According to the Derry Township School Website, finals are exempt for seniors or AP students who have an A average or higher grade in the class for the full year. Shouldn’t that be the same circumstance for every student?
If a student shows their academic abilities throughout the whole school year, there should be no reason to repetitively prove what they’re capable of in a 50 question exam. If a student knows that they do not have to take the finals depending on their performance in the class, they will be more motivated to do well throughout the school year. It’s completely unfair that only the senior class/AP students have this option especially because in college the tests and exams are way more advanced. If anything, seniors should be taking the finals to prepare for that kind of testing in college.
There is a philosopher named Hans Selye that came up with the General Adaptation Syndrome theory. His theory is how our body responds to stress, first the Alarm Stage. This is when we panic and become anxious about the situation at hand. The second stage is the Resistance Stage which is when we try to respond and cope with what is causing stress. The final stage is after the event happens we become extremely exhausted, sometimes even sick because of the amount of stress that was caused. This is called the Exhaustion Stage. Obviously exams and finals bring a tremendous amount of stress to students’ lives. It should not be necessary to go through the overwhelming process of finals if students have already proved themselves beforehand.
Some students are also naturally not good test takers. Someone could work hard all throughout the year and choke up on a final which can lead to their average going down. One final does not measure one’s effort, time, and success in a course. There are many other assessments that can accurately show how much a student understands the material. Things like projects, essays, or presentations provide creativity as well as intelligence.
In the real world there will be no tests or exams to do a job. There is no point in making students go through the stress of taking an exam when it wont even benefit them in the future. These rules are completely unfair and the student body should work together to make a change.
