Stress Levels During the End of the Semester
Updated: Nov 4, 2024
I decided to ask 6 students from BFS three simple questions about their feelings toward the half-year mark:
On a scale from one to ten, how stressed were you during the end of the semester? Why?
How was the workload?
What do you wish was different? (could be from yourself, school, etc.)
Here were their responses:
Ginger Aitcheson - Class of 2027 (Freshman)
Ginger ranked her stress level a seven. There was a “lot of work” due to how many big projects and tests she had been assigned throughout all her classes. Figuring out the balance between completing work and staying on track was difficult. With a “quiz and projects in every class but two”, Ginger states it was stressful prioritizing the most important needs first. As for what she wishes could have been done differently, she not she “could have started prepping for stuff sooner”, thus preventing the stress of last-minute preparation. However, all of her teachers assigned everything in the last week. She also noted that having the teachers understand that every student has a lot of work would be helpful. Finally, Ginger mentioned that sometimes the balance can be tricky because although performing classes are important, sometimes as a student you need to prioritize academics first.
Dulan Ducker - Class of 2027 (Freshman)
Dylan said he “...felt like it was at a strong six.” There were a lot of upcoming projects, including French, math, and missing assignments. Dylan states that he was really overwhelmed from the increase of work and almost felt “in trouble”. There was significantly more work than he would have preferred to have in the last two weeks. Dylan states that he wishes he could have worked better on time management. A gradual increase of workload would have been more manageable instead of everything all at once.
Ozzie Reinhart - Class of 2026 (Sophomore)
Ozzie ranked his stress level a three, which is significantly lower than Ginger’s and Dylan’s. Out of all grades, it seems that the sophomores had the lowest stress. Ozzie had “many assignments at the same time”, history essays, English projects, and more. It was decently stressful. Ozzie states that the workload was intense but lives by this mindset when stressed about grades: “I think to myself while I am stressed, can I actively change this? If the answer is yes, I change it and become unstressed, if the answer is no, I become unworried”. Although not everyone can achieve this, I admire Ozzie’s thinking to maintain positive emotions during stressful times. However, Ozzie also acknowledged that he wishes assignments were more spaced out, and that the school could have made the transition to ease into the new semester more smoothly.
Orly Abel - Class of 2025 (Junior)
Orly said that her stress level during the end of the semester was about a seven. Orly had finals, tests, in-class essays, as well as IB, and college pressure. As we know, we all go to an IB school, and this entails two packed years of intense courses. Additionally, as juniors, there is a lot of extra work in preparation for college. Orly stated that the workload was “manageable”, rather than homework, she had to do a lot of studying. She did acknowledge that it would have been easier if teachers had spaced things out over the last two weeks rather than in one.
Kalle White - Class of 2024 (Senior)
Kalle said her stress level was an eight. I noticed that out of all grades, the seniors had the highest ratings out of every grade. This is due to final projects in every grade as well as significant stress for college. Because colleges see seniors' grades from semester one, seniors do not really have space for error. Like every other student, Kalle wished the assignments could have been more spread out as it is hard to be prepared for numerous things at once.
Gabby Kemp - Class of 2024 (Senior)
Gabby Kemp rated her stress level a nine. Gabby stated that each class had a big test or essay that would, as well, determine her grades that would be sent to college. There was a lot of work; teachers slammed it all into one week which made it more stressful.
Teachers have work, students have work, but the key is figuring out the perfect balance so everyone can work to their full potential! Despite the challenges, all the students were grateful for their teachers and acknowledged their hard work.
Citation - Photo
Syeda Tajin Ahmed, Ph.D. “Ways to Relieve Stress.” Webtools, blogs.illinois.edu/view/8605/1001462922.
