As the school year comes to an end, students begin preparing for one of the most stressful parts of their year: final exams. These tests are designed to measure how much students have learned over the semester and how well they retained the information. However, many students question whether these exams actually help their grade, or if they have simply become another source of stress.
For many students, finals are seen as an opportunity to raise their grade in the class because they count as a summative and can often replace lower test scores. As a result, students are motivated to review past material, put in more study time and seek extra help.
However, finals can often be associated with stress and anxiety rather than productivity. This is due to the fact that students are expected to prepare for multiple different tests in a short period of time while also managing other responsibilities, such as projects or state testing. This large workload can make students feel overwhelmed and pressured.
“ I feel stressed just because I have a lot to study for in addition to other schoolwork like AP exams and EOCs…I’m worried about my score,” freshman Prital Srikanth explained.
Additionally, the pressure of getting a good score on these exams can actually lower performance levels, even when a student knows the material. This is because the added stress, fatigue and nervousness plays a key role in a student’s test taking ability. For example, the Harvard Graduate School of Education explains that changes in levels of cortisol, a stress hormone, can hurt how students perform during testing.
Beyond stress and grades, there is also a debate surrounding whether these exams are an accurate measure of intelligence or understanding. While they are intended to assess a student’s knowledge, some argue that a single test can not represent a student’s abilities.
“We learned so much over the course of one semester, and a final can only cover so much,” Srikanth said.
Despite these concerns, final exams can encourage certain students to build strong academic habits. Preparing for a final pushes students to organize material from the entire semester and use effective time-management and study strategies to help them succeed and strengthen their long-term learning skills.
“Getting everything from the semester ready, and finding ways to study through outside resources, can be good skills,” Spanish teacher Ms. Rachel Heit said.
Additionally, finals can show whether information truly stuck with students over time. If they learned the material well, then it will be harder to forget even after a long time. However, it is also important to acknowledge students can simply relearn material for the test and are not retaining important information, making these exams an imperfect measure of knowledge.
In the end, while this exam can boost a grade, it comes at a cost. Final exams can provide students with a beneficial boost to their grade, helping to improve it and encourage stronger study habits. However, they can also create significant stress and may not represent a student’s level of academic abilities.
