With finals quickly approaching in mid December, teachers have begun to prepare.
Teachers understand that finals can be a stressful time for students, but they know some tips to help.
“The most important thing is that students don’t procrastinate,” Algebra I and Algebra II/Trigonometry teacher Diep Clunn said. “Your teachers are giving you the review packet for a reason. And if you do what they give you, then you will be prepared for it.”
Other tactics could help focus and motivation but every student has habits of their own that work for them.
“If you drink cold water, ice cold water, it kind of keeps you fresh and alert,” college counselor and AVID IV teacher Lisa Vasquez said. “Find a good place to study. You know, for some people, they need absolute quiet, right? Other people, they need a little bit of background, static noise.”
Time management is critical especially for students who have multiple finals during the week. Procrastination is a common problem for many teens and greatly affects worth ethics.
“[There is this author named] Cal Newport, he talks about a lot of different ways to become more efficient,” Vasquez said. “He actually did a study of looking at college students who are really successful. And [saw straight A-students] don’t just grind and study 24/7, instead, they’re really efficient with their time.”
During study week and finals, teachers also have work to do. To create the finals and study guides, teachers have to work to get materials out to students so they are prepared.
“To prepare for finals and study week, I have to make all the review materials,” Clunn said. “So I have to always double-check that my final and my review materials are very similar so that students are well prepared for the final.”
For an elective class, a final can look pretty different but similar concepts are still applied.
“When I was an English teacher, I would try to identify the key themes and skills that I wanted to measure and see whether or not my students had made progress,” Vasquez said. “In an elective class, you’re still applying those same ideas, but it may look a little different…So in my case, for example, although I do have a timed writing assignment as part of AVID, the curriculum is that they’re going to do a Socratic seminar on a topic after having read some sources.”
It is necessary to make sure teachers are ready by having all their assignments graded and work done.
“I check that all my review materials are up to date, and I make all my copies,” Clunn said. “I also need to make sure that all my grades are up to date because if students want to turn things in late, they need to do it by the end of study week.”
Studying for finals can also be confusing but Clunn shared how you can study more effectively.
“I would recommend making study groups with people who are like-minded,” Clunn said. “It could be like an after-school thing, going to Starbucks, going to Boba, getting a drink. Because I think if you’re with people who are studying the same thing, it motivates you to do better.”
Communication and group work can be extremely helpful for preparing for finals. Creating study groups and talking to teachers prior to the finals can better prepare students.
“You have to realize that sometimes you actually learn so much when you’re talking to somebody if you’re sharing or expressing an idea,” Vasquez said. “And sometimes, too, you know, I’ve had students come back and tell me in college when they went to office hours, the professor actually gave hints about what was gonna be on the final just by going to office hours.”
