<p>I remember in middle school our semester grade was entirely based upon a final exam; for all classes except math they were essay exams that took a day to write. Except if you were teacher's pet you got 105s and were allowed to stay until 6:30, and if teachers hated you but you were still competent you could stay until 4 and got low As. You were allowed to retake the exams if you got below an 85, and were forced to retake them if you got below a 75. (If you got below a 75 three times in a row you theoretically had to retake the course again, but this often didn't happen in practice.) Life was crazy.</p>