IT’S NOT ALWAYS SUNNY

“You’ve done all of your homework and studied hard, and you think you have a grip on the material. But then the day of the test comes. Suddenly, you blank out, freeze up, zone out, or feel so nervous that you can’t get it together to respond to those questions you knew the answers to just last night.” — Nemours TeensHealth

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Test anxiety is a type of performance anxiety — a feeling someone might have when performance counts or when the pressure’s on to do well.

Nemours TeensHealth says that people who worry a lot or are perfectionists are more likely to deal with test anxiety, as they sometimes find it challenging to accept their mistakes or get a perfect score. Naturally, they put pressure on themselves to do well.

So, is that the majority of people or just me?

I was a good student. But when taking tests, I was always a nervous wreck.

Fifty minutes. That was the length of a class period when I was in high school. It felt like an eternity on regular days, but when we were taking a test, it felt like we didn’t have enough time. Even open-note tests came with their own challenges because the bell would ring by the time I found the right page in my notebook. Don’t even get me started on second-guessing my answers.

As an incoming college student, I was required to take the Texas Success Initiative Assessment (TSIA) — which is basically supposed to help determine if the student is ready for college-level coursework in reading, writing and math. Not all incoming students are required to take the exams, but I was not one of the lucky ones who were exempt.

I had to take the exam at a community college in my hometown. Walking up those stairs in unfamiliar territory, my heart was beating incredibly fast. Was I going to have enough time? Was I going to pass?

The room was like any other computer lab, but I distinctly remember it having a safety mirror in the corner of the ceiling and I could see my then-boyfriend (now husband) in the back.

While I still had a good amount of the test left to sift through, he was finished with the test before me. Anxiety over my eventual score and intrusive thoughts that I had to get the test done quickly rushed over me — even though now that I think back on it, I know that he would have understood if he had to wait longer.

I ended up having to take the test a second time. At least I passed then.

Students are expected to take quizzes, tests and final exams and complete homework assignments. But on top of that, there are standardized tests like STAAR. There are also AP exams and, while those are optional, a lot of students still opt to take them to earn college credit.

Oh, and then there are those college-entrance exams (SAT and ACT) that they have to worry about.

As you can probably tell, I have never been a fan of standardized testing or just tests in general.

There is just this immense pressure on students to get a specific grade on these tests and then if they don’t, for a lack of better words, they feel stupid. A grade is just a number; it should not be the final deciding factor of how smart a student is.

It’s been seven years since I’ve been in high school and nearly three years since I’ve been in college. I just want to tell kids to do their best in school.

Do you learn better with visuals? That’s okay. Do you learn better when questions are read aloud to you? That’s okay. Do you get nervous when you are called to read a passage aloud? That’s okay. Do you have test anxiety? That’s okay.

Every student learns differently and at their own pace.

Navarro is the editor of the Hays Free Press/News-Dispatch. She can be reached at megan@haysfreepress.com.