Final Exams Won’t Save Your Grade: What Alberta Students and Parents Need to Know

When parents think back to their own high school days, they often remember final exams being the big game-changer — the chance to make or break a grade. But for today’s students in Alberta, that’s no longer the case. In Grade 10 and 11, final exams usually account for only 20% of the overall course grade, sometimes even less. That means the remaining 80% or more comes directly from the course grade earned throughout the semester.

This shift has completely changed how much weight final exams carry — and it’s a reality that many parents and students don’t fully realize.

Why This Matters

With the final exam worth so little, the vast majority of a student’s grade is determined long before June rolls around. Assignments, quizzes, projects, and unit tests make up most of the report card. This means students can’t rely on a last-minute push or a strong exam performance to fix a semester of mediocre grades.

A Common Example

Take a Grade 11 student sitting at a 68% course grade heading into finals. The final exam is worth 20%, and they manage to score an impressive 90% on it. Here’s how the math works out:

• Course Grade: 68% x 0.8 = 54.4%

• Final Exam: 90% x 0.2 = 18%

• Final Course Mark: 72.4%

Even with a near-perfect exam, their grade only increases by a few points. The days when a final exam could swing a student’s mark by 10–15% are long gone.

Why Many Parents Don’t Realize This

This trend of lowering final exam weight has really only taken hold in the past 5–10 years. Many parents still assume finals work the way they used to — that a strong performance could turn everything around in the last two weeks of the semester. But in Alberta’s current system, that’s simply not true. The biggest difference in a student’s grade happens during the semester, not at the very end.

The Best Strategy for Students

The smartest approach for Grade 10 and 11 students is to focus on consistent effort from the very start of the semester. Building strong foundations, keeping up with assignments, and seeking help early all play a much bigger role in shaping the final grade than the year-end exam. At Ace It Tutoring, we specialize in helping students stay ahead, avoid the stress of last-minute cramming, and consistently improve their performance throughout the year.

The reality is clear: in today’s system, steady effort and the right support during the semester matter far more than any single final exam.