Finals. This one word can instill feelings of anxiety, fear and dismay within high school students.  Specifically at Cherry Hill East, finals have a significant effect on the anxiety levels of students, as the exams account for 1/9 of the pupils’ overall grade. Due to the extreme pressure brought on by these tests, students often study extensively and deeply, reviewing all material that has been taught during the entire year.

The method through which students choose to study is so vastly diverse; it is simply astounding how many assorted ways students are able to sufficiently relearn, review and master their prior knowledge.

Particularly the vocabulary final can prove to be immensely straining and stressful for students, as it often covers over five hundred various words. Memorizing all of these complex and vivid words is far from a simple task. The different methods students use for vocabulary finals are often seen as even more fascinating and assorted than any other final taken at Cherry Hill East.

Traditionally, students have studied for vocabulary finals using “natural methods” for over five decades. At Cherry Hill East, a multitude of students often study for end of the year vocabulary assessments through hand-made flashcards. Cherry Hill East Student, Elizabeth Hallinan (’17) claims to have studied for her vocabulary final by writing out flashcards for every single base word, synonym, antonym, root and enrichment word studied in freshman year. For the honors track this includes over 1000 words.

“I make flashcards by hand because I found that writing the words out on paper increases my memory of the vocabulary words,” said Hallinan (’17).

Hallinan’s beliefs have been proven correct by scientific studies. According to a myriad of studies, kinesthetically recording learning material increases recognition and memory of the material by a 40% greater range than through typing out the words.

“I also really like writing out to study because it helps me stay really organized and accountable with my learning,” said Hallinan.

On a different note, some students choose to study through electronic means. During the twenty-first century, technology has continually grown to be an extremely prevalent entity in society. Computers, cellphones and tablets are all used on a daily basis for the majority of students. Therefore, several learners have taken a liking to not only playing games and listening to music through their technological devices, but also studying.

Several applications have been created to allow this use of technology with studying techniques. Applications such as Chegg Flashcards, Encore Study Platform, etc. can be accessed on every type of device, and thus are very effective and versatile, aiding students with their every studying whim. Most predominantly, an application entitled, Quizlet, is greatly utilized by Cherry Hill East Students.

“I use Quizlet for my vocab final and it helps me a lot. I can make online flashcards and even test myself on Quizlet. It is a lot easier for me to memorize vocab using an online source, so I’m really thankful for the app,” said Allie Shifton (’17).

Shifton accounts her massive success in English 1H predominantly to Quizlet.

“Most recently the app helped me get a 100 on my vocab quiz. So hopefully it will help me a lot with the final too,” said Shifton.

On the contrary to both Hallinan and Shifton, certain students choose to study for the Cherry Hill East Vocabulary Final with an entirely different method—not studying at all.

Cherry Hill East student Abigail Kramer (’16) has been non- “studying” with this philosophy for two years now.

“I refuse to study for vocabulary finals,” said Kramer, “I don’t see the point. I already know all of the information from studying for each vocabulary unit test.”

While this method of “studying” may prove to be most relaxing, results can be devastating or promising – dependent upon each individual student. For some this approach of not studying at all may appear too risky an idea to even try.