Quinten Bright ’19

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Senioritis — the tendency for seniors to stop caring about their grades from lack of motivation –afflicts students at Strake Jesuit.

It’s inevitable that after going through the tedious and taxing process of applying to colleges and finally getting back the acceptance letters after months of anxious waiting, seniors aren’t going to feel like doing any more work, especially not for final exams.

From these, Strake Jesuit already exempts some seniors. According to our Community Life guide, “a teacher may award to a senior the privilege of exemption from the final exam in a course which is terminal and in which the student has maintained an A average.”

So why do seniors have spring finals at all?

I understand that this policy is meant to inspire students to achieve an A average in their classes, but if they don’t end up making an A average, they aren’t going to try very hard in their finals anyway. By the time they would take the May final, they no longer have any desire to raise their grades (unless they have a failing grade), and all they would want to do is finish the test as soon as possible and leave.

Besides, seniors already have a good reason to maintain decent grades. If they don’t, the colleges can rescind their acceptances.

From a teacher’s perspective, it may seem that I’m discouraging seniors from truly learning the material of their courses, but I am just being realistic about the mindset of a senior in the spring. At a certain point, seniors just mentally move on from high school, and there really is no getting them back.

Ultimately, finals for seniors do nothing but waste the time of those who are forced to take them when they should be enjoying what might be their final days with friends from high school, and for some their final days living in their hometown.