By Aryana Wilson
Come June, Branford High School will keep the same schedule for end of semester assessments that it used for midterms this year and will not revert to an extended exam schedule that it used to do back in 2019.
Just like with midterms this year, there will be no separate longer exam schedule at the end of the year, which Principal Lee Panagoulias said allows for more of a project style end-of-course assessment.
Panagoulias said that keeping the project style would be what’s best for the students because the students have had it for the past two years and it wouldn’t be the best time to change back to the previous type of exam testing schedule.
The schedule for the last four days of school will follow a half-day schedule, with four classes meeting each day for one hour each. The schedule starts Thursday, June 16. The last day – June 22 – will be a make up day.
“The word exam is very limiting in how a student demonstrates what they can do,” Panagoulias said.
Under the old exam schedule, there were two exam periods a day for two-hours each spread over five days.
Most of the students like the Idea of keeping the end-of-semester schedule with a project focus and not going back to a separate two-hour exam period. Many students said that if they were taking a test during the two-hour period they felt overwhelmed and stressed.
Massimo Corrick, a junior, said “I feel stressed because the tests are timed and we need more time to give our answers. Also people were going home after the tests because they were so long.”
Taylor Tracy, a junior, said ”knowing that I have to memorize and know everything for a test makes me feel stressed out. Also I think that the test would be harder for the people with AP or honors classes because they already have to take end of year tests.”
Puneet Benipal, a junior, said that she would rather have the project than the test but she also said that the test would have been easier if they were allowed notes to look back to during their test to help remind them of some things that they learned.
Not everyone wanted to stay with the project style. Some say we should get rid of the midterms and finals and we should have discussions.
Aaliyah Darden, a junior said, “I would want the test because it would be easier and I think it would take less time to do.”
Mr. Panagoulias said that for seniors that have above an A in their class then their teachers can decide not to let them take their end of year assessment.
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