test anxiety and teach them to overcome test anxiety.

The teacher, for their part, must do more than just create the test or prepare for it. The overall learning setting is key. It is essential that the test tests what is being taught, i.e. that its content is not surprising to students. The test must therefore be appropriately planned and valid. It is also important that students understand how the test will be graded and have confidence in the grading.

Supporting a metacognitive approach to learning is effective against test anxiety. Students should understand why they are learning, what the learning objectives are, how and why the learning takes place, what are the components of the educational process, the significance of the test, etc. Social support and the creation of social ties are also important. Test anxiety is greater in students who learn in isolation from others. Including group work in learning reduces test anxiety.

Relatively simple measures that a teacher can take to reduce test anxiety include, for example:

• Introducing the topics and scope of the test to the students in advance.
• Allow students to try out the test environment in advance, especially if the test is in electronic form.
• Familiarize students with the format of the questions and the method of answering them in advance. If the answers are given using a form, explain exactly how to work with the form.
• Allow students to take a “mock test”. The mock test can be very short, with only a few questions, but it should contain all the elements of the real test (e.g. workplace preparation, identity verification, the same way of entering and answering questions).
• Discuss in advance with the students the topics that are key and will appear in the test. This will reduce the so-called …content uncertainty”.
• Help students schedule the time needed to prepare for the exam.
• More important tests should be preceded by a series of partial formative assessments that "lead" the student to the summative exam, show him how much he achieves the expected knowledge and skills, what his weak and strong points are, and at the same time gradually prepare him for the content and scope of the summative exam.
• During the exam itself, we try to minimize factors that could distract and disrupt students. At the time of the exam, we try to prepare a predictable and friendly environment.

One thing that might stand in the way of reducing test anxiety is the fact that some professions involve high-stress work environments that preclude people who could be thought of as “hothouse flowers” entering them. It may then be a legitimate requirement for the test to verify that the student can work efficiently and accurately even under stress. In this case, however, students should be exposed to pressure mainly in the course of learning and formative assessments, not in a standardized, final, summative exam. Work in stressful situations can also be part of practical testing. However, in most written exams and tests, test anxiety is undesirable, because by reducing the reliability of the test, it ultimately threatens its validity and evaluability.