Other Duties As Assigned

One new development in our SOL test administration leaves English teachers out of the mix when it comes to proctoring the writing test. This year, we are not permitted to monitor our own students for fear that we might coach them too much. When I first heard, I thought it was fine news. Invigilating is hard work. Reading the directions feels so phony. All the standing and pacing, ugh. Then the collecting and sorting. The pressure to protect the bin at all costs.

Instead, I was a hall monitor. 

I set a desk by the stairs and brought some papers to correct. I was given a bright red sign with a long post I was prepared to hold as students passed through the halls between classes and say, "Sssshhhh," like a pro. But before any of the fun stuff happened, I was summoned by one of the proctors. 

"Leah," he whispered from down the hall, "I need some help." It was in my own room with my own students that half of the laptops were failing to log students in with their test tickets. Not only were hands popping up everywhere, the volume in the room was not a standardized testing environment at all. Nope, it sounded like the bus had left for the amusement park and these kids were ready to par-tay. 

I smiled at them, turned the lights down, and walked toward my phone saying, "Ssssshhh," all the way. The noise level dropped as I made a call to reset some tests. I smiled again and said, "Sssshhhh," and spoke to the benefits of a calm room before students are asked to take a test. Such advice didn't feel like unfair coaching to me. Then again, should I have even been there at all?

It took resetting, rebooting, and reassigning machines for about 35 minutes before students were given the green light to begin. To maintain quiet all that time took a few reminders, but they settled in before long. Then I left for my 3-hour hall duty where, in my opinion, I had to shush the wrong students.