Even though most students cannot wait for the end of the semester they know the end is not near without dreading over: finals. “Final’s week” is the week after classes at the end of the semester.
Students and faulty are given certain days for which their final will take place. Even though most teachers are tired and waiting for the semester to be over just like the students, they have to put together final projects and tests to conclude the end of the semester.
I believe that students and teachers can agree that finals are not their favorite thing in the world but something that just has to be done. It allows the students to show what they have learned all semester. After talking to many professors, I realize teachers have many different opinions are how to finish up the class before they go on break.
“One way to look at finals is as a collective experience,” professor Vonya Womack, instructor of business administration said. “I always try to provide students with essay questions where they can provide information and critical thinking on concepts they took away from the course and apply those to their areas of study whether it is biology, exercise science, theology, business or another area.”
Most teachers just want to have two simple questions answered: What did the student learn over the process of the course? Did the student take away the main components of the coursework?
I personally don’t think finals are a horrible idea, but it also depends on the class. I believe that final projects and papers are more effective than a test where students have to go and study everything they learned through out that semester. I honestly think that it is setting students up to do poorly.
Most teachers understand that most students have four or five other classes they have to juggle at the same time. Sometimes it’s hard to process that teachers expect course work from over five months to be studied and put into one test.
“For me final exams are like the finish line to the semester,” professor Eric Malm, instructor of business administration said. We’re all tired and have been running around. The challenge for students is to keep focused, and keep studying until the end.”
Also Malm talked about how it is a challenge for teachers is get the finals all graded quickly, collected and graded so he can get the grades in to the registrar ASAP.
“I think finals are a good way to gauge how far your students have come from the beginning of the semester to its conclusion. Overall, I believe it’s necessary for the structure of the class,” communications, professor Derek Jones. “It’s a stressful time of year for students and professors but the overall mission of finals is to make your students better. I think the exam process helps accomplish that.”
Finals mean it is the end of the semester and a long break is ahead of us. Studying is worth it and if students just stick it out until the end, your transcript will shine with the good grades you wanted.
