There's a lot of factors, but the effect of testing anxiety is almost always the biggest factor. Under stress, we prioritize different values on the real test than on PT's. When we are confident in our answers on the real thing, we may take additional time to confirm where we wouldn't in practice. Where we are not confident in our answers, we more likely to sink far greater time into trying to crack them than in PT's. In RC, we are more likely to rush the passage read. In LG, we may cut corners which prevent us from fully developing a more optimal setup. The real test counts, and if you haven't planned for how that's going to affect your execution, you are highly vulnerable to these sorts of deviations. It's important to understand that the real test is going to feel very different from practice. Anticipate what the effects of that difference are going to be, and develop deliberate and well-defined strategies that you can recall and stick to even when things feel weird. You can't trust your instincts on test day with this stuff because emotions get in the way and tell us all the wrong things. Instead, you need to have a plan to stick to: One you've practiced, refined, and proven.
I think that something that may help in determining "what went wrong" could be to journal in reflection about the two days before (or longer) and the day of the test. Perhaps looking at a personal recount of how you were feeling, what you did, and other events can help identify specifics about any differences from when you PT to the actual test. Were you more nervous, not nervous? How did you sleep? Any thing you did similarly or different?
Following. I'm in the same boat right now :/ I'm not too sure how to take it and I'm not really sure what to do.
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5 comments
We are on the same boat!! I definitely think test anxiety got the best of me, especially during the games section lmao yikes
There's a lot of factors, but the effect of testing anxiety is almost always the biggest factor. Under stress, we prioritize different values on the real test than on PT's. When we are confident in our answers on the real thing, we may take additional time to confirm where we wouldn't in practice. Where we are not confident in our answers, we more likely to sink far greater time into trying to crack them than in PT's. In RC, we are more likely to rush the passage read. In LG, we may cut corners which prevent us from fully developing a more optimal setup. The real test counts, and if you haven't planned for how that's going to affect your execution, you are highly vulnerable to these sorts of deviations. It's important to understand that the real test is going to feel very different from practice. Anticipate what the effects of that difference are going to be, and develop deliberate and well-defined strategies that you can recall and stick to even when things feel weird. You can't trust your instincts on test day with this stuff because emotions get in the way and tell us all the wrong things. Instead, you need to have a plan to stick to: One you've practiced, refined, and proven.
I think that something that may help in determining "what went wrong" could be to journal in reflection about the two days before (or longer) and the day of the test. Perhaps looking at a personal recount of how you were feeling, what you did, and other events can help identify specifics about any differences from when you PT to the actual test. Were you more nervous, not nervous? How did you sleep? Any thing you did similarly or different?
I had the opposite happen and scored 3 points higher than all my practice tests.
Following. I'm in the same boat right now :/ I'm not too sure how to take it and I'm not really sure what to do.