Anxiety and stressful situations in elementary school students

Abstract

The present study focuses on anxiety manifestations in students in selected Czech elementary schools. The gained emotional experiences associated with the school could negatively affect both students' performance and their attitude to school in general. Assessment of the learning outcomes through tests could become a significant trigger for anxiety that can influence the students learning outcomes. The present study analyses the degree of anxiety in relation to a typical stress situation in the school environment, such as the level of actual anxiety prior to and after testing. An anxiety measuring questionnaire and a scale to measure actual anxiety were used. It was confirmed that the level of actual anxiety among students is considerably higher prior to testing than after testing. With regard to the results and the primarily negative impact of testing in the school environment, the paper also introduces several useful recommendations for reducing anxiety among students.