The week of school before winter break is a mix of excitement and stress. The anticipation of the holidays combined with the studying for midterms makes for a very busy week, and by that last Friday, everyone is ready to go home and relax for two weeks. This year, midterm tests were held in the library and the newly renovated Neff Gym, unlike year past. Classes were held on the final Friday before winter break, also different from last year. This new setup of the week caused some stir in the school community, with many different opinions on this year’s schedule. Several teachers and students spoke out about what everyone thought of the slightly different setup of this year, and what the schedule might look like for next year.

For the underclassmen, having midterms before break is all they have ever known here at Friends. Up until two years ago, midterms were held in January closer to the end of the Interim, and when they were held in December for the first time, there was tons of positive feedback. “I thought midterms worked out this way, before break, because it allows break to be more relaxing,” remarked Sarah Brennan-Martin ’15. Lena Urick ’17 agreed: “I love having time to regroup after the tests.”

With the renovations of the Neff Gym, theatre, and atrium finished, the exams were held in the Neff Gym for students without extended time and the library for those with extended time. This was a new way of setting up the tests, one that generated some mixed responses. Erica Rodi ’17, who qualifies for extra time for her exams, weighed in on taking her exams in the library: “Overall it was okay; some teachers were very good about coming to the library to answer questions, but some only came over one or two times. That was a problem when we had to turn in one part of the test and move onto the next part because we just kind of had to sit there waiting.” Rebecca Zug, Head of the Upper School said, “It is generally considered good practice to have students with extended time in a separate, quiet place so as to have less interruptions.” Most standardized tests practice this, including the SATs, ERBs, and IB tests.

“In the first year of doing December midterms, we experimented with having no classes on Friday,” Zug stated. She explained that Friday is a “hangover” day, meaning that it is an extra day that is needed in case something happens during the week of testing (i.e. a snow day, a delay, etc.). In addition, the school-wide Holiday Celebration is always held on the final Friday, which happens in the morning because the whole school attends, and the Early Learning Centre students are dismissed at noon every day. Students enjoy the Holiday Celebration on the whole, however, and this was not the issue that received attention.
Last year, the final Friday before winter break was treated as a day to wind down from testing before the holidays. Advisories brought in food in the morning and held advisory breakfasts, which went over well. Then, the Holiday Celebration was held, and in the afternoon, different clubs put on a series of activities to give students something to do before their 3:00 dismissal.

This setup had some flaws: “The faculty didn’t really like the setup with the activities in the afternoon because students were not all that engaged,” Zug remarked. “Students were ready to go home for the break after a long week of tests.” Overall, the activities portion of the day wasn’t terribly well received by students and faculty alike. “We needed to come up with something for the afternoon because we need to have that Friday as a school day,” Zug stated.

After the mostly negative response to the activities, the faculty decided to try holding classes that day. “That way, things would be more structured, and even if classes weren’t actually taught, it would give students places to go and give the day more of a purpose,” Zug explained. However, this setup had its flaws also. “I missed having the advisory breakfast this year,” Brennan-Martin contributed.

In addition, students were not always willing to be doing actual school work on the day before winter break. “Even before, when we had midterms after winter break, that last Friday was always a tough day to teach.” When asked why that Friday couldn’t just be a half day, or even a day without school, Zug said that, as a K-12 school, “the decision to have a half-day would have to be across all schools.” The Lower and Middle Schools have a full day of classes that day, so for the Upper School to have anything other than a school day would be difficult.

“Since there has been virtually no negative feedback about December midterms, they will be held before break again next year,” Zug revealed. “As for Friday, I/we [the faculty] are open to ideas about what to do during that time, but they need to be well planned out. Any suggestions should be a good use of time.” However, if no better ideas arise, Friday will most likely be another day of classes. “I think that was the better setup because the expectations of the day were clearer to students,” Zug concluded. No matter what happens next year during this turbulent week, one thing will be certain: everyone will be ready for a nice, long winter break to enjoy a stress-free holiday season.