Tests are not an accurate measure of students success because some students seem to be bad test takers. Students may be bad test takers because they have the common phobia called “testophobia.”‘

Testophobia is the fear of taking tests. Some people get testophobia because they are afraid of the outcome of their tests, they worry that the questions presented to them may be different than the things they studied, they worry that they will freeze and forget vital information, they may also worry about time constraints, and their ability to express their thoughts and explain their answer in essay questions.

It would not be fair to measure a student’s intelligence off of their test because they might know a lot about the subject that they are being tested on, but then when they get the test they just seem to freak them selves out  and start to overthink the questions. So some of the answers that they know they might second guess themselves and pick the wrong answer for the question.

The symptoms of this phobia depend on the level of fear the person has for the test. The symptoms include anxiety, dread and anything associated with panic such as shortness of breath, rapid breathing, irregular heartbeat, sweating, excessive sweating, nausea, dry mouth, nausea, inability to comprehend  words or sentences, dry mouth and shaking.

Medicine can be prescribed, but these medications can have side effects and the withdrawal symptoms that can be severe. These medicines do not cure phobias, they only temporarily dim the symptoms. There are treatments for phobias that  include counseling, hypnotherapy, psychotherapy, and Neuro-Linguistic programming.

This is why tests are not an accurate measure of success because its not fair to the bad test takers.