Are Semester Finals a Good Measurement of Learning?

With the end of the semester approaching, students are making final touches, turning in assignments, and preparing for those three stressful days of finals. Finals at Madison High School will take place on December 16th, 19th, and 20th. Finals are meant to test students on everything they have learned throughout the past semester. While this can be stressful for students, it is a method used by teachers to see how much information the student has really obtained.

“It’s stressful to make sure that everything is covered without it being too many questions. Finding a steady balance between covering everything and not making it too hard. I know teachers who used to make finals that were 200 questions,” said MCHS teacher Jake Shockley.

Another teacher, Bryan Dewitt stated, “ I try to think about all of the most important standards that I have covered and then I try to break it down equally, so each top receives an equal number of questions.”

Finals are meant to assess students on what they have learned, the knowledge that they have acquired, and whether or not they have met the curriculum standards. Students are supposed to demonstrate a passing level of course concepts, critical thinking skills, and/or academic writing skills. The question has risen whether or not these tests measure how much the students have learned or how much the students has memorized through cramming. Some educators believe it is beneficial and others argue that finals should not be the final measure that determines how much a student knows.

Shockley stated, “It does make it difficult that students are trying to study for everything in just three day but it’s indicative of the real world. In college you have a bunch of finals crammed together. In some college classes, the only two grades that students receive will be the midterm and final exam.

Dewitt stated, “It can be tough for students who take seven academic classes.”

Another form of finals that students may have to take is the Pivot exam. This is a standardized test that freshman and sophomores are required to take instead of a personalized final exam created by the teacher.A possible problem with these exams is that they were created by a state or local organization that may not follow the format that the students are familiar with. This puts lower-level students at a disadvantage because they enter the class with fewer skills than the average student, which, in turn, ends in a poor score for these students.

Shockley stated, “Pivot is a skills-based test that is supposed to somewhat accurately predict how a student will perform on ISTEP+. While I do see its benefits, I’m not sure that it is fair for struggling students to take as their final. Since their skills are so low already it will be difficult for them to make the improvement necessary to get a good score.”

English teacher Ronnie Lawhead stated, “We are at this crossroad in education where if we have a student that comes to us that is reading at a fifth grade level, then the Pivot exam probably isn’t a fair test. However, we are unsure of what test would be fair. If we have a student who is reading at a 10th grade level, and then someone who is reading at a 5th grade level, how would you create a fair test? The state says that we are supposed to cover certain standards, and that the students are supposed to have these skills. Whether a student can achieve those or not, the test is a good measurement of those skills.”

According Loudoun Public Schools in Virginai, a public school survey was conducted asking 28 middle and high school principals about the utilization of final exams. 57% said that exams should no longer be administered, 29% said that the exams should be taken in a different format, and 18% said they felt as if finals are meaningful and a true reflection of the students learning.

Dewitt stated, “Finals are important for high school students because it helps prepare them for college. It helps them remember the most important things that they have learned throughout the semester.

Whether students are really obtaining the material or just simply memorizing information at the last minute, the requirement of testing students at the end of each semester is here to stay for the foreseeable future.