Finals cause extreme amounts of stress for students of all ages.  Having a cumulative week of testing sets student up for failure as they have to remember  everything they have learned in every class throughout the semester.  When a student memorises this much information at once, the knowledge does not stay.  The idea behind education is to learn, and a cumulative exam that causes stress is not the way to have students learn. Finals should be an optional way for a student to raise their grade.  Finals should be more project based so that students gain the cumulative review without the stress of their grade having the potential to drop 10% or even 20%. According to a study done by NYU, “Extreme levels of stress can hinder work effectiveness and lead to poor academic performance and attention”.  Having finals would evoke this exact effect.  Finals create so much stress that it leads to poor academic performance.  If a student has proven throughout the whole semester that they can thrive in a class, there is no reason to make him or her take a final exam. Also, because of the Coronavirus, students have not experienced finals in 2 years.  There is no reason that schools should not acknowledge this.