Date

Spring 2019

Document Type

Master's Thesis (Open Access)

Degree Name

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Department

Teacher Education

Abstract

Elementary school students are experiencing heightened levels of test anxiety which is blocking their access to learning. Practices such as art therapy, meditation, and mindfulness are rising in popularity as means for controlling and reducing anxiety. Recent studies have found success in using these practices with students to reduce test anxiety (Putwain et al., 2014; Cho, Ryu, Noh, & Lee, 2016). This study used a pre- and post-test quantitative quasi-experimental design to compare the levels of test anxiety between the treatment group (n = 21) who received an intervention of coloring while listening to a guided meditation before a math test, and the control group (n= 18), who received the math test without any intervention. After data were gathered in a six-week study, independent and paired samples t-tests were performed to determine if statistically significant differences arose between the two groups. The results showed the treatment group had slightly lower levels of test anxiety following the intervention, but not enough to prove that the intervention was directly related to lowering test anxiety. Recommendations for further work include using a larger sample size with more students who have test anxiety to increase statistical power.

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