Finals Study Tips

Finals are approaching in mid-December, finishing the first semester of the 2021-2022 school year. Students are excited about winter break, but they have to face a tiring week of finals first. This week can be very stressful to students, especially ones with more difficult classes. Amanda Tran (10) shares that she’s “mostly stressing about the AP Chemistry final.” Finals have the potential to determine students’ final grades for the semester.

Study methods will be very useful to prepare for finals. A widely used technique is the Pomodoro Technique, created by Francesco Cirillo in the late 1980s. It involves deep concentration for 25 minutes at a time, separated by short 5-minute breaks. Its goal is to prevent burnout since doing too much work for an extended period of time can take a toll on the brain. By using the Pomodoro Technique, students can accomplish many tasks while also studying at a healthy pace. 

Smaller yet effective tips include having an organized space to study and eliminating distractions. A messy workspace can increase stress levels, wasting valuable study time. 

One of the major distractions are cell-phones since students can easily lose track of time by scrolling through social media. The best way to fix this problem is to have someone hold them accountable and take away their phone until all their work is done. 

Changing study environments can also help with memory, based on experimental results. Although there isn’t a clear explanation for why, maybe different places can make the students feel like they aren’t chained to their desks. So studying outside in fresh air might not be such a bad idea. 

Also, a very effective strategy is to try to teach others the material. A famous quote from Albert Einstein shares that “if you can’t explain it to a six year old, you don’t understand it yourself.” Reviewing with others can help with memorization and when taking the final, students can imagine themselves teaching someone to find the answer in the most logical way possible. 

Even though final grades are important, students must remember to take care of themselves. Ella Mercankaya (10) jokes that students will be “drinking a ton of coffee” during finals week, but still wants to remind everyone to get “an adequate amount of sleep.” Final grades may seem like the only thing that matters, but having good health will help more in the long run. Remember to study hard for finals, but don’t forget about mental and physical health.