I think that we can all agree the most stressful weeks of school is the one leading up to finals and the week of finals. You’ve got four classes  to study for and depending on the class, you have to go over things that were taught at the beginning of the semester.

Some teachers believe that having a huge final that includes everything in the quarter from the first to the last week and constitutes a huge chunk of your grade will help them see if you really know your stuff or not. With the late nights of studying comes with sleep deprivation, stress and, anxiety.

I understand that some subjects require a district test, but after we take the district test there is another test coming straight from the teacher. I know that Mr. Ross’s U.S. History classes have the district exam, his exam, and a final project–all in the last three days of class. Within a matter of three days some students will take up to six final exams that could make or break their grade.

I don’t think that it really proves everything that a student knows by giving a cumulative final in the last week of the semester. Every student learns differently, and if they don’t remember something from week one they have to stay up all night studying. There is no way a teacher can finish all of the units the district makes them do and them have time to thoroughly go over everything by the time test day comes around.

I understand high school is supposed to get students ready for college, but is throwing a 12-page packet that covers everything for the entire quarter and then expecting them to have it done correctly over a weekend and ready to take the test the next day the best way to do it?

All in all, you’re not alone because everyone has to go through the same thing. In the long run, I’m sure all of the late nights, endless hours of studying will pay off. If you are struggling with the workload and stress, talk to your teacher. We are lucky to have wonderful teachers at Rocky; I haven’t run into a teacher who wouldn’t stay after school to work with you one on one to ease your stress.

Good luck on finals, ‘Bos!