The use of aptitude and competency testing in the public school system can have some undesired effects on students in terms of the stress and anxiety tests can impose. Adolescence is already a time in a child's life when many different pressures are coming to bear upon the psyche. Among the most undesirable consequences that can result from the…

This paper provides activities and suggestions for foreign language teachers to use to enhance their students' self-esteem. Teachers should: (1) have students speak, write, and read the target language on the first day of class; (2) help students overcome test anxiety by focusing on what they did right, experimenting with different testing…

The definitions of and literature on test speededness are reviewed, and factors and areas in which the tests reveal their strengths and limitations are discussed. The focus of this article is on speeded reading comprehension tests used for entry or re-entry placement in postsecondary institutions. Speeded tests were prompted by the accelerating…

Four commercial test preparation programs were evaluated for their effectiveness in increasing scores of elementary school student on standardized multiple-choice tests. Focus was on determining whether: formal training increases students' test-taking skills, students can generalize the test wiseness strategies to improve their scores on…

It has been repeatedly demonstrated that persons who experience a high degree of test anxiety also experience decrements in performance in evaluative situations. A study was conducted to develop a test anxiety questionnaire for student nurses in order to identify test anxiety. A 40-item, self-report questionaire was developed by two panels of…

The significant number of firefighter trainees experiencing performance evaluation anxiety during fire training school was addressed by the implementation of anxiety reduction and performance enhancement strategies. Audiotape recordings were chosen as the primary intervention medium to facilitate program effectiveness within an established fire…

This study guide, designed to help counselors prepare for the Virginia Professional Counselor License Examination, guides applicants through the licensing application process, with information on the written and oral parts of the examination. Recommended texts for studying for the exam are suggested, and sample questions are provided. Guidelines…

Intended for adult basic education teachers faced with the need to assess students who are terrified of tests, this resource unit guide presents several devices that can be used to assess both precise and general learning patterns in nonthreatening ways. The opening section of the guide stresses the importance of establishing priorities and goals…

Eighty three applicants for empployment in a hardware supply manufacturing company participated in a study of the effects of anxiety, praise and the awareness of time remaining on employment testing. Two control groups and three testing groups--praise, time, and praise and time--were administered the General Aptitude Test Battery (GATB), a…

Research has recognized that anxiety may exert a debilitating effect on students' academic performance; however, many studies of test anxiety have been limited by their failure to consider sex differences. Two studies were conducted to analyze sex differences of the Test Anxiety Scale (TAS) and achievement correlates and to validate a factor…

For about three years, Lane Community College has made 15 one-page "Study Tips" available to students for free. Designed for students who would not be likely to read a booklet on study methods or attend a full course, the "Study Tips" are displayed in the Counseling Department, Study Skills Center, and Multi-Cultural Center and are distributed by…

This experiment was designed to test the effect of immediate and delayed feedback on retention of learning in an educational situation. Four groups of college undergraduates took a multiple-choice computer-managed test. Three of these groups received informative feedback (the entire item with the correct answer identified) either: (1) immediately…

A study varied a formal testing situation to encourage verbalization in black, inner-city nursery school children. The children were asked to identify items from the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test in either a test situation (looking at the stimulus jointly with an adult) or a "need to know" situation (looking at the stimulus alone). It…

Appendix 3 to the report, Measuring Intelligence and Achievement Motivation in Surveys, describes a series of factor analyses of the achievement orientation measures, and a further analysis of strategies used in trying to interpret them. Also a tentative model for the components of achievement orientation is presented. Appendix 4 describes a…

The effects of achievement-oriented and neutral instructions on the humor ratings of both testing and non-testing cartoons were assessed for high- and low test-anxious students. The effects of humor in reducing state anxiety were also evaluated. Fifty-two undergraduate students were selected on the basis of their Test Anxiety Scale scores. Both…