When the wind is so strong it can almost take off my roof, I don’t think it is the best time to fire up Canvas and get to work.

Multiple students are still suffering damages brought upon by Hurricane Helene and Milton. 

Not only are we bringing students back to school during an uneasy time, we are expecting them to perform well in their midterms despite the rather chaotic times we are in.

Midterms are stressful enough, but throw in recovering from damage brought on by a hurricane and students are looking at a whirlwind of stress.

Related: USF is back to school too soon after Hurricane Milton

Despite USF extending the midterm grading deadline until Oct. 29, many students just don’t feel prepared for their exams. 

It’s time to put our students first during this stressful time. This semester, professors should make midterms a take-home exam or even offer a project to replace their tests.

Under normal circumstances, students would have ample opportunity to study. 

With power on and a cozy living space it’s the perfect time to study, but this hurricane has taken this opportunity away from many. 

For starters, students have experienced significant damage from this hurricane. It’s not like students can wave a magic wand and put their house or apartment back together as it was.

Not to mention the debris. The day after the hurricane hit, I spent the entire next day helping my family clear our yard and even our neighbors. 

Related: USF, be a helping-hand post-storm

“Considering I live in South Tampa, it was overwhelming to navigate my way through the debris and damage to reach campus,” said Arjun Nair,  a senior management major. 

How can we expect students to tackle both hurricane damages along with significant workload during the midterm season?

Being out of school for over several days due to Milton and Helene combined has led to a serious loss of instructional time.

Under normal circumstances, when students are gearing up for exam week, teachers will take time to prepare and allow students to ask questions.

But that’s no longer a possibility, and now students are expected to perform as if they’ve had this time. 

“I feel like I haven’t had enough time to prepare,” said Nair. “As a result, I’m currently cramming information to pass my exam, I think another week would’ve been beneficial for taking exams.”

Related: USF students critique ‘early’ return to class after Milton

Midterms don’t have to be the average sit-down exam that students are used to.

Professors can offer open book exams or even allow them to be taken at home. This allows for students to be comfortable with the material without forcing them to be pressured to have it memorized.

This would be an optimal way for students to perform well on the exam without needing copious amounts of time studying material. 

A project would also suffice. It would require students to understand course content in order to create a cohesive, thought-out paper or presentation.

This hurricane season has been nothing but anxiety-ridden and an incredibly stressful time. 

Why are we sticking to the normal midterms, when USF students have experienced something far from the norm?