BECE. Newsletter 

Vol.19, No.1, 2025, BECE 1934 

 

 

 

 

Causes and Impacts of Test Anxiety of Chinese Pri-

mary School Students: An Analysis Based on Data 

from the SSES 2019 

By He, P. & Qing, C. 
Correspondence to: Can Qing, East China Normal University, China. E-mail: 

editorial-office@bonoi.org  

est anxiety is a negative emotion mainly elicited in the assessment sce-

narios. Effective intervention on text anxiety of primary and secondary 

school students is crucial for safeguarding their mental health. This study ex-

amines the state, impacts, and causes of test anxiety of Chinese primary 

school students, drawing on data from the Survey on Social and Emotional 

Skills (SSES) 2019 sponsored by the Organization of Economic Cooperation 

and Development. 

Research Findings: 

• More than 30% of the primary school students surveyed suffered 

from test anxiety with the lack of confidence in their test ability 

being the chief symptom. 

• Test anxiety had adverse effects on student academic results with 

the most significant negative effect on their reading performance. 

• Teachers’ and parents’ academic expectations were positively 

correlated with test anxiety in pupils and were the leading cause 

of it. 

Suggestions: 

• The school should improve its evaluation system by lowering the 

frequency and difficulty of tests and providing mental health ed-

ucation and counseling service to pupils. 

• Parents need to upgrade their notions of education to focus on the 

all-round development of their children rather than their test 

scores and academic rankings.  

• It is important for the school, family, and community to work to-

gether to create plural education channels, providing students 

with diverse learning opportunities and resources. 

 
Source: Journal of China Examinations, 2024; 2024(6):90-99. 

T 

mailto:editorial-office@bonoi.org