THROUGHOUT HIGH SCHOOL, the most dreaded days of school were the ones when I had to take tests. I'd always been good at taking them until I reached high school, when, for some unknown reason, I became stressed out before tests—gripped by the fear that I wouldn't know the answers and would fail. Afterward, I would feel frustrated when I didn't get the grade I wanted after I'd studied so hard.
I have attended a Christian Science Sunday School since I was a little girl and have learned that God is Mind and that this divine intelligence guides and governs us always. I've also learned that I am God's loved child and express all of His qualities. Still, I couldn't seem to get rid of the fear that surrounded test taking.
The situation got even worse my junior year as I began preparing for the Advanced Placement test. This test is a national exam that gives high school students college credit for a class taken earlier that semester. The highest score possible was a five, which only the top few percent in the nation achieve. If a student fails the test, he or she does not receive any school credit. Therefore, none of the time and effort spent on the class counts toward graduation. In the weeks leading up to the test, many of my classmates devoted every possible minute to studying, and they became very stressed out. I, too, became nervous and fearful of failing.
