As finals week approaches students reach for their flashcards, stay up late going over material, and cram for their last few tests before the summer. Finals week can be long and difficult especially when you take harder classes that were meant to challenge you. One thing that can help you during this stressful week is knowing what works best for you.

Some students believe that having an organized plan going into finals week helps you be more prepared and confident. On the other hand, some students still believe that the best way they can finish their finals with a good score is by cramming at the last minute. 

Senior Paige Hibbard is an example of a student who loves to be prepared and have weeks to go over material. She believes that the more time you have the less stressed you will be. She says, “I love to use access periods to study and ask my teachers for study guides.

I feel like being prepared helps me be less stressed. When I know what I’m doing I feel a lot more confident. Then I feel better and know what I need to do if I’m still stressed in a certain area of material for my class.”

There can be benefits to cramming as well as downsides. Looking short term, the pressure of your test can make you concentrate for a longer period of time. Also, you can retain facts faster, but only temporarily.

The downside to cramming is the fact that you won’t remember key facts after you take your test. Long term it will be really hard to remember what you learned which may be important for your future. Additionally, there is a higher chance of stress and fatigue you can cause yourself because of staying up late.

Junior Justine Sheets is currently getting ready for her third year of finals. She talks about how cramming for her Spanish final is going to hurt her more than help her. She explains, “I usually review old material and sometimes I will make Quizlet’s to study from. However, this year I’m cramming for Spanish, which isn’t the best thing to do. My short-term memorization will be affected and that won’t help me next year when I take AP Spanish Lang.”

Finals may be a challenging time for all students who participate but when you master what your body can handle and know how you can study the most efficiently you will be set for the rest of your high school years.