5 ways you can help your kids survive the ISTEP
Renae Azziz, Indiana Psychologist explains five ways parents can help their kids through the mental and physical stress of the upcoming ISTEP exam period, before, during and even after so they can set a healthy tone for next year.
Given the recent protests from parents and educators over the increased testing times for the upcoming ISTEP exams, one thing is certain, the tests are already in the schools and ready to be administered, if not already underway.
They are longer and harder and whether they take 12 hours or are trimmed by 3 hours, given the openly public debate, this year’s tests have been a stressful and contentious issue for educators and parents.
But what about the students, who already face pre-test anxiety, will likely face testing fatigue, and even under normal circumstances can suffer from anxiety surrounding ISTEP and other testing periods?
One really good thing for us all to do is just take a pulse on the fact that we are all highly stressed out about it. And be mindful about that and avoid as much as we can being overly critically about the process. What is comes down to it is we want our children to do the best that they can and is going to take us all being calm.”
Mrs. Azziz explains five ways parents can help their kids through the mental and physical stress of the upcoming ISTEP exam period, before, during and even after so they can set a healthy tone for next year.
• Recognizing the signs that your child may be anxious or worried about the upcoming exams.
• Understanding that the anxiety is real issue and does not reflect laziness, lack of motivation or lack of capability of the student.
• Avoid being overly critical, disparaging, impatient or cynical of the process.
• Helping them prepare mentally by using practice, rehearsal, relaxation and other techniques at home and at school
• Praise and reinforce, before during and after the exams, even if the outcome is less than expected. You need to set a tone for next year.About Renae Azziz – Ed.S. NCSP
Renae Azziz holds an Education Specialist Degree and is a Nationally Certified School Psychologist. She is the Founder and Director of Virtuoso Education Consulting. She and her team of consultants support educators nationally in the areas of Response-to-Intervention, Data-Based Decision Making, Assessment, Positive Behavior Support, and Culturally Responsive Practices. www.virtuosoed.com
Before starting Virtuoso Education Consulting, Renae practiced as a School Psychologist in Indiana. Renae also worked on grants funded by the Indiana Department of Education supporting Indiana’s Initiatives on Response to Intervention. She was also appointed by former Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels to the Commission on Disproportionality in Youth Services and her team has served as project evaluators for statewide initiatives and Corrective Action Plans in Indiana and Louisiana.
Renae is the author of several articles and professional development resources geared to supporting educators with developing awareness, knowledge and skills to meet the needs of all students. Renae received her educational training at Indiana University earning an Ed.S. in School Psychology, an M.S. in Educational Psychology, and a B.A. with honors in Psychology and is working towards completion of her Doctorate in Education at The Johns Hopkins University specializing in Entrepreneurial Leadership in Education.