Helping teens through exam nerves

However well-prepared your GCSE or A level students are for their exams, anxiety can overwhelm them. For the susceptible few, anxiety severely affects their chances of gaining the grade deserved and it can be disempowering and distressing for teachers to see this. There are, however, several key techniques for relieving anxiety, and students should be reminded of these as often as possible in the run-up to any exam period.

Stress or just nerves?  

Quell the tendency among students to refer to anxiety and nervousness in the run-up to exams as ‘stress’. The negative hype about stress, in the corridors and elsewhere, can encourage any such anxieties to spiral out of control.

It can actually be positive for students to feel anxious or nervous about exams. These feelings should be relatively short-lived and are a sure sign that they are taking the exams seriously. They are tapping their potential to get the best out of themselves. Tension can also serve to channel energy into the short-term task of exam preparation.

The run-up to exams

Nervousness is a natural reaction to exams. All students will feel it to a greater or lesser extent. The key is to put these nerves and anxieties to positive use. They can drive students to reach their potential, rather than swamping them with feelings of inadequacy.

• Demystify the exams as much as possible. Whenever possible tell students where they will be taking the exams, what they can take in with them and explain the format of the exam paper.
•  Talk about fears as they arise and offer students the chance to express their concerns anonymously. These can then be addressed with the whole class so that all can benefit from the reassurance.
• Encourage students to pair up with others in their group. A system of ‘revision buddies’ can help students to talk about how their studies are going. They will be less likely to bottle-up fears.      
• Good quality sleep will serve students well in the run-up to exams: the more hours they get before midnight the better.
• Encourage students to consider what they eat before and during the exams. High fat, high sugar and high caffeine foods will not optimise brain-function. Neither will going for long periods without eating a balanced meal.        

  Best revision tips

Valuable time can be wasted if revision isn’t organised effectively. Students might need reminding to:

• Plan the weeks leading up to the exams. This allows time to cover the necessary topics without limiting relaxation and leisure time.
• Avoid last-minute cramming. Sleep is far more valuable the night before an exam than cramming can ever be.
• Talk to teachers and fellow students about difficulties as soon as they arise.
• Take breaks often through any revision period: at least ten minutes every hour, if not more. Some form of physical movement helps to kick-start the brain. Stretching, walking and getting some fresh air will all help the learning process. Never let exercise become a luxury, it is a necessity for active brains.
• Plan treats. All work and no play leads to despondency. Small tasks, followed by big rewards, help to pace you through anxious times.

During the exam

Students will have taken many exams by the time they come to sit their GCSEs or A levels but the tension of the moment can still affect their performance. Encourage students to take these steps on the day of an exam:

• Arrive in plenty of time for the exam. Last-minute rushes will send anxiety levels soaring.
• Before doing anything, take a deep breath. If tension is rising, repeat an affirmation such as, ‘I am calm and focussed’.
• Read through all of the instructions and be totally clear about what questions are to be answered.
• Work out how long is to be allocated for each question.
• Jot down on scrap paper any easily-forgotten key pieces of information that are needed for the exam.
• Underline the key words in any question. Even if confident about what the question is asking, re-read it just to be certain.
• Unless instructed otherwise, tackle the question you are most confident about first. Be sure to keep an eye on the time so that you don’t over-run the allocated minutes for each question.
• Read through each answer as you complete it, in case time runs out at the end. It is important to eliminate any howlers and spelling errors as they may affect the overall grade.

After the event

Students may well want to forget everything about the process of taking their exams once they are over, but it would be wise for them to take a moment to evaluate the whole experience. They will almost certainly face more exams again in the near future. Ask them to make a note of what they think helped them to cope with the exams, and of what caused them most anxiety. Is there anything they would want to do differently in the future? All of this will be invaluable to revisit before future exams.

Overall, one of the most effective methods for dampening rising anxieties is to ensure students appreciate that nerves can actually be good motivators. They nudge us onwards to achieve what we are capable of and encourage us to prepare well. This is no bad thing. If, despite adequate preparation, nerves still serve to paralyse instead of motivate, this would indicate that negative stress is developing. Calming techniques should be employed as soon as possible. This not only ensures that the student’s potential is reached, it eases the path to achieving it.  

Originally published on Teachernet