Students consider timing of AP testing stressful, rewarding in the long term

Alix Glickman ’23, Social Media Manager|April 28, 2022

Graphic by Alix Glickman ’23

AP testing will begin on May 2 and carry into the following week. Students will be assessed all material taught since the beginning of the year. Usually, students in AP classes take finals early in order to prepare for the AP exams.

Over the first two weeks of May, students will complete exams for their AP classes, which is only one week after returning from the sunny beaches visited during April break. As a result, many students have conflicting opinions on whether the testing is too early for Staples’ typical school calendar.

“It being so soon after break is very annoying. It’s a very quick shift from no school to the most intense period of school in the year,” Dilan Leon ’23 said.

Many AP classes are scheduling their finals before the AP exam as a way to prepare. This causes teachers to either complete the curriculum prior to April break or soon after. Because of the time constraint, the material can be taught in a rushed manner. Other level classes have more time to learn, as normally final exams are taken in June. 

“We just returned from break but now we have to worry about fitting in a lot of work and also prepare for not only the material on both the finals and AP tests coming up but also the stress of them,” Bruno Guiduli ’22 said. “I feel like teachers are now trying to scramble in order to finish the lessons that will be on the test.” 

However, some students prefer the timing of exams because of the relief felt after the tests, and it gives them a slight break from their rigorous class. They also express that their teachers plan to implement a lighter workload and engage in more fun activities such as projects or films after the testing period.

“I like the timing, once I take the test I’m kind of done with the class which is nice. The end of the year won’t be as stressful,” Olivia Katz ’23 said.

Others do not feel this same sense of relaxation after exams, as they are still attending class and submitting work. This increases students’ eagerness in wanting to follow the typical final exam schedule that other courses follow. 

“I wish that AP exams could follow the same schedule as A or honors classes,” Caleigh Coughlin ’23 said. “That way we could use the month of May to also prepare so we could feel more ready. We also then wouldn’t have to do additional side projects to fill in the time after AP exams.”