Professional Learning for Busy Educators

For educators and students alike, state testing days are often the most stressful part of the school year. And although those dates may be marked on the calendar the very first day of class, they can still catch many by surprise. If you find yourself running short on time as the testing window approaches, consider the helpful tips below. Your students will be ready to tackle the test in no time!

As any parent or teacher knows, tests can create crippling anxiety in students–and anxious kids can perform below their true abilities. But new research in cognitive science and psychology is giving us a clearer understanding of the link between stress and performance, and allowing experts to develop specific strategies for helping kids manage their fears. These potential solutions are reasonably simple, inexpensive and, as recent studies show, effective. Some work for a broad range of students, while others target specific groups. Yet they’re unfamiliar to many teachers and parents, who remain unaware that test anxiety can be so easily relieved. Here, three such approaches: