May. Tests are usually held in Japanese, mathematics, science, social studies, and English. Because students usually begin studying English in middle school, the midterm in English is generally their first test in this subject. A week before midterms, all club and other extracurricular activities are cancelled so that students can concentrate on preparing for the tests. Tension grows as test day approaches. Instead of hanging around school after classes are over, students rush home to study.
Some kids study with friends, teaching each other things that are hard to understand.
That's the reason middle-school students, especially eighth and ninth graders, take these midterm exams seriously. On May 29, seventh graders took exams in Japanese, science, and English. The next day they took their social studies and mathematics tests. A lthough the exams end in the morning on both days, kids can't relax until all the tests are over. For seventh graders who have just entered middle school, it's their first taste of the rigorous academic demands that will be made of them in the years to come.