The skies are cloudy, you’re back from break and there’s no longer jingling bells everywhere. Instead, there’s… stress? That’s right, students are now stressing out over the impending doom of midterms, that one week in January where students in all grades are required to take their midterm exams. This poses the question, is midterms week even a good thing at all?

Let’s look at the facts; midterm exams can assist teachers and students in figuring out how well they’re doing and after all, students do get off from classes. But, according to the National Institute of Mental Health, one third of teenagers report feeling anxious to a significant degree. In today’s world, it’s usually schoolwork and exams that add on to this anxiety and stress. It has generally been seen that low grades can cause anxiety in many students, teenagers and adults alike.

After speaking to some high school students, the consensus was that midterms feel like unnecessary exams. The question posed to them was, do you believe midterms week is a good idea? Do you feel more stressed than usual because of it? One student said, “I just don’t think it [midterm exams] does anything for people…it definitely stresses most people out.”

Freshman Brenna Camacho said, “I feel like it is a good idea because it helps refresh students, so that they can be prepared for the regents.”

Although this may seem like a very opinion based topic, it is true that any exam can help or harm students in all different ways. A recent study done by Hae Yeon Lee shows that when students experience setbacks such as a low grade, the cortisol in their body rises. Cortisol is supposed to be the hormone that controls stress. Larger exams like midterms have more of a risk to them; getting a low grade can sometimes mean an overall class grade plummeting, which can automatically cause more anxiety.

On the more positive side, exams are a great way to improve your memory. Studying for exams can strengthen long-term memory and improve overall intelligence.

Not every aspect of any exam is strictly ‘bad’ or ‘good’ and can’t always be treated as such. In the end, it’s left up to each person to decide what they believe is best. So, do you think midterms week is beneficial?