Students Preparing for Midterm Exams

With the semester ending in just a few weeks, students have all been preparing for their midterm exams. Testing will begin on December 12 through 16.

All students have different ways of preparing themselves for their exams.

“I plan on studying by using many of the techniques that I’ve learned throughout school, especially in AVID,” senior Andie Gifford said. “We learned a lot of studying techniques in AVID, so I’m planning on using those.”

Most like to use techniques that are meant to help them memorize the material.

“I will probably just be at home and do flashcards,” senior Alyssa Harris said. “That's my best thing to do.”

Others prefer to review their notes entirely.

“I’ll take a few days off and I’ll review my notes from class,” junior April Garcia said.

This year, seniors are able to exempt from semester-long classes, such as Government and Economics.

“I’m trying to exempt my semester-long classes, A.K.A. my Economics class,” Gifford said. “Economics is hard.”

Some seniors are unable to do so due to the demands of higher-level classes.

“I’m required to take one for Dual Credit Government,” senior Hailie Karanja said. “I cannot evade it since it’s a Dual Credit class.”

Others, however, look forward to challenging themselves by taking all of their midterms.

“I’ll be doing all my finals,” Harris said. “I kind of want to challenge myself a little bit.”

Despite this, some classes choose to make their midterms entertaining for both students and teachers alike.

“The test for that class isn’t a test, it’s a project,” senior Emilie Stewart said. “It’s a presentation. So that’ll be a fun thing to do.”

Another example of this is Cosmetology. Because it is a more hands-on class, the midterm is much less traditional than a core class.

“My cosmetology midterm is really important because it’s a mock for our state board,” Gifford said. “We do all of the steps, like the physical steps, that we do for hair and stuff. And then, we have the actual exam on paper, and that's all we do on our final day.”

For those who are either not exempting a certain class or are struggling with a course, studying is their best bet.

“Right now, I’m prioritizing Dual Credit Anatomy and Physiology, and AP statistics since they're my hardest courses,” Karanja said. “The rest of them I’m also prioritizing, but I have to make a list because realistically I can’t study everything.”

Higher-level classes are often top of the list for students who plan on taking the midterm.

“I am prioritizing Dual Credit Anatomy 2 and my Dual Credit English because those are the college classes that are going on my final transcripts for college,” Stewart said. “For the other ones, I just hope to get A’s and B’s in.”

Karanja states that she will use the reward mechanism to help her study for her upcoming exams.

“As I’m studying and I accomplish something, I don’t just keep pondering on myself,” Karanja said. “I just do a reward mechanism in which I get something afterward like five minutes of rest or a snack or something like that.”

Many have done their best to find healthy ways to destress.

“I like to focus on music and just give that time to relax,” Harris said. “And get my hair done.”

Others, such as the Dual Credit and AP students, have turned to screaming, retail therapy, and caffeine as a way to cope with stress.

“I’ve been drinking a lot of coffee,” Stewart said. “Is that really destressing? Probably not.”

Luckily for most students, the upcoming break has become their source of motivation to get through the testing week.

“It’s a motivator because I know right after the test I’m gonna be happy,” Garcia said.

According to Stewart, her sense of motivation is her education beyond high school.

“Recently I was contacted by Texas State and told that I was being considered for a scholarship. It’s a full-ride scholarship,” Stewart said. “I don’t know how likely I am to get that, but if I do get it, that’s pretty good motivation for trying to stay on top of my stuff.”

While the exams have created tension for the students, Christmas break has surely created something for them to look forward to.

“It’s like ‘you only got this much to go,” Harris said. “Then you can just louse around as much as you want.”

Celebrations are in order, for students have worked hard this semester. Some have already started on ways to congratulate themselves.

“After the midterms, I plan to save up and get a laptop,” Karanja said. “I’m gonna use my winter break after midterms to work and get a laptop afterward. That’s my reward.”

Written by: Allison Kuon, senior