They say it just takes one bad apple to ruin the bunch… While the procedure for “securing” testing materials may not be as elaborate as above- just give it time.  Testing materials are kept under lock & key because some school somewhere didn’t want to lose state bonus money for high test scores and monkeyed (sorry Cecil) around with the tests.  So now we all are treated as untrustworthy hoodlums…

I do talk to my students before the test and share some anecdotes (Urban Legends)- such as a few years ago (I heard this from a friend who was there so you’ve got to believe me) elementary schools used to have adults write the names on the test booklets to save time & make sure everything was legible.  As the story goes a child failed the statewide test and the school suggested that the student be retained.  Their parents asked to see the test (probably their lawyer asked to see the test) when they saw it they immediately asked for the score to be dropped (and their child advanced to the next grade, placed in the gifted program, given the keys to the kingdom) because… the front page was not in the child’s handwriting so the school could not prove it was their child’s test!  Truth?  I’m not sure, but promise me you won’t put your poodle in the microwave…