With the second quarter well on its way, students here at CCHS have only a couple of weeks left before the final exams arrive, marking the end of the first semester. The exams are easily one of the most stress-inducing events that students must face to pass their classes, but they’re far from being impossible to do well on. Some freshmen have already expressed full understanding and assurance that finals will not be as difficult of a challenge, understanding what the exams consist of.

“…They kinda collect all the information that you’ve learned from the past couple of months and then they collect it into the exams so I think it is a fair estimate but it doesn’t cover everything. (Grace Ramirez, CCHS Freshman)”

Of course, not all freshmen will see things as so simple, as there have been plenty of times they have struggled to prepare for tests in a timely manner. Administrators over the years have often noticed common patterns when it comes to students underperforming and because of that analyze what they can do to assist students.

“I think the biggest thing students struggle with is first of all, 9th graders never having final exams before and just getting used to having final exams and knowing that it’s worth 20% of the grade that is a transition for our 9th graders for sure and I’d also say just the rigor of those two days where you might have 4 or 5 or 6 final exams over the span of two days…that is why we emphasize on grades, attendance, and discipline and also emphasize the bonus students can receive because of meeting certain standards. (Mr. Ryan Thomas, CCHS Principal)”

But regardless of whether or not they perform well on the first go around though, with enough time passing throughout the school years students will typically find themselves better prepared and confident in finals the more chances they have to improve on them.