After a school year defined by cost-cutting retreats that saw the end of half-days, LM has preserved abbreviated schedules for the mid-year experience. This decision follows a first semester in which major tests, including the Keystone Exams, took place during regular instructional days. This marked a departure from previous years that relied on delayed starts to accommodate better testing environments. The district’s decision has led to a widely positive student response due to the format being seen as promoting time to study and relax after stressful examinations.
Since LM’s budgetary shortfall last school year, a multitude of cost-cutting policies had created uncertainty as to the future midterm schedules. In a move that saw $700,000 worth of transportation costs cut, the district had controversially eradicated half days permanently, not expressing whether or not the special schedule for the mid-year experience would be preserved. LM wouldn’t clarify the future of midterm half days until just a few months before.
Research conducted over the last several years indicates that abbreviated schedules during high-stakes assessments can help reduce stress for students and enhance their performance, especially for adolescents. Investigations suggest high levels of test anxiety and demands—when compounded over a period of nearly seven hours—lead to decreased working memory capacity and poorer academic results. According to the National Library of Medicine, the reduction of the number of hours in the school day for midterm assessments, as stated by multiple theses, would create an environment that better promotes focus and preparation for major assessments, resulting in better grades when compared to longer school days.
Since LM’s official announcement, the student response has been overwhelmingly positive, with students citing that the format helped to reduce stress during one of the important weeks of the semester. Instead of requiring students to remain on campus for an entire school day after completing several exams, the half-day format provides students a clear break for them to be able to maintain their focus throughout the entire week. Soren Barash ’28 says of the development, “I think it’s great because… I don’t need to stress about school on top of the tests.”
With shorter test days, afternoon periods after the mid-years were routinely used by students for mental recovery and studying. Benjamin Whitten ’28 says that he sees the afternoon as a “time to relax,” where, if there is a big upcoming test, he can “usually spend [the time] studying.” Barash further reinforced that the extra time that followed tests helped him prepare better for upcoming exams: “Half days definitely help me and my friends prepare for exams better because that way we always have the second half of the day to prepare for [the next day’s] tests.”
The additional time created by half-day mid-years has also reshaped how students approach studying for exams, allowing them to review material with greater focus and less urgency. Students feel that they can use their afternoons to review difficult concepts, look over notes, and collaborate with classmates without the rush imposed by longer school days. Barash explained that the structure changes his overall study strategy, noting, “The half days definitely change the way I approach my midterm studying because, while I also study beforehand, it helps me break it up so I can do any final review the day before since I have extra time when normally I’d have school.” Whitten echoed the sentiment, emphasizing that the format “does help improve performance.” The general consensus among students emphasized that, by gaining longer preparation in the afternoon—rather than late at night after a full day of tests—the half-day schedule allows them to study more efficiently and arrive at the next day’s exams better rested and more prepared.
While the long-term future of abbreviated testing schedules remains uncertain, this year’s midterm experience has demonstrated that half-days have meaningfully, and, as many students claim, positively shaped how test-takers prepare for high-stakes exams. This response suggests that the format supports both studying and mental breaks, two goals that research finds key toward academic success. As the district evaluates future testing policies, the retention of half-day midterm points to the positive aspects of special schedules.
