A new online calendar, accessible only to teachers, has been created so teachers can be more aware of student exams and projects that overlap.

The calendar is being tested by 10th grade core teachers and department chairs.

Teachers will put major assignments and exams on a shared google calendar in order to make other teachers aware of shared due dates.

“We wanted teachers to know and have an opportunity to see what other teachers were doing in their classrooms,” English Department Chair Kathy Bowman said.

Students typically spend time studying for tests, so if there are multiple tests, or assignments due on the same day, it can cause them to not be able to put as much effort into each class’ work, according to freshman Amber Arquilevich.

“Some students have big tests, or assignments due, [on the same day] and this can cause a decline in grades due to increased stress,” Arquilevich said.

This virtual calendar allows teachers to understand a student’s assignments and make changes to their assignments as they see fit.

“[The calendar] will only have an impact if teachers pay attention to it, put things on it and are flexible to the degree they can be to somewhat even out or spread the load if we can,” Principal Kevin Buchanan said.

Teachers can use this as a tool to determine how to best help students manage their workload.

“By teachers posting the test dates or assignment dates on the calendar, it gives us an opportunity to see what’s going on in other classes,” Bowman said. “Teachers can look at it and either change their due dates or teach kids how to prioritize.”

According to Buchanan, the hope of this calendar is to create awareness and to help students manage and reduce stress.

“This calendar will help us know what to do and how to deal with the stresses [students] might feel,” Bowman said. “[It will] help us navigate our classes in a more effective way to best meet the needs of students.”