The road to midterms has begun and stress is building as students begin to prepare for the high-stakes exams ahead.
Midterms are required for all full-year classes as either an exam or an alternative project, though for semester classes it is considered a final for the subject. They count as 10%, or 20% for semester classes, of students’ course grades. This year’s exams will take place from Jan. 21-24 with a modified schedule of two two-hour exams daily.
According to a Harbinger survey of 134 students via Google Forms from Dec. 12 to Dec. 15, 72% of respondents said their midterms at Algonquin were either extremely stressful or very stressful. In addition, 58% percent of students reported spending over three hours studying for a single midterm.
Although midterms can be stressful, Principal Sean Bevan believes they are necessary for the development of both students and teachers.
“There was a decision made to keep giving midterms because they provide really important information about how kids are progressing in classes,” Bevan said. “They also provide a lot of important and valuable information to teachers about what instructional strategies they are employing.”
Bevan and the administrative team have spent a lot of time working on the structure of midterms and their schedule, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. They debated their necessity and explored ways to make them less stressful.
“I just know that students’ baseline stress is always pretty high, and I think it probably rises during [midterms],” Bevan said. “My hope is that the way we have [the schedule] structured, students really do have a lot of extra time and free time during that period of time.”
Eighty-six percent of survey respondents claimed that they liked the midterm schedule and they found it “very helpful.” When asked to rank on a scale of 1-5 how much the schedule relieved their stress, 42% of respondents ranked it at 3, “somewhat helpful.”
During this time of year, many students struggle with time management, as classes, clubs, sports, homework, and midterms increase stress and tension among students. Sophomore Hannah Regan, a student-athlete, relates to many students’ stress levels during this time. She believes that the exam week schedule increases her flexibility for studying.
“One of the biggest responsibilities during this time is time management,” Regan said. “I have to find a balance between hockey and the necessity of studying for each class. I like how the schedule leaves room for more studying opportunities.”
Midterms vary depending on the subject in terms of objectives, structure and content. Math teacher Gwen Fazio sees math midterms as cumulative tests covering material learned throughout the year, which differs from taking a midterm on one specific topic.
“For math midterms, I look at the midterm as how much have you mastered from this year so far,” Fazio said.
Many teachers, like Fazio, believe midterms also allow students to learn to study for big tests, helping them prepare for college and future learning, where more high-stakes exams take place.
“When I was in college, my grade was made up of a midterm and a final, and that’s it,” Fazio said.
English teacher John Frederick had similar experiences, with higher stakes testing in college, where, in some cases, the midterm and final were each 50% of a class’s final grade.
“Having high stakes exams in high school helps students prepare for them in college,” Frederick said.
Frederick has experience teaching the same classes as other English teachers, such as Freshman English and Sophomore English. Recently, the administrative team has encouraged teachers of the same course to make their exams similar to each other to avoid unfairness.
“We are trying to have similar exams to other teachers here at Algonquin so the experience is similar, not the same but similar,” Frederick said
Frederick values midterms and works to keep his midterms as similar to students’ class experiences as possible. He strives to test his students’ abilities while keeping his midterms fair because of the high-stress nature of the exams.
“I grade [midterms] with a different lens than I would if I assigned a class an essay to write over two weeks,” Frederick said. “I just want to see where students are as readers and writers because that’s what English class is about.”
According to students, midterms come with both positives and negatives, making them stressful but also essential for student success. Students have various views on the necessity of midterms and their value. Fifty-two percent of survey respondents believe that midterms don’t help them learn more.
“[Midterms] are arbitrary and do not promote true learning,” one survey respondent said. “All they teach is how to memorize a bunch of stuff for a test, only to forget about it immediately afterward.”
Other students are more comfortable with midterms, and 5% of survey respondents said that midterms should be more than 10% of final grades.
“I actually don’t mind them, and I feel like it is a good checkup to your understanding of all of your class material,” another survey respondent said.
Multi-subject peer tutoring has recently been introduced in preparation for midterms to help alleviate student stress. National honors societies around the school strive to help fellow students with their midterm prep and improve their mindset and experiences.
While the stress of midterms overwhelms many students, Frederick believes that as long as students work hard and do their best, the exams won’t impact them as much as they think.
“I feel like we as teachers play a role in trying to help students understand, yes it is high stakes exams; it’s a big exam, it counts, prepare, but it is not the be all and end all,” Frederick said. “I just hope students can take a break sometimes.”