A Testing Time
WORDS: School District of Manatee County School Psychologists and School Social Workers
In this day and age, the “testing season” always seems to be
upon us. Going in to the spring, the most important testing
season of all will grip our elementary, middle, and high school
students. Between the Florida Standards Assessment (FSA), Endof
Course (EOC) exams, Advanced Placement (AP) exams, and
International Baccalaureate (IB) exams, our students are about
to reach the height of a season that brings with it much anxiety
for many. As parents, it is hard to watch your child struggle with
stress, and all over a test!
ETS (Educational Testing Services) is the world’s largest private
non-prot educational testing and assessment organization.
Parents, you can help your child by reviewing with them these
three steps in being successful on tests/exams. The steps are:
• Preparation – Make sure you are prepared for the test.
Prepare notes/ashcards to study in advance. Don’t wait
until a day or two before the test to start preparing!
• Organization – Organize your study materials ahead of
time. Study in chunks, not all at once. On the day of the
test, review the test and organize how you want to tackle
the test questions.
• Practice – Review your material and take sample questions
and tests to get familiar with the test material.
The Princeton Review also has provided ten ways to overcome
test anxiety. As parents, here’s what you can do to help your
child combat this test stress:
1. Make sure they are prepared – study, study, study!
2. Be sure your child gets a good night’s sleep – a good night’s
rest will do wonders for their ability to focus and think clearly!
3. Fuel up – make sure your child eats a healthy breakfast!
4. Get them to school or class (or the testing site) early – don’t
put them behind the eight-ball by feeling rushed!
5. Help them have a positive mental attitude – tell them that
they are prepared and they can do this! Teach them to say
to themselves “I can do this. Stay focused,” or some other
positive afrmation.
6. Teach them to read carefully – way too many mistakes are
made on a test just from a lack of careful reading!
7. Tell them to just start – and not get overwhelmed by all of
the questions in front of them, just tackle it!
8. Remind them to not pay attention to what other people are
doing – work at their pace, don’t be concerned by how
quickly or slowly others are working!
9. Watch the clock – keep a good pace and make sure they
are giving themselves enough time on every question!
10. Focus on calm breathing and positive thoughts – take deep
breaths and remember that you’ve got this!
It’s only natural to feel anxious when participating in testing
that can be used to determine a student’s promotion status,
contribute to their graduation requirements, and/or determine
if they earn college credit for an entire year’s worth of work.
However, employing the strategies listed above can help combat
some of the anxiousness and help prepare the student to give it
their best shot. As Henry Ford once said: “Whether you believe
you can, or believe you can’t, you are usually right.” Parents and
students – you’ve got this!