Exams are Cancelled this Year; Why not Permanently?
This year, due to the coronavirus pandemic, the Ontario Ministry of Education announced that final exams will be cancelled for students. Many of my peers were enthused — on top of all the stress added from the uncertainty of the pandemic, they wouldn’t have to worry about cramming in studying, or worse, possibly choking for the exam day.
Grade 12s, on the other hand, may have been wary of the news, since their grades this year affect their entrance to post-secondary schools and exams give them a chance to bump up lacking grades.
Universities are willing to adapt to the change in admissions. At the University of Toronto, provost adviser Dwayne Benjamin said that they will be “as flexible as possible” during the process. “We will work with whatever grades we are provided,” he told Global News.
Education minister Stephen Leece said during a news conference, “I just don’t want to increase the anxiety of our students. An essay, an extended report, these are all ways in which an educator can credibly assess the performance of a student.”
Both universities and the education ministers did not even give a second thought to scrap exams for the year, either party seemed completely willing to adapt to the new program. So, why don’t we scrap them permanently?
It is no secret that students become increasingly stressed during exams. Almost three-quarters felt either “very stressed” or “stressed” over exams, as well as complaining about the overwhelming volume of homework and revision. In B.C, the Early Psychosis Intervention Program at Fraser Health says that young adult admissions for psychotic breaks increase by about 67% during exam season. 34% of Ontario high-school students indicate a moderate-to-serious level of psychological distress (symptoms of anxiety and depression), and young Canadians aged 15 to 24 are more likely to experience mental illness and/or substance use disorders.
School boards are aware of the growing mental health crises in their high schools; the Thames Valley District School Board has sections on their website dedicated to mental health resources as well as in-school assistance. Exam anxiety is almost a norm in schools, walk into any International Baccalaureate classroom and you can ask any student how they’re managing (or trying to) their workload in preparation for exams and extended essays.
If the Ministry of Education wants to show their sincerity in fostering support for mental health, they must seriously consider the death of the annual exam. The final test is designed to cram every faucet of a course into a few pages to be done in hours, an attempt as an objective measure of a student’s understanding an entire semester through a few hours of pencil scribbles and scantron sheets. If we were to move on from exams it is likely we will see more students succeed and become better, healthier learners.
Please note that this blog post represents the opinions of Danté Fosterdelmundo and not is representative of the official stance of the FCSS-FESC.
References
High school exam stress spikes mental health incidents | CBC News. (2014, March 10). Retrieved November 08, 2020, from https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/high-school-exam-stress-spikes-mental-health-incidents-1.2566828
Mental Illness and Addiction: Facts and Statistics. (n.d.). Retrieved November 08, 2020, from https://www.camh.ca/en/driving-change/the-crisis-is-real/mental-health-statistics
O’Brien, C. (2017, November 06). Exam stress a major concern for secondary students. Retrieved November 08, 2020, from https://www.irishtimes.com/news/education/exam-stress-a-major-concern-for-secondary-students-1.3280870
Paglinawan, D. (2020, October 19). Universities say cancelled exams in Ontario high schools won’t hamper post secondary plans. Retrieved November 08, 2020, from https://globalnews.ca/news/7405623/ontario-high-school-cancelled-exams-wont-impact-university-admission/
Thanks to Lina Nayvelt