Cheating and Test-taking

                Taking the test would be the easy part.  I am very confident in my test



taking abilities.  The hard part would be getting away with cheating.  Let me explain. 



I am in my senior year at Hillcrest High and am a lifelong resident of Hillcrest.  The



outlook of the city is bleak at best, and the only way to make a life for myself is to



score high on my ACT exam and get accepted into Columbia.  Why I am set on



Columbia I still have no idea, but to me it is my only hope.

         

                Normally I would have studied for this test as I do with all my tests, but



this test came at the end of the summer.  And this particular summer was spent with



my friends following Phish on tour.  So no, I did not study.  Now here I am, it’s



730am and I have all of the answers to the multiple choice test on a tiny piece of



paper in my pants.  Also on that piece of paper are two outcomes for my future.  The



first outcome is I get caught cheating, get expelled and live in Hillcrest working at a



gas station for the rest of my life.  The other outcome is I get a great score, get



accepted into Columbia, and live the good life all the live long day.

         

                  Now the test is in front of me.  I smoothly slide the answer sheet out of



my waistband and proceed to look around.  Whether it was my paranoia talking or



not, it seemed like everyone was looking at me.  Realizing what had to be done, I



started using my “helper” to take the test.  After a few minutes I got into the groove of



test taking and started cruising along.  When the hand settled on my shoulder I



almost screamed.

         

                “Sir, do you need more paper or a sharpened pencil?”  The test attendant



asked me. “No ma’am.  I’m fine, thank you,” I said to her.  I was concentrating so



hard on cheating and test taking that I didn’t notice the test people talking to



everyone about supplies.  After regaining my composure, I finished the test.  I even



missed a couple on purpose so as not to arouse suspicion.  To my surprise, the rest



of the process was simple.  I turned in the test and went home.  Columbia here I



come!

         

                  If you were wondering why I am telling you all this, well I’ll tell you. 



Sometimes cheating is the only way to save your own life.  I had never cheated



before and will never cheat again, but on that day I was saving my own life.  To bad



the test I was actually taking was the SAT and not the ACT like I thought.  To bad I



only got about a quarter of the answers right, and was lucky to get those.  Now if we



are done talking, I’ll check your anti-freeze level while the unleaded is running.  But it



will cost you.