Sunday, May 29, 2011

Jitters / lack of self-confidence before the examination

During the schooling of my children, my opinion was that only the students who are not well prepared for an exam have jitters. Though, I did not rule out a small dose of excitement, which, in my opinion, could be stimulating. That’s why I just followed their course of learning, the atmosphere in the house was always relaxed, and just before the exam I would say to my children:
“Just concentrate on the task, slowly, no hurry, You can do what you done. Mom loves you with both good and bad results. “
As they often participated in school competitions, each in their own field, I am would ad:
"It is a great success that you came to this level, there is no reason to to be disturbed“
I would always repeat the same words, because I really thought so, and later they would with me, later. On leaving, they would begin on their own:
"Mom loves me ...."
Later, when I started teaching, I realized that well-learned material is important to reduce the fear of exams, but for some children that is not enough and that there are many factors that influence the over-anxiousness or lack of self-confidence. Children often have a fear of betraying the expectations of their parents, which are sometimes unrealistic.
Source: Blic online

- Restlessness, facial flushing, insufficient focus on the question, excitement, difficulty to recall learned facts, incomplete and wrong answers- these are the consequences of suffering from jitters. It is the same for both, pupils and last year students at university - says child psychologist Gordana Acic for “Blic”.
Unlike the neurotic fear, psychologists from Columbia University say, the fear is not without reason, even if the student was well prepared for the test or the exam.
Therefore, teach the students to keep stress under control and explain how they to transform all the tension they felle into positive energy and cope with the jitters.

Exams do not have to be the bogeyman
The jitters may be your worst enemy during the exam. Some students, as soon they assume that there will be an examination, are overwhelmed with an indescribable fear, and when the exam begins, it can lead to a weakening of the cognitive functions, difficulty in recalling the learned facts and formulating answers to the question.
Symptoms
Some kids are just uncomfortable and have butterflies in the stomach. However, many pupils and students, before an important exam, have many severe symptoms of jitters, which sometimes do not end until the end of the exam.
They include:
- Compressed stomach
- Strong heartbeat
- Sweaty hands
- Red cheeks
- Confusion in their head
- Total blocks (student cannot remember his/her day of birth)
- Stammering, or accelerated speech...

Teach them how to deal with it
Relaxing conversation between the child and parents and learned material are the best guarantee that the child will easily and quickly cope with jitters. Father and mother must know well their child, his abilities and potential and should require the maximum in this framework. And here's what you should advise your children before going to the exam.
- You have to be well prepared
- Teach them to learn the material, repeat it in their own words.
- Practicing - Ask them questions and help them to go through the material more easily. Of course, this needs to be done calmly and without shouting, because you could achieve the opposite effect.
- Distracting one’s attention before the exam – Jitters are the worst in the beginning, because of that it would be good to explain to your child how to distract his/her attention from the whole situation while waiting for the entrance examination.  attention to the situation.
- She/he may count back, count the windows in the room or, even better, repeat affirmative sentences that had previously devised. The sentences should be in the past tense, as if desired score is achieved, short, clear and directive. For example:" I passed the exam with the highest score.” – Gordana Acic explains.
- Proper breathing - Explain them that if any of jitters symptoms are noted, to breathe deeply and slowly. Practice this technique at home.

What makes the jitters worse?
Certain thoughts and situations will only worsen the jitters:
- Lack of sleep, fatigue, exhaustion - This means that the night before the exam the child should sleep well, do not explain her/him mathematics at midnight.
- Explain to them that they should believe in themselves and not to have doubts such as: "I am really not good at this" "It will be a disaster if I mess up"
- Teach them not to compare themselves with others.

Organization
"The main problem consists in organizing those few days before the exam, so that the child is not tired and exhausted on the day of examination," advises Trakvandi Luciano, assistant professor at the University of Kastelanci.
Of the total time spent on learning, only 30 to 35 percent is really productive. This means that there is no point in child’s sitting at the table more hours than necessary. It would only result in getting tired too fast.

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