Students have been studying and preparing for the upcoming midterm season. Especially after last year, some of these students worry that midterms will be harder after not having end-of-course exams for almost two years.

Junior Noella Senra is worried about properly preparing for her midterms with all of her other obligations. She said, “I’ve been doing pretty well in my classes, but I have so many other activities that I’ve barely had any time to study. Normally I’m pretty good with tests, but midterms are a totally different story because I have to remember everything I’ve learned.”

Meanwhile, senior Madison Ferrell is concerned about this year’s testing after not taking any exams her junior year. She said, “I would say I am prepared, though it has been difficult to get into that intense studying habit again since we didn’t have midterms last year.”

On the other hand, senior Lauren Barnes feels as if her midterms this year will be easier than in the past. She said, “I’d say I’m pretty prepared for midterms this year mostly because my midterms are project-based, so it’s more about applying my knowledge than the memorization that usually comes with taking a test.”

Senra is also worried about the amount of work that she has on top of her midterm preparations. She said, “I’m kind of swamped with homework right now, and I’ve had to prioritize studying for my classes instead of doing the regular work for the classes. For example, my AP Seminar presentation is due the day before midterms start, and I’ve barely had any time to do it.”

However, being a senior, Ferrell doesn’t have as many classes and therefore doesn’t have as much preparation to do. She said, “Preparing isn’t as bad this year since I really only have a few classes where the tests are important to study for. The other classes are reflections or presentations, which is very different from the years before.”

Barnes is also feeling confident with her preparations. She said, “Midterm prep hasn’t really interfered with my regular school work too much, except that I had to put some prep in for midterms rather than doing some class work that I needed to catch up on.”

For Senra, she is a little worried about how the midterms will be different now that she is an upperclassmen. She said, “I’ve only had one year of midterms and I believe there will be a huge difference between freshman and junior midterms. I’ve also been out of practice because of the weirdness last year.”

Ferrell is worried about her tests because she finds it difficult to remember how they went. She said, “I don’t really remember how the other tests have been in the past few years, so I’m nervous about what will be provided and the process of the tests.”

On the other hand, Barnes feels as if she will be comfortable taking her midterms thanks to help from her teachers. She said, “At first I was nervous about midterms, but I have a lot of good teachers that have made them less stressful as they are doing less traditional testing styles and are very helpful. I also work well under pressure, so midterms have gone well for me in the past.”

Senra is also worried because she believes she is taking harder classes than she’s normally used to. She said, “Midterms will definitely be harder because it’s two years later, and I’m in way harder classes that require a lot more memorization.”

For Ferrell, she believes that midterms will be slightly easier because of how the teachers are choosing to make them this year. She said, “It’s different in that the tests have a possibility of being easier since most of them are essays and presentations, where in the past all of my classes were normal tests and we didn’t have other opportunities provided for us.”

Barnes agrees, believing that midterms will be easier to handle when they aren’t just the traditional long multiple choice tests. She said, “My midterms are project based, so they are different from the big tests we are normally used to. I think they will be different this year because the teachers are going the extra mile to help their students do well. Since students haven’t taken a midterm in over a year, I think the teachers are preparing students so that they won’t be nervous during their tests.”

Exams begin on Thursday, Dec. 16 and will continue on Friday, Dec. 17 and Monday, Dec. 20. For more information, visit Mr. Legan’s Smore newsletter.