Pranav Jothirajah

Due to complications from the new hybrid and virtual programs, finals for the first semester this year will look different than the finals of previous years.

According to Assistant Principal Toby Steele, the school will not adjust the daily schedule for finals and hybrid students will take finals–if they have them–during their normal class periods. Virtual students will take any exams online. Additional changes include the lack of the Skip-a-Final program.

Despite the changes, Steele said there should be little change in the overall experience.

“Our focus remains unchanged–create a supportive environment for students to complete final assessments that is free from disruption and/or distraction,” Steele said via email.

However, despite those assertions, sophomore Harry Zheng said the experience will feel different.

“You’re having more of (the finals) consecutively, so it’ll be more tiring,” he said.

Unlike previous years, hybrid students cannot leave the building if they do not have a final for a class. Both junior Sarah Warf and Zheng said they preferred having the ability to leave the building if they didn’t have a final.

“That’s one of my favorite parts of finals week,” Warf said. “So it’s a little disappointing that I can’t leave after my finals because normally I would take my finals and go downtown and get coffee or something. So that’s gonna be disappointing, but this year I feel like it’s for the best.”

According to Steele, teachers will continue to have the freedom to create their own final exams or projects or they can ultimately decide whether or not to even have an exam or project at all.

“Much like in the past, teachers will be collaborating with their colleagues to create a final assessment that is appropriate for their students/course,” Steele said.

For her part, Warf said her math exam will be more conceptual this year than in the past due to the unique nature of this school year.

“I think it might be a little less stressful. If I don’t have to worry as much about solving everything and I get to focus more on what I actually know, and if there’s a couple finals I don’t have to take, that’d definitely be nice,” she said, “but I think it’ll definitely be less stressful on the students which is great in this whole period of time.”

In addition, while students in the Greyhound Cohort complete their Blue Day finals on Dec. 18, Carmel Cohort students will have an “Orange” Day, meaning they will have no exams left and individual teachers will determine assignments.

According to Steele, the administrators have already started working on the finals schedule for the second semester.

“We are currently working on the second semester schedule,” he said. “It is our intent to keep final assessment week like it is the first semester, adjusting as needed.”

Despite the changes, Warf and Zheng said they feel prepared to take their finals.

“It’s not too big of a difference from what we had last year so I think it’ll still be manageable,” Zheng said. “You’ve still got the full 90 minutes, so I think it won’t be too bad.”

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