Many students are feeling stress in the last few weeks before Winter and Summer vacation. The reason for their school-related anxiety is finals, a test that is taken once a semester for all of high school. Finals can come either in the form of presentations/projects or tests, but they cause equal panic nonetheless.  At North, finals run over the course of two days because of block scheduling. Students prepare for these grueling tests in different ways. For example, one may study steadily over the course of a week or so, while others may only study the night before. Some students even may choose not to study because they think they know all the information, but in my opinion, it would always be wise to review the course material, considering finals cover all topics from the beginning of the semester. (This is about 5 months of work.)

When asked if students prefer final exams or final projects, students unanimously voted for projects. “I prefer projects because they’re more entertaining and they relieve my test anxiety,” Janelly Baltazar said. Janelly is currently a senior at North who is involved in Repertory Theatre. “I take my finals seriously because they decide my fate after I graduate,” Janelly said.

Randy Griffitts, a journalism teacher at North, provided a teacher’s perspective surrounding the emotions associated with finals. “I would say that the amount in which they care about their grade goes up,” he said. “If you didn’t feel this much urgency towards your grade 7 weeks ago, why do you feel that urgency now?”