WOODBURY — The weeks following winter break are anything but relaxing. With midterms coming up quickly, students at Nonnewaug High School have different opinions on these huge tests.
While midterms show how students are progressing so far, do NHS students really feel they benefit from these annual tests?
“I think that every once and a while they help summarize information and organize everything in your head because you have to study for them,” said Grace Rubacha, an NHS sophomore. “It’s way too much, especially since we have all the NWEA testing.”
With midterms, finals, AP exams, NWEA testing and even SATs, students are presented with test after test. Some NHS students are concerned with midterms this year.
“I’m scared; I don’t want to do them,” said NHS sophomore Nasir Stevenson. “I have a 50 in most of my classes, and if I fail, my grade will drop even more.”
Students have already begun stressing about these tests. Students have a variety of ideas about what they want their test to look like. Most departments at NHS usually do a project, an exam, or even a mix of both.
“I feel like [the midterm] would be more beneficial to have more of a project that is more skill-based and not just memorization on an exam,” said Amy Byler, an NHS senior.
Just like the students, the teachers also have a variety of ideas for their midterms.
“The ability for you to sit for that amount of time, you have to train your body to do it,” NHS agriscience teacher Kathleen Gorman said. “You guys need to learn how to study and learn how to sit down and work through a problem.”
While many teachers agree with an exam for their midterm, others lean towards a project style. While it’s very different from an exam, a project is a more creative way to show what the students have learned this far into the year.
“Personally I like a project style,” said Kate Peterson, the NHS French teacher, “when the student can use everything they’ve learned and put it to use in a manner that is creative and interesting.”
The teachers and most students here are familiar with midterms — except for this year’s freshmen.
“I think they are really pointless because they are only a placeholder for the grades and you don’t get to practice what you’re learning from them,” said NHS freshman Sofia Figlar. “The exam is a lot and it’s stressful.”
With Nonnewaug bringing in a new principal this year, more questions begin to arise about midterms and what they will look like in the future.
“I think we got to a point in the end of October early November and we didn’t have a really good plan in replacement,” NHS principal Mykal Kuslis said. “People are a quarter into this school year and they have their things planned, so we’ll probably just keep them at least for this point until we have a better plan thought out.”
