The end of the year is known to be a busy time of life for high school students. Spring sports are wrapping up, there are graduation parties, end of year projects and, of course, many tests. End of year testing can be stressful and overwhelming, with AP, IB, Keystones, and finals testing all happening around the same time. This year, the decisions for the finals schedule has sparked a largely negative reaction from students, as seen in a recent survey on the Township Times Instagram page.
Of the 61 students who participated in the poll, 83% of them voted “no” when asked if they were in favor of the finals schedule.
This year, finals are to take place during regular class times and students are to attend all of their other normal classes on test days. Finals will also be weighed as a summative grade, a change from the 5% weight seen last year. As the school begins to prepare for finals, some students and staff have raised concerns.
Some students are worrying that the finals schedule will leave them with less time to study and prepare. In past years, students have been able to come to school for their exam and leave once they are finished, which is not an option for testing this spring.
Junior Courtney Jackson is not in favor of this system.
“The new finals schedule is a lot worse than the old one. It makes no sense to go to class after working hard,” she says.
Additionally, the current plan is to have math and science finals on the same day. While some students had to have two finals in one day last year, the current schedule makes this situation more difficult. Students won’t have the extra time to study that they would have gotten by leaving school after their exam. Although some classes are able to test sooner than the recommended date, the plan is nonetheless inconsiderate of students.
“I don’t think it benefits students. When we were allowed to come just for the exams, it gave extra time at home to study or relax and recover. Having extra time made me more confident about taking the test,” says senior Kaitlyn Albrecht.
Last year, finals were administered in 1.5 hour time blocks, but they are now limited to the 50 minute class periods during the school day. This has led teachers to have to give two day tests, which is what took place for this year’s midterms. While this system still allows teachers to administer the testing material necessary, not all students approve of this process.
“I dislike the finals schedule because I hate having to take a final for 50 minutes and having to go about the rest of my day knowing I didn’t finish my test,” says sophomore Nora Huddack.
Several teachers who were interviewed but requested to remain anonymous also discussed their own aversions to the testing schedule. The main concern of these teachers was that having students coming to class all day leaves them with less time to grade final exams. For them, the swift turnaround from the test days to the end of the year creates a stressful and high-pressure situation. This could be a particularly significant issue for teachers who have to score long essays or projects.
The combination of increased workload for teachers and students alike could mean that the other class periods on the days surrounding finals will involve less engaged or meaningful activities. Overall, the current plan for finals adds unnecessary stress and creates a school environment that doesn’t consider the implications of testing on its students and teachers.
