Law School and Exams...

Every year during exam week I think of law school. In a misguided career pursuit I attended law school for a year after college. While I learned a lot, met a lot of great people and had mostly good experiences, I have always thought the system of education was ridiculous. As first year law students we all had the same courses. There were no elective options, and most surprisingly, no graded assignments. With the exception of my legal writing and research course, grades in every course were determined solely by performance on an end of year exam. We spent the entire year reading, researching, arguing, discussing, but our entire grade for a course came down to one day in the spring. That's pressure...

Our exams at North may not carry as much pressure as the exams in law school, but exam week can be very stressful for a lot of students. Exam grades count for 20% of a student's semester grade. The semester grade is the only grade that shows on a transcript, and semester grades are the ones that count in determining a student's grade point average (g.p.a.). 20% can be a fairly significant number - enough to cause stress in many students.

Some recommendations for helping students deal with stress brought on by exam week:

* Sleep!! - Frequently students cram late at night and arrive sleep deprived which adds to an inability to handle stress, and negatively impacts their ability to perform on exams themselves. Research shows that 20 minute naps before and/or after studying can have a significant positive impact.

* Exercise - Physical exertion is a great stress reducer, and helps to clear the mind.

* Eat Healthy - Frequently students load up on junk food, caffeine and sugar while studying, which can have the effect of making them sluggish later, and impact their ability to think clearly.

* Eat Regularly - Skipping meals can cause irritability, lead to poor nutritional decisions later, and add to stress.

* Study over time - Instead of last minute cramming, short mini sessions leading up to a final study session can reinforce understanding, and minimize stress.

* Create a good study environment - A quiet space that is free of clutter and distractions is most conducive to productive studying.

Almost all of our teachers provide detailed study guides, and many post those guides on their websites. We encourage parents to visit teacher websites, know their child's exam schedule, and assist in promoting the stress reduction principles listed above. A student who has kept up with work throughout the semester, and plans and studies in an organized fashion will do very well.

If you are concerned about signs of stress, or your son or daughter's exam preparation, please don't hesitate to contact counselors, teachers and administrators.