Pages: (114-129 )
Abstract
Test anxiety is more prevalent in school setting than people could imagine, and majority of text anxiety cases are not recognized easily in schools. This is because many students rarely seek help for any perceived emotional apprehensions from significant adults. Pupils who experience test anxiety tend to be easily distracted during test, and have trouble organizing or recalling information. And as such, they usually end up failing a test when they have the required mental capacity to pass such test. Thus, this study examined the effect of Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) and Enhance Thing Skills (ETS) to remedy the effect of examination anxiety among students at Primary Schools within the Ikenne local government of Ogun state, Nigeria.
The population for the study were public primary school pupils in Ikenne LGA of Ogun State. Stratified random sampling technique was used to select two schools while purposive sampling was used to select the participants. The study adopted a 2x2x2 pre-test and post test experimental research design consisting of two treatment groups. Sarason's Reaction to Test Anxiety Scale and Rotters' Locus of Control Scale were the instrument used for data collection. A total number of two hundred and seventy-six pupils participated in the study. Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to analyse the seven hypotheses formulated at 0.05 level of significance.
The results revealed a significant difference in the effect of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT) and Enhanced Thinking Skills (ETS) in reducing examination anxiety among primary school pupils (F(1,273) = 10.031; p = .009 < 0.05). However, there were no significant two-way interaction effects of treatment and gender (F(2,273) = 1.441; p = .200 > .05); treatment and LOC (F(2,273) = 1.700; p = .085 > .05); and gender and LOC (F(2,273) = 1.050; p = 226 > 0.05). In addition, there was no three-way interaction of treatment, gender and LOC (F(2,273) = 2.322; p = .111 > 0.05).
It was concluded that the treatment packages could be used as veritable tools in equipping students with necessary skills in dealing with too much anxiety during examination that may interfere with their concentration on the test, thus enhancing their performance in examination. It is therefore recommended that counsellors, psychologists and other professionals working in schools settings could create special programmes for students with test anxiety, which would include a special programme or programmes for enhancing self-concept, self-efficacy, and unwillingness to engage in examination malpractice.
Keywords: Enhance Thing Skills, examination anxiety, Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, primary school, pupils,