MARIA ARTEAGA

Sum15 HED 044 #50404

In this case Katya is facing many new challenges as a freshman in college. She
studies very hard to keep her grade point average at 3.0. She is approaching the
end of the semester, and has in increased level of test anxiety about her chemistry
test. This anxiety is due to her scholarship and the fear of losing it due to her
academic failure. Having experience a panic attack while the test is still two days
away, shows that Katya lacks the tools to cope with the stressors of college life.
Being a college student myself, I remember my freshmen year very well. College
was extremely scary and intimidating. I was a college student full time and also
worked part time. Balancing my work schedule with class and my personal life was
a big challenge. Making the wrong choices affected my grades and test scores.
Deciding on going out the night before a test wasnt the brightest idea. I would take
the test not feeling confident in myself, second guessing my answers. After the first
year I learned from my mistakes, realized that in order to test better I needed to feel
confident in myself. The way I did that, was finding which way I studied the best,
dedicating time to actually study, and used my family and friends to quiz me. If I
could verbally answer the questions then I knew I was ready. I realized if I followed
these same steps, I could excel in any subject.
Katya needs to improve her self-efficacy in order to reduce her test anxiety. She
needs to be confident that she can cope with colleges challenges. Freshmen year is
the first time many students face being on there own. Being exposed to a new
environment can bring on excessive stress which is hard to cope with if you do not

have the proper tools. First you should Assess Your Stressors and Solve Problems
(Health: the basics, pg.84). Identify all your stressors and make a list, Identify what
causes the stress, how big is each problem and see what would happen if you were
to take action or do nothing, create an action plan then act it out. The las step is to
evaluate the outcome, maybe some actions need to be changed to create a better
outcome. After identifying her stressors, Katya can plan and prepare to either
change their outcomes or control her actions so that she feels confident and
competent that her studying will bring good grades.
Katya also needs to manage her emotional response when its time to take her
exam. She needs to distinguish the difference between normal emotions and
emotions based on pre-conceived outcomes. Confidence in study skills predicted
semester one academic performance, but not confidence in discussing course
material with ones peers and tutors or confidence in grade outcomes. Furthermore,
only confidence in independent study emerged as both a proximal and distal
predictor of academic performance (Academic self-efficacy in study-related skills
and behaviours, pg.644). Managing your personal confidence is key improving selfefficacy and controlling stress. Exercise can be a great way for Katya to re-direct her
stress right before an exam, exercise can burn off stress hormones by directing
them toward their intended metabolic function (Health: the basics, pg.86). Exercise
can increase her mood and energy thus increasing her confidence. Getting enough
sleep the night before and not studying all night is another great positive change.
Getting enough sleep will make you feel rested, have the proper energy, and able to
cope with situations more effectively. Eating healthy can also help, providing the
stamina you will need to carry on the day, avoiding caffeine as an example. Caffeine
can make you feel more agitated then cause you to crash. Managing time is also

very important, not waiting to the last day or two to cram for a heavy subject exam.
Keeping up with reading and homework will make you feel prepared; studying
diligently and productively will leave you feeling confident.
In conclusion, Katy should look into techniques that will help with her anxiety and
panic attacks. Her anxiety of failure is affecting her way before she steps in the
classroom to take a test. She needs to be confident in her study habits, that her
efforts will have positive outcomes. She needs to be able to calm herself down, thus
decreasing stress. Professional help would benefit her, because I feel like studying is
not the issue. Maybe learning new breathing techniques, such as Diaphragmatic
Breathing, this can help clam her when she feels a panic attack coming on.
Visualization can be used to create positive mental scenes, instead of visualizing
her failure; she should visualize acing her exam. Before each semester Katya should
access the difficulty of each class, and arrange her class schedule with two core
classes and two electives, that way her work load is balanced. She should be one
step ahead in reading, and homework that way she has time to study and really
comprehend the material without time being a factor. This way when exam time
comes around, she will already have a base of knowledge down and she will be
more confident and reduce test anxiety, producing positive outcomes.
References
1.) Putwain, D., Sander, P., & Larkin, D. (January 01, 2013). Academic self-efficacy
in study-related skills and behaviours: relations with learning-related
emotions and academic success. The British Journal of Educational
Psychology, 83, 633-50.
2.) Donatelle, R. (2015,2013,2011). Health: The basics. San Francisco, California:
Benjamin Cumminngs.