Focuses on levels of anxiety and imagery among female and male students in varying proximity to an examination to explain gendered differences in degree classification at Oxford and Cambridge universities. Finds significant, gendered differences in the impact of proximity on anxiety and imagery. Links these findings to differences in degree…

Compared results from computerized vocabulary tests under conditions in which item review was permitted or not permitted. Results from 177 college students reveal that performance gains after review were greater for examinees of high ability, and that review was desired more by examinees with higher test anxiety. The major drawback to review was…

A scale to assess the goal of avoiding the demonstration of lack of ability (performance-avoid) was included with scales assessing approach goals for 703 sixth graders. Performance-avoid scales negatively predicted academic efficacy and positively predicted avoiding seeking help and test anxiety. Implications for goal theory are discussed. (SLD)

Found that the correlation between psychopathology and course grades in a sample of college students (n=326), was not significant. However, psychopathology was significantly related to students' motivation and use of learning strategies that were, in turn, related to academic performance. Structural equation modeling provided evidence that…

The hypothesis that previously found effects of self-adapted testing (SAT) are attributable to examinees' having an increased perception of control over a stressful testing situation was studied with 377 college students who took computerized adaptive tests or SAT. The strongest preference for SAT was seen in individuals with the highest…

Teacher education candidates who had failed admission tests were coached in test taking and taught relaxation techniques. Three passed a retake immediately and three others within 3 months. Strategies such as affirmations, appeals to different learning modalities, positive anchors, and mental dress rehearsals can help students deal with test…

Studies the effect of knowing the test as one aspect of a test preparation strategy with 57 premedical post-baccalaureate students. Finds that results emphasize the value of first-hand experience with a facsimile of a test and the importance of analyzing the structure and format to improve test performance. (NH)

Describes a 20 item self-report psychometric scale that was used to assess test anxiety levels in 67 students. Reports that the higher the anxiety level, as measured by the Revised Test Anxiety Scale (RTA), the lower the score on a reading and writing competency exam taken subsequently, and that students who received extra time on the reading test…

The passage of "No Child Left Behind" (NCLB) legislation has led to an increased awareness of testing and assessment in public school systems and its impact. A cursory review of the academic literature and national news sources on the impact of standardized testing revealed a plethora of anecdotal cases of students experiencing illness,…

Crutcher, an advocate for children above all else, revisits a few of the most urgent issues facing teachers--Censorship, "No Child Left Without Life Threatening Test Anxiety," Zero Tolerance, to name a few--and an encouraging word about addressing them. He believes teachers "have the toughest job in our culture," and urges them to "rise up . . .…

Prior research concluded that collaborative learning reduces test anxiety. Examination of the evidence used in that research, however, calls into question those conclusions. The present study used an empirical measure of test anxiety and an experimental design to provide an improved estimate of the effect of collaboration in an evaluative context…

The development of a 20-item semantic differential assessment instrument for measuring student attitudes toward the subject of chemistry is described (Attitude toward the Subject of Chemistry Inventory-ASCI). Instrument subscales and survey items pertain to interest and utility, anxiety, intellectual accessibility, emotional satisfaction, and…

We conducted 2 studies to investigate undergraduate performance, perceptions, and time required in completing sequentially ordered, randomly ordered, or reverse ordered exams in introductory psychology classes. Study 1 compared the outcomes and perceptions of students (N = 66) on 3 non-comprehensive multiple-choice exams which were sequentially,…

Reciprocal peer tutoring (RPT) is a cooperative learning strategy that capitalizes on the benefit students receive from preparing to tutor one another (Pigott, Fantuzzo, and Clement, 1986; Wolfe, Fantuzzo, and Wolfe, 1986). In this study, the effects of RPT on the academic achievement, academic self-efficacy, and test anxiety of 47 undergraduate…

Current test anxiety theory suggests that achievement differences between high and low anxious students are due to differences in attention. In an attempt to investigate the interaction between various components of test anxiety, stress, and tasks measuring attentional flexibility, undergraduate students (N=45) completed Sarason's Test Anxiety…