Exam season has come again and students are endlessly preparing for it. Freshmen LOTAs have found it harder to study for this year’s finals, due to unexpected guidelines about PBAs. Some classes have even switched from having a project due to having a seated exam. Freshmen have mixed opinions on these modifications.
Freshman Colleen Murphy, part of honors US government period 5 class, explained that her class changed from doing a project to a final exam, which she does not mind the switch.
“They are easier to prepare for, and I don’t have to work as hard,” she shared.
Freshman Kally Renfrew, enrolled in US government, period 7 class, shared that her class also changed from having a project to complete to taking to a test. She has similar opinions to Murphy and is not very bothered by the change.
“It’s less work. All you have to do is study instead of spending time and effort making a whole project,” she said.
Although certain freshmen do not mind the amendments to the final assessment methods, some do share some concerns with the switch. Freshman Izzy Luther thinks that the change from PBA to final occurred too close to finals week.
“I think that if new ideas want to be incorporated into PBA changes, they should do it at the beginning of the year,” she remarked. “It must be difficult for teachers having to switch plans.”
Not only did Luther’s government class participate in PBA changes, but also her honors English 1 class also made modifications to their PBA.
“In English, we have to do an in class writing portion during the PBA day. This change was shared with the class just a week before review week.” she expressed. “There is already so much work to complete, and sudden changes so close to finals mess with everyone and their plans.”
Luther also believes that working and completing a PBA is more beneficial in the long run than having a seated exam.
“I made a video presentation in the eighth grade and I still remember the information from it.” she explained. “You’d remember details about a project long term more than questions on a test.”
Teachers say that there are benefits for both PBAs and a final exam.
“A final exam offers excellent academic preparation for the future and it shows how much information students have retained. And a PBA can show greater creativity and the development of skills that are important to students in the 21st century.”
