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Sofia Gibson

Mrs. Stevens

Life Science

31 January 2018

Does Color Paper Affect Test Scores?

In class today, I had a test. The teacher said the printer was broken and instead of printing

white paper it would only print red paper. So we had to take our test on red paper. The next

week, my math teacher said the scores were good on the test, but he thinks we can do better,

“Tomorrow you will retake the test, I believe you guys can do better on the second test.” The

next day I retook the test, the questions were the same but they were mixed up. The next week I

got my test back. I got the same score as my other test. I was confused I thought I would have

gotten a better score on the white paper test. So I decided to do my own little test to figure out if

a white paper test would have a better score than a red paper test. I hypothesized that, if​ red

paper would get a better score than white paper, and if it did then colored paper is better than

regular white paper.

Are Grades Assigned To School Work?

Grades are used for teachers, to help them know where students are in their grade work.

To give students advice to what is bringing them down, teachers cannot fix the problem without

knowing the what it is. Once the teacher knows the problem, she can help motivate the student,

or help give feedback and advice. To know what teachers have to fix, so that students are not

getting good grades. It is mostly because they do not understand, so the teachers try and make it

easier (Ascd).
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est anxiety. If you are afraid that you won't get a better grade than what you got on your

last test. Or being afraid to not be able to live up to the expectations of someone else it may

cause you to be scared to even take the test. If you believe grades are what defines you then you

might get anxious to do well on your test and end up forgetting everything you learned while you

are taking the test. If you feel helpless, then you may give up and not even try (Causes).

What Studies Have Been Done on Color and Academics?

There are a lot of studies that have been done on color and academics. There was a study

that has been done on the color red. They found out that the color red can increase heart rate and

maybe even make you mad (Says). Another study was done on a monkey to find out how

monkeys process color. “​They logically concluded that the human brain processes color in the

same wa

What Factors Cause Test Anxiety?

When a student is scared that they may get a bad grade they can have test anxiety. Bad

study habits or even bad past test scores may lower your confidence (Scott). Adrenaline can also

cause t​y as our nearest living relatives,” Known as monkeys (Meacham). A study was done on

color to find out if people’s brains react the same way.

How Does Color Affect People's Brains?

Colors affect people’s brains in many ways. Colors can affect “​neurological pathways” in

the brain, which can create a biochemical response. If you use the right color, you can make a

person happy, sad, mad, calm and even hungry. This works because when someone looks at a

color their eyes send a signal to their brands to help them work. Just like when their body says
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they are hot the brain tells the body to start to sweat to cool the body down. (Gutierrez).

How Are Color Related To Emotion?

If colors are not important, then why do we have colors on stop lights, traffic lights,

anything with color? Color is important; it is used for almost everything. (Gutierrez). ​Colors with

different wavelengths have different effects on the eyes. ​Colors with low wavelength can make

someone more calm. Colors with high wavelength can do the opposite. ​Darker colors normally

will make the body feel more calm and/or sad. While lighter colors make the body feel more

chapper and energetic (Says).

Do All People Perceive Color The Same Way?

Scientist think that all people may not react to color the same way. People's brains react

differently to the different wavelength of colors. Blind people can't see color, to them either the

whole world in black and white. Or they just can not see specific kinds of colors (Do). If shapes

and colors are the same thing and affect the brain the same way (Pantone). Most colors in nature

correspond with colors in the environment (Kirkland).

I hypothesized that,​ if red paper would get a better score than white paper, and if it did

then colored paper is better than regular white paper. I​gathered up 10 of my friends. I gave

them a small math test with 36 questions on each, one with red paper and one with white. On

both test, everyone got under 3 minutes. The best time for red paper was 3:48, and the best time

score for white paper was 4:09. Both tests everyone got a 36/36. I came to a conclusion of it

does not matter what paper the test is on, unless its timed then use colored paper.
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Works Cited

Ascd. “Chapter 2. What Are Grades For?” What Are Grades For?,

www.ascd.org/publications/books/100053/chapters/What-Are-Grades-For%C2%A2.aspx

“Causes of Test Anxiety.” Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda University

Health, 2017,

medicine.llu.edu/education/medical-student-education/academic-resources/causes-test-an

xiety

“Do You See What I See?” Wonderopolis, National Center for Families Learning, 2014,

www.wonderopolis.org/wonder/do-you-see-what-i-see​.

Fleming, Ray. “The 5 Factors Which Affect School Performance.” Education,

blogs.msdn.microsoft.com/education/2011/07/24/the-5-factors-which-affect-school-perfo

rmance/.

Gutierrez, Karla. “Your Knowledge Is Your Virtue.” The Psychology of Color: How Do Colors

Influence Learning?, Karla Gutierrez, 10 Mar. 2016,

www.shiftelearning.com/blog/how-do-colors-influence-learning​.

Meacham, Margie. “How Color Can Affect Learning.” ATD, Association for Talent

Development , 28 Apr. 2015,

www.td.org/Publications/Blogs/Science-of-Learning-Blog/2015/04/How-Color-Can-Affe

ct-Learning​.
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.Kirkland, Kyle, and Sean M. Grady. Optics Illuminating the Power of Light. -book-

Pantone. “Color Think Tank - the Psychology of Color.” Pantone, Pantone LLC, 2017.,

www.pantone.com/color-psychology-how-does-color-affect-u​s

Says, Deborah. “Color Psychology: The Psychological Effects of Colors.” Art Therapy, 24 Dec.

2012, ​www.arttherapyblog.com/online/color-psychology-psychologica-effects-of-colors/

Scott, MS Elizabeth. “What Causes Test Anxiety?” Verywell, HONcode Standard for

Trustworthy Health, 2007,

www.verywell.com/coping-with-test-anxiety-and-assessment-stress-3145173​.