Mathematics
has always been a dreaded subject for most students. In solving a mathematical
problem, a child needs to apply his analytical reasoning to find out the
solution. The methodical process of arriving at the answer may provide considerable
stress and anxiety to the student, especially during the examination, as there
is added pressure and time constraint.
This exam
anxiety further has a tendency to reduce the focus and clarity. It also causes
physical discomfort to students, which prevents them from putting in extra
efforts in performing the test. You need to be confident to solve math
problems. Anxiety as often leads to self doubt. If self doubt arises, it
becomes much harder to find the right answer.
What Can Be Done?
Exam anxiety
is a tricky thing to empower. It is difficult to ask a child to avoid anxiety,
if he is struggling to solve a problem. Clearly, the best way for overcoming
anxiety is to study and prepare beforehand. The more the student practices
problem-solving, the less intimidating the problem becomes.
However,
there are certain strategies that teachers and parents can teach for reducing
the math test anxiety:
Test Yourself Before the Final Exam
Every student
must test himself before appearing for the finals. This will not only give him
an idea of how much he needs to study, but will also make him aware of his strengths
and weaknesses.
Clarify your Doubts
Once the
student is aware of his weaknesses and the topics that seem difficult to him,
he should not delay it further and must right away discuss it with his teacher.
It will reduce his nervousness regarding that subject or topic. It will also
give him an idea, if he needs to devote some extra time on the concept.
Create a Strategy for Cracking the Exam
Every
student needs to devise a strategy to be successful in exam. Most children
appear for exams with no prior strategy to attempt the question. Generally, when
they struggle with a problem during an exam, they get nervous and have no idea
what to do next. One of the suggestions is when one gets stuck with one
problem. He must leave it and move on to the next one and come back to it later
on.
Try Relaxation Techniques
Every student must be aware of some techniques to reduce his
stress during examination. It’s generally harder to get children to adopt relaxation
exercises, as they are not receptive as adults in performing deep
breathing or progressive muscle relaxation. But once they are able to imbibe in
their life, these relaxation techniques decrease their exam pressure completely.