Jared Levin Editorials Editor May is a stressful time of year for many students, and Advanced Placement (AP) tests do not help.  The tests themselves are not the source of the troubles.  Yes, they may be challenging. And Yes, they may include vast amounts of material.  But the core of the problem is that it is hard for students to find time to study for these exams. Even though AP exams occur, school and daily activities do not stop- they even seem to  take the upper hand to exams.  Teachers sill assign a lot of homework, sports games continue to occurs, and home chores still need to be met.  At a time that should be full of concentrating on studying, many students find May to be a time of, according to Dylan Levin, a time of “extreme normality.”  “Normality” for Latin Students is long days at school, followed by hours of after school activities, and concluded by hours upon hours of homework. “Extreme normality” has the same base as “normality” but after homework, students find themselves studying for AP exams. All of this work and studying can really take a toll on Latin Students both physically and mentally.  Physically, many students become sluggish and tired from a lack of sleep.  Mentally, students become strained because they try to pack so many things into their mind.  They try to to keep up with their school work, while trying to memorize United States History starting in the 17th century. If homework during AP exams was lessened, and after school activities were shorter, then students would be able to place more time and effort into studying for the AP exams.  Even though AP exams may not be the top priority on every students list, they could be beneficial to others.  Some students rely on APs to help them gain college credit.  Some chose to gain the credit in order to take more challenging courses and skip introduction classes, while others do so to save money.  The latter shows how these exams have potential to effect life beyond high school, and therefore, teachers, parents, coaches, directors, etc, need to make exceptions and allow their students to spend more time studying for APs.]]>