How to Help Your Student Cope with State Test Stress

Every spring teachers and students all get just a little (ok maybe a lot) on edge as the window for their state assessment draws near.  While these assessments are important, they are not worth losing sleep over. I always find it amusing that during testing you hear principals and teachers alike reminding students to be sure to get a good night’s sleep and eat a good breakfast beforehand so that they are ready to show up on test day and do their best.  Shouldn’t we want that for our students every day?! ABSOLUTELY!

Regardless of my opinions, there is always hype around testing week and unnecessary pressure put on teachers and students that can lead to anxiety.  I worked at a school once that literally had a pep rally before state testing to pump kids up. Unfortunately, many teens that suffer from test anxiety and struggle with college admissions tests such as the ACT and SAT report the first time they ever experienced such anxiety was in elementary school during…. you guessed it: STATE TESTING.  If any of this sounds familiar and you can sense the stress around state testing building for your child or student, here are some state testing myths among students you can bust to help put their mind at ease.

Myth #1: Students who do poorly on the state assessment will be held back

One big misconception surrounding state testing is that if a student performs poorly, they will be held back and not advance to the next grade level.  This myth has basically gained urban legend status among students and as you can imagine can cause extreme stress and anxiety for some.  Make sure your student knows this is NOT the case.  In fact, it is usually well into the next school year before test results are received back. 

Myth #2: Students must come to school no matter what and will be in trouble if they do not

Attendance in general is a big deal for schools. It affects their ranking and classification on school report cards as well as funding. When it comes to testing, a school’s percentage of participation and completion impacts its rate of proficiency and annual designation. This leads to many conversations in the classrooms and assemblies regarding the importance of coming to school during testing week. However, schools also have days and times built into the testing schedule for make-ups. If your student is sick on a testing day, they can rest assured that it is ok to stay home and get well. Their teacher does want them to do their best and it is highly unlikely that their mind would be sharp if they are not feeling well.

Myth #3: If they do not earn the top ranking they are stupid

I am going to try to use restraint here, but I am warning you this topic gets me going. In the name of encouraging students to strive for excellence and do their best, a lot of emphasis is put on the performance level a student’s test score earns them. Different states have different names for these levels such as "exceeds expectations" or "masters expectations", Level 1 or Level 5, and then my personal favorite (insert sarcasm), Distinguished. Rewarding students, which I am not against, that earn these high-performance levels is common within schools. However, this can also leave students that tried their best but did not achieve a higher-level score feeling….well, less than and even ashamed :(

It helps to assure your student that none of their peers will see their scores. And you can tell them that some of the most brilliant minds in history like Thomas Edison, Mark Twain, and Abraham Lincoln either didn’t do well in school or didn’t go to school much less score Distinguished on a state assessment.

The bottom line is, yes, these assessments are important, but they are important from the perspective of making sure school districts are doing a good job at educating our children collectively and not meant to individually judge or demean them. Remind your student that if they are working hard throughout the year and try their best on test day then that in itself is enough! Let the scores fall where they may! And if your student attends one of those schools that publicly announces over the intercom the names of the students that earned the highest performance levels and then invites them to a special pizza party, then you make sure to take your kid somewhere special just to celebrate them just as they are–-high score or not.