With the week of Advance Placement (AP) testing on the horizon, stress is increasing for students and teachers. The testing weeks have an adjusted schedule due to morning and afternoon exams. As students prepare for their exams, a confusing and ever-changing schedule for an already stressful week is the last thing that WCHS students need.
It is hard to ensure a great schedule for these two weeks of testing where students are missing classes for exams or do not feel the need to go due to the lack of assignments and instruction. No matter what schedule is implemented, testing will always be a huge stress cause for many students especially since WCHS students tend to take quite a few.
The schedule will include “A days”, “B days”, “C days” and days with the normal schedule. On “A days” students who have morning exams come to school at 8 a.m. and students who do not will come to school at 12:30 for periods one through three each class being 25 minutes and an advisory period between periods one and two. . “B days” are very similar but students will attend periods six through eight. On the one “C day,” students not taking the AP English Language exam or practicing for graduation will attend all classes starting at 12:30 for about 13 minutes a class.
While an alternative schedule is needed during testing weeks when many students will not be in class for at least one day, introducing a lack of consistency is not beneficial during an already stressful week. A good alternative would be to retain the two-day rotation schedule that was during the 2022-2023 school year with just “A days”, “B days” and full school days with a normal bell schedule.
With consistency being a big factor for personal success, having disrupted schedules during testing not only can be difficult to calm student’s nerves but also does not encourage students to attend school days before exams. Since a lot of students are taking tests and students do not go to all their classes every day, most teachers are not assigning new material.
While there is not really a great alternative for the current testing schedules since students are excused from school the day of their exams and lots of students take exams, the current schedule does have its downsides.
Some may believe an alternative schedule is beneficial for testing weeks because it takes some of the pressure off of students constantly being loaded with assignments. This can be helpful to allow students to have extra time to study, sleep and relax inorder to adequately prepare for their exams.
It is still evident that having an irregular schedule during a time as stressful as AP exams can add additional stress and encourage students not to feel the need to attend classes due to a lack of assignments. The mix of “A days”, “B days”, “C days” and regular school days during testing creates added stress on students due to the lack of consistency.
