It’s been almost a decade since LFHS has had winter finals after winter break. Lake Forest is going back to this method this year, and this is the plan for the 2026-2027 school year, as well. To some, this can be viewed as a good thing because it pushes back the date of the actual exam. But for many, this is starting to become problematic.
Typically, finals fall during the last week of school before break. This way has been favored by the student body, as it provides students with a sense of clarity and accomplishment going into the next semester. The switch this year can be credited to the construction. Due to construction, school began a week later than usual this year. As a result, many schedules were changed, winter finals being one of them.
According to Princeton Alumni Weekly, 81% of students with January finals felt stress over winter break.
“I don’t like it,” said Junior Bella Goldfayn, “I feel like I’m going to be stressed out all winter break. And I feel like it also defeats the purpose of the break, which is to decompress. I won’t be able to decompress knowing that I still have finals to take when I come back to school.”
Having finals after break adds the factor of test anxiety for students, knowing that these tests are nearing after such a long break.
Sophomore Alba Zarazaga feels as if it’s going to be a burden over the break.
“I already know that I’m going to be so nervous throughout my break, which is just going to result in me not enjoying it,” said Zarazaga.
Grace Walsh and Elise Mancuso both pointed out that they feel like they will constantly have the thought of the incoming tests in the back of their minds, which is not something they are looking forward to. Mancuso also expressed that, considering students are already this worked up about finals so far in advance, it’s probably not the best idea.
When it comes to a teacher’s perspective, opinions begin to change. Having finals after break does give teachers time to further develop the tests and focus on what is most important in each class.
“I can understand why a student would be upset by this. I get it, they want to finish off the semester and go into break fresh. But as a teacher, this is actually super helpful,” said English teacher Mara Dukats, “It eases us into the second semester and allows us, as teachers, to spend more time with our colleagues really reviewing what is most important.”
