Standardized Test Hell

A joke of a poem I wrote during the ITEDs my sophomore year of high school.

The silence in here is deafening

I cannot focus on my own hand

Let along this test in front of me

Footsteps come closer, I tense

The teacher is coming near

Will he see my lack of concentration?

Is it so blatantly obvious?

The footsteps pass - without stopping

I breathe out a sigh of relief

Only to have my anxiety brought back

There’s a minute and a half left!

What am I to do?

I can’t possibly manage to finish

In such a small amount of time!

I scramble to fill in bubbles

While the clock keeps on ticking

Finally, just as the teacher calls out “Done!”

I finish the last question

In triumph, I toss down my pencil

Feeling my hand cramp up, but also

Feeling proud of my accomplishment

And then the teacher speaks again

“Oh, no” I moan, as I flip the page to another test.

Reviews

[Tina Kline]

Really well written poem. Brings back memories of having to take tests tests! Tests! And More Tests! I really
like how you made this personal too. Great job.