Winter break begins December 22. There are three weeks and four days of school between Thanksgiving break and winter break.
NC teachers are finishing their last couple of weeks of content before preparing for finals. Most classes spend the week before finals week reviewing the information students learned throughout the semester. The first day of finals is December 18.
Robert Mobley teaches AP Human Geography and United States History. During the two weeks following Thanksgiving break, in both classes, Mobley finishes final topics and final days of direct instruction before reviewing with his students.
“I like to have my classes relax and recharge to get ready for the final,” said Mobley, “In both of my classes, US History and AP Human, for a couple days, we just watch a movie and relax and then we get the study guides out after that, and spend probably Wednesday through Friday doing our review for the final.”
Mobley plans out every day of the semester during the summer so he can stay on track and have enough time to review for finals.
Seniors Abby Hastings and Nora Cesljarev are wrapping up final units for the semester in most of their classes. As they finish learning their final pieces of content, they begin to think about their most challenging finals.
“Right now, we are doing the same level of stuff we have been doing all year, not any more challenging, but with preparing for finals at the same time it feels like more,” Cesljarev said.
During the week before finals when teachers review, students also spend extra time after school to study more in-depth for their classes.
“To prepare, I start studying early and just take a little bit of time every day for all of my classes,” Hastings said.
Many students feel stressed and anxious when classes start to finish content and review for the final. With the holiday season at the same time as finals, many students feel overwhelmed with added concerns.
“I think finals are stressful and it is awful if you celebrate holidays like Christmas and because Christmas and the last day of finals are so close, it feels like you don’t really have time to relax and celebrate the holiday,” Hastings said.
Mobley understands the stress finals cause for students, but he also understands the importance of students taking finals in high school.
“Finals can put stress on students, especially because it is worth 20 percent of your grade, and I know there is a lot of talk about reducing the number of finals,” Mobley said, “I understand that, but what concerns me about getting rid of finals is that it’s not prepping kids for college where you are definitely going to have final exams and midterms and things like that.”
There is a debate among students and staff about if upperclassmen should take finals. Despite rumors, all NC students are taking finals in the first semester of the 2023-2024 school year.
