We’re in the endgame now. Chapin has now entered the month of May, where a new threat has begun to roam the hauls and haunt the students: AP Testing. AP Testing is a yearly occurrence, but every time it comes around, you can almost feel the air get sucked out of the school, as everyone breathes a little heavier. It is a time defined by high stress and massive focus, as students across the grade levels are truly reminded, especially the seniors, that the school year is coming to its conclusion, and it is either time to shape up or fall apart.

For the seniors, this is especially true, as previously mentioned. Being their last year, Seniors feel an almost obligation to perform well on these tests, as the potential credits could be used to gain a head start at your college of choice. In reality, this pressure is mostly self-enforced, and whether or not the student actually ends up passing the exam, the consequence for ‘failing’ is minuscule in the grand scheme of things.

For the juniors and underclassmen, however, there may be more stringent obligations to perform, as the tests will be used to apply for college in the coming years. Again, it is important to mention grades, class rank, and GPA are by and large bigger contributing factors to college acceptance than AP tests, but for the students looking to reach the highest levels, they can in high school classrooms, AP testing still stands as one of the worst times of the year.