Greetings Upper School Families,
I hope that you found Parent Teacher Conferences meaningful and worthwhile. It’s certainly a special opportunity we all have to connect so directly about your student’s work.
I’m writing today with some information about the January Exam period. We haven’t had an exam week like this in the Upper School since January of 2020 which means that only our 12th graders have any recollection of a week dedicated exclusively to semester exams. That said, we are returning to this process for two main reasons: it is essential for students’ learning to have experiences that challenge them to synthesize large amounts of material and it is important for students to learn how a process like this feels and works.
The exam period, or more specifically the days and weeks that lead up to it, have historically been a stressful time for students. Please keep in mind, and remind your student, that some stress and anxiety is normal and healthy. Being nervous about a busy or demanding week is expected and not abnormal. That said, we have taken steps to balance their workload through this period and we’ll be offering a variety of activities designed to help ameliorate some of that stress. If you’re interested in ways to help your student manage through this stress, please visit the links below:
DE-Stress Podcast with Dr. Vitiello & Ms. Levitan
How to Help Teens Manage Stress
Guided Mindful Breathing Exercise
Below, you’ll find the information that I sent to the students yesterday afternoon. Please be sure to review it and reach out to your student’s Dean should you have any questions.
Hi folks,
I’m writing today with some information about the January exam period. We haven’t had an exam week like this in the Upper School since January of 2020 which means that only our 12th graders have any recollection of a week dedicated exclusively to semester exams. We know that “the unknown” can sometimes cause a lot of distress so we’ll be talking as a division, in advisories, and in your classes about preparing for exams, what it all means, and the exams themselves. Our goal is not to stress you out! It’s to create space for you to do important synthesis work and for you to learn how it feels to prepare for and take exams like this.
9th and 10th graders will by and large take 3 exams during this period, while 11th and 12th graders will likely take 4 or 5. Depending on a student’s individual schedule, it’s possible that any student will take additional exams or even fewer exams. Please look closely at the table below to see which of your classes will be giving exams. Then, please be sure to review the notes below the table to get a sense of what your January will look/feel like.
For the two weeks prior to exams:
- Only one major assessment may be given or collected in each of your classes during the two weeks prior to the exam week.
- If you’re having an exam in a class, your teachers may assign a regular assessment (test, paper, report, project, etc) to be given or due any day between Wednesday, January 4th and Tuesday, January 10th.
- If you’re not having an exam in a class, teachers may assign a regular assessment to be given or due any day between Wednesday, January 4th and Friday, January 13th
- All major assessments for the week of January 3rd and January 9th must be entered into the testing calendar prior to December break. It is the student’s responsibility to review the testing calendar for those two weeks.
For classes that will be giving exams:
- Students must be informed prior to the exam what percentage of their semester grade it will constitute. An exam may not count for more than 20% of the semester grade.
- A topic list & the format of the exam must be provided by the teacher at least 1 week prior to the exam date. The topic list can be generated by the teacher or by the students in consultation with their teacher. Students are responsible for using these topic lists to create their own study guides.
- The final two class periods prior to the exam week must be dedicated to exam preparation.
During exam week:
- Students are expected to take their exams on the days and during the times assigned barring any unforeseen or extenuating circumstances.
- Students are only required to be on campus when they are taking exams. Buses run on a regular schedule that week (since MS has a regular school week). Lunch will be available on campus each day.
- If a student has extended time, they are not required to take two exams in one day. They have the option to do if they choose but are not required to. A member of the Learning Center will get in touch after the Break with students who have this accommodation.
Best,
Kim Lalli
Interim US Principal