Early Childhood at Granite State

Recently Harvard University announced that it was doing away with final exams. They stated that students do not really learning anything by taking final exams. They are better off showing what they know in projects, quizzes and hands on experiences.

This announcement raised an interesting discussion in the Early Childhood Assessment course at Granite State College, Rochester. Should students take final exams? The class members recounted their own experiences at Granite State College. They reported that in most classes in the Teacher Training Education department faculty relied on projects and papers to assess understanding. Most of the students had taken few final exams at Granite State College. They agreed that using projects and papers assessed their understanding of the material they were learning. They realized that final exams were appropriate in some courses but they felt that the faculty was responsive to the material being taught and they were happy that final exams were not always the only way to assess learning in the classes at Granite State College.  What is your opinion of final exams in college?