I Hate Finals!

Today's lesson is a podcast!     

I HATE FINALS!

Hello!  Welcome to today's show of the ESL HELP! Desk, for fun help with English grammar and communication. 




Do you hate finals?

If you are a college student or a college professor or if you have ever been a college student or professor, you will know that everybody hates finals.

The final examination period may last up to two weeks, a lovely period of time there are no classes but when everybody is stressed out.  It is a period of time when may students pull all-nighters. Students who have been procrastinating all semester suddenly start to cram.

Some students deal well with the stresss but others don't. Those who do not can have anxiety attacks. The thought of a test makes them anxious. Many students become particularly anxious around math tests, but never around English tests.

But seriously...

ESLstudents also have panic attacks during finals and holidays because the tests and papers will be in English and this also produces a lot of anxiety.

What can students do in order to relax more during finals?

First of all, they can study hard during the semester and not let everything go until the last minute. They can learn how to manage their time. To manage their stress during finals, they can try to take a walk every day and get fresh air, and do things like meditation and yoga in order to calm their minds.  Some high schools and colleges have special stress management programs during finals.  Once, when I was teaching English, during the last class before our final, our whole class sat in a circle and we had a group meditation exercise that was led by one of the students!

Does cramming help in the end? 

Many professionals say no, because you become so tired after all those all-nighters and so confused that your test performance suffers in the end. But if you do have to cram and pull an all-nighter, some suggestions are:  keep a window open, eat healthy foods such as bananas rather than junk food in order to avoid sugar highs and lows, take a 10-minute break for each hour you are studying, and drink plenty of water.

But of course the best suggestion is to avoid having to cram and pull an all-nighter in the first place!

And how about you?  Do you have any recommendations for how to cope with finals and the stress of exams and papers? We'd love to hear your ideas.

If you have any questions or comments about this week's podcast or suggestions for another topic, send them to us and include your email address. 

The ESL Help! Desk


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