Today marked the first day of three weeks of exams in NSW for 60,000 HSC students.

And first on the cards was English.

Students completed a three-part paper which included a creative writing component, an essay response to a studied literary text, and a set of short response questions.

There were mixed feelings emanating from the 2018 Nambucca seniors cohort, but a cautious sense of achievement featured most prominently.

For Molly Langley, the first of her final school exams felt like just another practise test after months of solid preparation.

“I feel good after that exam – they set us up with a good one first,” she said.

Ink flowed lugubriously onto the page as she told the story of a father and son embarking on a walk together: “and the walk ends up being a metaphysical rediscovery of life,” she said.

Jeremy Salter, too, was amazed as a marvellous narrative swirled out of his imagination and onto the page in front of him. 

His literary creation involved a plot that would hold up to a Hollywood blockbuster: a dystopian future where bananas had evolved to become deadly to humankind, and an assassination attempt which necessitated time-travel to 350BC in order to stop Alexander the Great from popularising the common fruit snack.

“I just thought of it on the spot,” he said.

After he does away with the next five HSC exams, Jeremy plans to take a year off from study to work, travel, and have a think about things before he commits to any serious future plans.

But for Jacob Fidirikkos, that first exam left him a little frustrated at the whole system.

And he thinks stuffing everyone into a large room and shutting the door is not conducive to creativity.

“I think it’s really hard to think under exam conditions and write a really great story,” he said.

“I got a couple of mental blocks and all I could do was sit there and look up and drink some water.”

He thinks a better way to test students is to tailor the exams to suit an individual’s learning style.

“Not everyone has a good memory, or a quick analytical mind. And the essay was more of a memory test than finding out what you really know,” he said.

Jacob said he thought he had wanted to become a teacher but the whole year 12 experience has got him reassessing his career choices.

He also said he needs at least a year to live life a bit and work out what he’s really passionate about.

But he is glad he chose to complete his studies rather than chase his other dream of becoming a professional athlete.

“I could have dropped out of school and focussed on that, but I realised that not everything works out the way you want it to,” he said.

“So I’ll finish my exams and go from there.”

Premier Gladys Berejiklian today congratulated all NSW students for reaching this significant milestone.

“Finishing school and entering adulthood is a rite of passage,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“The HSC is designed to provide a range of opportunities for students to achieve their potential and succeed in life after school, whether it be in work, training or further study.”

Education Minister Rob Stokes joined the Premier in congratulating students across NSW, while also reminding them to rest, eat well and exercise in preparation for their exams.

“While this may seem nerve-racking, I implore all students not to place too much pressure on themselves. While the HSC is an important milestone in students’ educational journeys, at the end of the day it is just another exam,” Mr Stokes said. 

The Higher School Certificate exams will take place over the next three weeks, with written exams for 118 subjects running until November 9.

HSC results will be available to students from Thursday, December 13.

Guardian News wishes to congratulate the Valley’s seniors on a valiant effort this year and wishes them all the best with their remaining exams.

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