As I skimmed over my exam schedule for this year, I couldn’t help but notice that it was completely out of balance. My fall and spring term exams were nothing out of the ordinary, but my winter exam schedule was simple: a list of all of my winter term courses. I assumed that I had been very fortunate in the past and that this was just an unforeseen horror of junior year, but when I asked around it seemed other people were complaining about the same thing. Even some of the lucky individuals who had no exams in the fall regret that they’ll be going from zero to five exams in the course of two terms. Third formers aside, it looks as if Choate students of all academic backgrounds are in for a treat this winter as virtually every core class is covered in the winter exam schedule.
Now, I’m not one to confront the administrators and fervently demand an explanation for the lopsided exam schedule, and I’m not about to complain about my five exams this term – at least not yet. However, I will say that this administrative decision has left me completely lost, with little hope of hearing a satisfactory explanation. Admittedly, I don’t know all of the factors involved in planning for the academic year, and maybe it’s way over my head. However, from where I stand as a fifth form student, the exam schedule does nothing but compound my fears and stress over what already appears to be a very busy winter.
For the three years that I’ve been here, I’ve had a different exam schedule each time. Freshman year, the exams were well spaced throughout the year and I had plenty of time before each one to make sure that I was fully prepared. Last year, Choate decided to try eliminating fall exams altogether and instead assigned what was essentially another protected week for teachers to give final assessments on certain days during the last week of the term. This way, the teachers got to end the term with comprehensive exercises that ranged from projects to papers and tests. Some teachers were flexible and had the class agree on what they felt would be most beneficial for them at the end of the fall term. With no department-wide exams to structure their classes around, the teachers had much more freedom in creating their own syllabi that complemented each one’s unique teaching style. As far as I could tell, teachers and students alike seemed to benefit greatly from the experimental exam-less term the administration tried last year. Evidently, neither of the two methods worked, so this year we have a blend between them that’s no more manageable than before.
What Choate did this fall was to assign exams for AP courses and a few other classes. So, while many students began to find their way home for Thanksgiving break as early as the last day of classes, a concentrated minority of primarily upper form students was left fretting over exams in some of the most challenging courses Choate has to offer. Though I only had two exams, I had to study as extensively as if I had four or five, thanks to the fact that they were in my two hardest classes.
On top of that, I was one of the unlucky few whose break was cut almost in half because of the math exams on the last day. As if the break wasn’t short enough this year compared to last year, its length depended entirely on the level of the courses one was taking. This hardly seems fair for the students in AP courses who not only have another exam in the winter but the AP exam in the spring as well.
But why cry over spilled milk? Fall exams are done and over with, and though I didn’t pass them with flying colors, at least I didn’t fail them. What I’m more worried about are the winter exams. No matter who you are or what your classes are, taking four or five exams in the last stretch before spring break is no easy task. In fact, I believe that there are few things worse in life than coming out of an exhausting exam only to have another one a couple of hours later. And any fourth, fifth, or sixth former taking math and English classes will have to go through just that this winter.
From all of my experience here, I know by now that Choate isn’t about to get any easier for anyone. However, I am a little skeptical about the practicality and effectiveness of the current exam schedule. It just seems unbalanced and stressful, and that’s the last thing any one of us needs in our already hectic and full lives as Choate students. I’m not the first to notice the dramatic changes from last year’s straightforward and manageable schedule, and I sure won’t be the last to raise questions. I just hope that the administration can justify this rather unpleasant change of events, and that the school is willing to reevaluate the exam schedule and come up with one that is fairer and more balanced.
