Put Christmas Spirit on hold for finals

When ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas airs, people’s moods automatically switch from school mode to break mode. Thoughts of Christmas goodies, presents, and time with family dance around in student’s minds. However, before the suitcases can be packed and the cars gassed up, the dreaded finals have to be taken.

After a semester of preparation, one would think students would be nearly prepared for comprehensive exams. Nevertheless, the anxiety surrounding finals may overshadow knowledge of a subject. Some students have been preparing all semester, studying nonstop, always visiting the lab room or teacher’s office to plan for the last week of the semester.

On the other hand, there are students who forget the semester eventually comes to an end, which leaves them with only one option: cramming. It seems to be a vicious cycle every year with a good amount of students having to overload their brain with a semester’s worth of chapters.

Organization can be a hard concept; so flying by the seat of their pants seems to be a stress-free way to pass through the semester. Unfortunately, come finals time, the stress that they thought they were avoiding, slaps them in the face.

With just a little planning, keeping track of assignment due dates, and studying each chapter little-by-little, finals won’t seem like the end of the world. While studying in groups presents opportunities to get distracted easily, it can also benefit a student. According to The New York Times, “Dividing and conquering is an effective way to reduce your workload­—and to make sure you understand the material.”

Another technique is to switch between materials. According to the same article, “Rather than sticking to one subject and spending hours attempting to master it, you should switch between a few (related) topics.” This keeps one’s mind on it’s toes and helps one not become bored as fast. In the word’s of Kris Kringle, “Put one foot in front of the other.”

Following these simple techniques can help students avoid cramming at the end of the semester, and make them more prepared. This semester might almost be over, but these techniques may be useful for spring semester.

Safe travels to all, and to all a good break.