The Board of Education reversed the decision to eliminate midterm and final exams effective next semester. We will monitor the implementation of the reinstatement policy to ensure the board adheres to the original assessment criteria. I appreciate the focus you brought to this issue throughout the process.
April 6, 2015
Final supporters
Dear East Brunswick Board of Education,
We are writing in protest of the recent decision made to eliminate midterm and final exams in both Churchill Junior High School and East Brunswick High School.
East Brunswick High School has always been well-known throughout the state for the high quality of education it provides to students. It has contributed to the pride and the success not only of the students, but also of the township overall. In fact, in 2014, our high school was ranked #47, a sharp improvement from #121 in 2012.
If this upward trend is reversed, our township will suffer from lowered property values, deeply impacting all East Brunswick residents regardless of whether or not they have children currently in the system.
Moreover, the cumulative nature of midterms and final exams is critical to the success of our students, who can and should be able to gather what they have learned and present that knowledge back to their teachers in a comprehensive and cohesive way. It will help them understand the relationships between the concepts they learn as they become “big-picture learners.”
In most universities, grades are determined largely by midterms and final exam grades, if not completely. And while reducing the anxiety of our students is important, teaching our students how to handle their anxiety in stressful situations is equally important. Pampering them will ultimately hurt our students and leave them ill-prepared for college. In the real world, they will contend against students from all corners of the world for jobs and recognition in an increasingly globalized market. If East Brunswick cannot compete in the state, how will it compete against Finland, Canada or Japan?
While we are aware of the plan to implement an alternative quarterly exam system, we firmly believe it will prove insufficient. The BOE’s plan of execution is too ambiguous in its current state, and does not specify how quarterlies will reduce testing days.
The East Brunswick Public Schools System’s motto is “Excellence in Academics, Athletics and the Arts”. How can we live up to it when it is so clear that the academics are missing?
Sincerely,
Jasmine Wang, Class of 2013 and Kimberly Zhang, Class of 2007
http://eb.gmnews.com/news/2015-02-12/Front_Page/Midterm_final_exams_scrapped_in_East_Brunswick.html
Updates
Reached 100 supporters
February 19, 2015
46 Comments
EBHS Class of 2013 / University of Pennsylvania Class of 2017. As a student at Penn, I can verify that midterms and finals at EBHS are necessary in order to be prepared for the great institutions that our students go on to. We need to be realistic about what institutions look for in students, and part of that is whether or not they will be prepared for exams later on.
Midterm and Final exams help students review all the content they have learned, otherwise their foundation will be weak and cannot be well prepared for the future
midterm and final exam are part of the school education program, the East Brunswick schools should do something to improve the school quality not the opposite.
As an educator and a parent of an EBHS graduate, I have taken pride in East Brunswick public school system that excels in academics, athletics and the arts. Midterm and final exams are an integral part of academic accountability
I work in admissions at a university and you are putting your students at a HUGE disadvantage by doing this
Exam is needed to measure student's performance and the level of our success.
EBHS class of 2011
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The Board of Education reversed the decision to eliminate midterm and final exams effective next semester. We will monitor the implementation of the reinstatement policy to ensure the board adheres to the original assessment criteria. I appreciate the focus you brought to this issue throughout the process.
April 6, 2015
Final supporters
Dear East Brunswick Board of Education,
We are writing in protest of the recent decision made to eliminate midterm and final exams in both Churchill Junior High School and East Brunswick High School.
East Brunswick High School has always been well-known throughout the state for the high quality of education it provides to students. It has contributed to the pride and the success not only of the students, but also of the township overall. In fact, in 2014, our high school was ranked #47, a sharp improvement from #121 in 2012.
If this upward trend is reversed, our township will suffer from lowered property values, deeply impacting all East Brunswick residents regardless of whether or not they have children currently in the system.
Moreover, the cumulative nature of midterms and final exams is critical to the success of our students, who can and should be able to gather what they have learned and present that knowledge back to their teachers in a comprehensive and cohesive way. It will help them understand the relationships between the concepts they learn as they become “big-picture learners.”
In most universities, grades are determined largely by midterms and final exam grades, if not completely. And while reducing the anxiety of our students is important, teaching our students how to handle their anxiety in stressful situations is equally important. Pampering them will ultimately hurt our students and leave them ill-prepared for college. In the real world, they will contend against students from all corners of the world for jobs and recognition in an increasingly globalized market. If East Brunswick cannot compete in the state, how will it compete against Finland, Canada or Japan?
While we are aware of the plan to implement an alternative quarterly exam system, we firmly believe it will prove insufficient. The BOE’s plan of execution is too ambiguous in its current state, and does not specify how quarterlies will reduce testing days.
The East Brunswick Public Schools System’s motto is “Excellence in Academics, Athletics and the Arts”. How can we live up to it when it is so clear that the academics are missing?
Sincerely,
Jasmine Wang, Class of 2013 and Kimberly Zhang, Class of 2007
http://eb.gmnews.com/news/2015-02-12/Front_Page/Midterm_final_exams_scrapped_in_East_Brunswick.html
Updates
Reached 100 supporters
February 19, 2015
46 Comments
This petition should be considered by the Board of Education. As a graduate of EBHS, the midterms and finals prepared me for college; however, this option to not have them anymore makes me believe that students will not be as well braced for the SATs, college, and other larger tests. The Board of Education should think about the students' lives in the long run, and to prepare them for college courses that consist of only a midterm and final through high school midterms and finals. I hope the school systems can see it this way.
EBHS Class of 2013 / University of Pennsylvania Class of 2017. As a student at Penn, I can verify that midterms and finals at EBHS are necessary in order to be prepared for the great institutions that our students go on to. We need to be realistic about what institutions look for in students, and part of that is whether or not they will be prepared for exams later on.
Midterm and Final exams help students review all the content they have learned, otherwise their foundation will be weak and cannot be well prepared for the future
midterm and final exam are part of the school education program, the East Brunswick schools should do something to improve the school quality not the opposite.
As an educator and a parent of an EBHS graduate, I have taken pride in East Brunswick public school system that excels in academics, athletics and the arts. Midterm and final exams are an integral part of academic accountability
I work in admissions at a university and you are putting your students at a HUGE disadvantage by doing this
Exam is needed to measure student's performance and the level of our success.
EBHS class of 2011
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This petition should be considered by the Board of Education. As a graduate of EBHS, the midterms and finals prepared me for college; however, this option to not have them anymore makes me believe that students will not be as well braced for the SATs, college, and other larger tests. The Board of Education should think about the students' lives in the long run, and to prepare them for college courses that consist of only a midterm and final through high school midterms and finals. I hope the school systems can see it this way.