As the semester reaches the halfway point, Columbia students feel the stress of having multiple examinations and papers due in a short period of time. Midterms week, for some, means taking at least three exams on a single calendar day. Professors should make an effort to accommodate the needs of students who have two or more tests on one calendar day by providing alternative examination dates.
The University Registrar has no clear policy regarding midterm examinations, except that instructors generally offer them in late October and the middle of March. Final examinations, on the other hand, are officially scheduled in the master University examination schedule for the last week of the semester. If students have three finals scheduled during a single calendar day, they can formally arrange with their instructors to take at least one exam on an alternate day. During the midterm period, there is no parallel policy, leaving students with multiple tests on one day at the mercy of their instructors, without an official appeals process.
Because instructors and departments can schedule their own midterms, they should accommodate students with conflicting schedules by providing alternate dates for tests, papers, or projects. Providing alternate dates is necessary to alleviate the unnecessary stress of having two or more exams in one day, a problem that is already recognized by the school in its policy on finals rescheduling. The informal policy of providing more than one examination date has already been implemented in some introductory lectures, and other instructors should take on similar initiatives. Those who teach large sections can use their teaching assistants to proctor exams administered on alternative days. Seminar instructors, who have fewer students and therefore probably fewer conflicts, can arrange for students with loaded schedules to take midterms during the instructors’ office hours.
While there is a clear need for adjudicating students’ understanding of course material, too many assessments in a short timeframe can be detrimental to the students’ overall performance, thereby undermining the point of the assessments. Professors should take heed of their students’ dilemmas when setting their schedules to ensure that all students have a fair chance at academic success.
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