Coming back from Christmas break signifies many things: it’s a new year, second semester is in arm’s reach, but yet, finals are also right on top of us. The notorious 90 minute, seemingly endless, painstaking tests that either make or break your grade are in front of our faces now. Taking finals in the order of a regular school day schedule would be nothing short of cruel due to the lack of breaks and the chance that kids could have a high number of finals in one day. To avoid this, an entirely different schedule for finals was created. Here are some pros and cons of the LFHS Final Exam schedule.

Most people don’t have their heads in a very positive place when finals roll around. Finals are a bully to the LFHS student body, but are nonetheless an unavoidable necessity of the American education system. 

The way the periods are ordered for the schedule is perhaps one of the biggest pros. Two of the three days begins with one of the three lunch periods. Tuesday with 4th period and Wednesday with 5th. The reason for this is so that on at least one out of the three days, kids will have a period off to either sleep in and rest, or have more time to study for a big final.

With only three periods of testing per day, with each lasting 90 minutes, all three days end at 2:15, an entire hour early than normal days. This allows students to be able to get home earlier and study longer. Or, they are able to go get help from teachers for a longer duration due to the earlier end time.

In between each of the periods of testing are two 30 minute breaks. These breaks are one of the best and biggest pros of the finals schedule, along with the period alignment. Going from period to period, final to final, would no doubt take a large toll on all students’ ability to transition from each test and prepare. These breaks allow students to rest and reboot for their next test as well as review and prepare.

While there may be a decent list of pros for the finals schedule, every pro has its con. Not to say that the LFHS Final Exam schedule was a waste of a creation, because it is actually very well thought out and helps students manage their time, it isn’t perfect. Here are some cons of the LFHS finals schedule.

As said before, the way the schedule is ordered is one of its biggest pros. However, it isn’t helpful to all students. We all know a few people who take seven classes, barely eat lunch due to them having to tend to their truck load of homework and studying, and are always stressed due to the amount of work and responsibility they are exposed to. The finals schedule is made more for the students that have at least one study hall, so that their lunch period isn’t their only break. That being said, there are some of the academically overloaded students that are left with even more stress due to having multiple and maybe even full days of finals.

Perhaps the biggest con of the schedule is one of its biggest pros. The order of the schedule has been mentioned twice and will now be mentioned for a third. The order, as said before, is very beneficial to most students. However, the third and final day begins with period 8, a non lunch period. The third and last lunch period falls on the last time block of the second day on the schedule. The reasoning for this? Not a clue. It would seem more proactive and helpful to students to begin each day with a lunch period so that one of the three days they could begin with a break.

Finals week is not the happiest of times for students at any school. The tests are long and arduous and will always present stress to a young student. There are more pros than cons when it comes to the LFHS Final Exam schedule, however. You may not be very optimistic when Finals week rolls up, but hopefully you will look at the pros of the schedule and how it benefits you to make the week better for you.