Being a bad or good test taker: a phrase often thrown around to help students justify a poor exam score or sometimes even a good one.
As finals are looming over the heads of students in universities everywhere, it is more important now than ever to send out another reminder that these numbers shouldn't take control of us. That's right. As unbelievably simple as that sounds, this is something that is often misunderstood.
I would be lying if I said that I never fell victim to the stress of compiling a quarter's worth of learning in just a few afternoons of review. I remember after my first round of finals as a freshman, I went into the winter break with a very high fever followed by a week of being sick. Just last week, my senior friend messaged me saying that she was a wreck because of her finals schedule. She hadn't been eating properly and the stress was catching up with her all week. That's when I realized that we are far from solving this issue.
The first thing that stood out to me as being oddly uncomfortable about how we all cope with these stressful situations was learning that we don't, in fact, cope with these and instead just let it get the most of our mental health. That same friend said that she needed to go home and be comforted by her parents and I saw this as a run.
If we think about it, a test is nothing in the long scheme of things considering that this is just a quantitative value. It's not just about picking between option A, B, C or D anymore: it's an indication of how we face unsettling and unfamiliar situations. Do we panic and let it get the most of us, or are we trying to answer these difficult situations?
A final is a small glimpse of the challenges that are yet to be faced and conquered.
If as young adults, we have yet to understand how to grasp our anxiety over testing, how are we expected to tackle life's real curveballs? While I am not saying that going home is explicitly "wrong", I do believe that we can work towards doing something to change that as individuals. Exhibiting confidence and control is step one.
Of course, test anxiety can't be reversed overnight, but actively trying to change how we build up fear regarding them would be a step in the right direction. Instead of thinking of a final as a single exam to determine a grade, if we think of a final as a condensed weekly quiz, that can help bring down the intimidation and fear leading up to taking a final.
As silly as that sounds, it works! Part of me looks forward to taking a test just so that I can use that as an opportunity to prove to myself and others what I know (although this is not a very large part of my test taking mentality).
Don't get me wrong--I know how important exams are for your GPA, but I think that we are capable of so much more than letting exams break down our confidence and health. So, what if we get a few questions wrong here and there?
One way to get around test taking is to realize that you are in control of yourselves. Some demanding classes might have caused anxiety, but that doesn't mean that we should develop anxiety for every test. Understanding the difference between habit and necessity will help determine how much energy is spent wasted or properly used.
With that said, good luck to all the test takers! Only a few more days before we are free to drink hot chocolate and lounge in winter pajamas.