Administration’s response to the midterm pushback
Photo courtesy of Josh Davis (CC BY-ND 2.0)
The administration sent out an official notice regarding midterm procedures on Tuesday, Jan. 11. to all students and staff.
The return of midterms has created an uproar of stress and anxiety in students. Freshman and sophomores have never experienced the infamous high school midterms week due to the lost year, while juniors and seniors are studying their hardest for the best grade to send to colleges. The administration is aware of the concern and frustration students are experiencing.
“Don’t try to cram for the test, and just have good study habits,” Diliberto said.
Before COVID-19, midterms have been a requirement at West Essex every year. The pandemic took away midterms last year, so students are ultimately more stressed this year due to the lost time
However, the administration believes that it is best to treat this year as any other year, despite all of the abnormalities.
“Midterms are a combination of the first two marking periods, if you are doing your due diligence as a student then midterms are not scary,” Westervelt said. “The idea of a midterm can be scary to students, but once you’re taking it you’re like ‘wait, I know this’.”
Most of the student concern comes from the worry of missing midterms or midterm preparation due to COVID/having to quarantine. Although administration recognizes that this may be a possibility for some students, there will be no change in the midterm schedule or any interrupted education time for students returning from quarantine.
“We could accommodate students to test during their lunch time and after school,” Diliberto said. “We are not pulling students out of classes to make up midterms.”
The students that are quarantined the week of midterms will have to schedule their own time to make up the tests with their teachers. If a teacher is absent the week of midterms, they will need to make their own accommodations and arrangements for the students from home.
Midterms are an infamously stressful and nerve-wracking week for all students, especially this year. The administration knows this, but are standing strong on their belief that midterms are a necessity for both students and teachers.
“Midterms are an opportunity for teachers to get a check on their students and their progress in the class,” Westervelt said. “It is a proven successful way to benchmark students.”
Midterms are set to run this year, and the administration completely believes that it will be beneficial for both the students and teachers to take the tests, just as any other year.
