Exam time is the most dreadful yet exciting time of the year for students everywhere. Students are finishing the semester, but it is stressful for everyone to ensure grades are up to date with the exams they are about to take. Exams are worth 20% of your grade. Students wonder why we have to take these exams. Any teacher answers it with the statement that it shows growth throughout the year and measures test-taking skills that everyone expects you to have. You can be exempt from the test with semester classes, but with year-long courses, you must take them at the end of the first semester. We should have the ability to be exempt from exams the first semester in year-long courses.

When teachers put the grades in, that exam could either make or break you. That grade is final. It sits and affects the conversation at home with your parents. They last and tamper with how the first two terms look on the end of the first-semester report cards. Why should we even take exams at all?… They should not determine someone’s intelligence. Trying to remember everything you have learned from August to December does not seem like a realistic goal for students to achieve. Allowing students to be exempt in the first semester would release stress and prevent breakdowns and meltdowns from trying to stay afloat with grades. Also, teachers would have less anxiety as they are already preparing for Christmas with their families and finalizing grades in the second nine weeks as if they do not already have a heavy load on them.

Although exams seem important, year-long class exams at the end of the first semester should acquire the chance to be exempt just as semester classes are. Getting rid of having no choice but to take the exams at the end of the year helps students feel less stressed, as well as teachers. School systems should take a look into this. Brandon High, what do you think?