A Month Wasted

Silence.

The soft click of keys tapping out answers, a mouse being clicked to go on to the next question.

The faint scratch of pencil on paper, working out a problem.

The silent & internal struggle of a difficult question crosses a young face.

Glazed eyes stare blankly at a computer screen, not understanding what they see.

Heads hung low with internal conflict, being made to feel stupid by a question they do not understand.

Sobs muffled behind closed lips so as not to disturb the testers around them.

A teacher's heartbreak as a special needs student begs for help that the teacher is prevented by test rules from giving.

Sigh of relief when answers can be submitted & the test ends.

Then the next day, it starts all over again.

Three weeks, almost a full month of learning lost & never to be regained to the monster of high stakes testing.

(Side note: Unfortunately, teacher are prevented from telling parents that they have the right to opt out of standardized testing.  Kids don't have to take these high-stakes tests.  While some tests are used to help gauge a student's academic level & see where they are struggling, high-stakes testing does not.  It also takes away learning time from the students.)