Finals are twice a year tests at the end of each semester. Finals are major grades, with extended testing time, and the content is everything learned in class for the whole year. Finals are used to see a student’s true mastery of the subject and determine their final grade for the semester. They are tests meant to help- made to be beneficial- but is that really the case?
Finals in Wylie ISD are fairly new. After being criticized for not having final exams, the students now have to take twice a year semester exams. However, it’s not as straightforward as it may seem. Unlike in college or other schools, exemptions can be granted to students who have few absences and high grades. These exemptions muddy the water- are these finals necessary? Are they really helpful anymore?
Finals are a good idea, but they are ultimately the wrong choice for Wylie ISD. Many students try to get exempt so that the final grade can simply be dropped. Moreover, students who aren’t counted as exempt simply don’t show up to the exam- and their grade gets dropped. It’s confusing and complicated and unnecessary.
Finals are different from unit tests or district assessments because they are tests over the entire course load, not just one unit. This can be very frustrating and overwhelming for students because they have so much to study and remember. This can lead to burnout and failure.
Final exams can be very stressful for high school students who already have a lot on their workloads. Not only that, but they can potentially negatively affect a student’s GPA. Due to the nature of the tests, they’re much harder to prepare for than regular tests, and can result in worse grades for the students. Not only promoting skipping school, finals might not accurately measure and reflect a student’s understanding of the material learned throughout the year.
Research even shows that final exams are not effective for high school students, and that they typically don’t capture a student’s full potential and understanding of the content. With all of this, finals should no longer be enforced or permitted.
