It’s that time of year again: the end of the semester. People are stressed out, and finals are staring us in the face.
The combination of being stressed and taking finals puts people a little more on edge than usual. With that said, please be respectful while taking your tests! Ed Board is sick and tired of our fellow students disrupting the precious minutes during exam time.
To help you be as quiet as a church mouse during finals, Ed Board has compiled a list of a few tips.
1. Bring your own tissues. No one wants to listen to you sniffle the entire time (gross!), or watch you get up a thousand times to go to the bathroom. Also, bring cough drops if you even have the slightest tickle in your throat.
2. Vibrate does NOT mean silent! Turn your cell phone completely off. Hearing 30 buzzes in a three-hour period is just plain annoying. You’re taking a final-you don’t need your phone on anyway.
3. Get rid of the extra noise: tapping your pencil on the desk, shaking your leg impatiently or clicking your pen top are ridiculous distractions that do not need to take place.
4. Be on time! If your final is scheduled to start at 11:30, then that means you should be there at 11:25. Getting there early will ensure that you get a good seat, and you can also get out all of your materials. Walking in late is disturbing to other test-takers, but the unzipping of the backpack and the rustling of looking for a pencil is also annoying.
5. Now, Ed Board realizes that due to pulling all-nighters, students need an exorbitant amount of caffeine during finals. But, if you must consume an energy drink or a venti double espresso, please do it silently. It is disgusting and distracting to listen to people slurp down beverages or crunch on snacks when the rest of the room is totally silent.
6. Lastly, sharpen your pencil before test, or better yet, bring multiple pencils or use a mechanical one. No explanation needed here.
Ed Board wishes everyone a happy holiday season and good luck on all finals. Hopefully, these tips will ensure everyone a quiet test-taking environment. If an Ed Board member catches you violating one of these rules, well, you don’t want to know what will happen.