12
U niversity
of
O regon M onthly
tions become a part of the .seif to be examined ; hence the
straggle fo r the survival.
Prom inent on the em otional side of exam ination -ex
perience is Hope and Fear.
A secondary fear or selfdear sometimes occurs. This
fear is doubt of one’s ability to execute w hat foe in ordinary
circumstance's is capable of doing. It is like stage fright,
i t is characterized in extreme cases -by high nervous tension,
m ultiple ideas -crowding »into consciousness, ideas becoming
fleeting and spectral, accompanied b y dizziness and when
Over, followed by fatigue.
The chief causes Of this are inexperience and too much
anticipation in regard to the result, to© little self-control
under critical situations and a preparation not adapted to
the character of th e examination.
. As to th e more intellectual feelings it is found that s tu
dents who are accustomed to examinations being given for
the purpose of both detecting weakness in th e ir, knowledge
of subjects and also com pelling active atten tio n do the sub
ject: m atter which they may have in lectures Or -otherwise
received in a state of ‘wise passiveness,’ "testify th a t the
examinations give them a unified conception of ’the work
covered so th at they bring out in perspective th e related
parts.
Students say in. the second place th a t examinations make
them study the work more intensively. Knowing that they
are to give an account of their knowledge -of a subject at
some subsequent time, they arrange the abundant detail of
fru stratio n in coherent logical order and b y this very act of
system atizing for the purpose of retention, derive a lasting
benefit. T here is a th ird im portant characteristic of exam
inations. Students -Say th at examinations make the work
seem real by giving th e feehng of« som ething accom plished.
This statem ent is tru e with respect to examinations when
they are given considerately and for. th e gOod -of the stu
dent. Such examinations block ©ùt thè work of a course
into its natural divisions and give the student occasion to