Details That Reveal Setting: Fiction/Drama Practice Test

Read the excerpt from an original drama passage:

Stage directions: A school hallway after hours. A trophy case displays only one recent plaque: “Attendance Improvement—2012”. Ceiling tiles are stained in repeating squares. On a classroom door, a sign: “NO PAPER—PRINTING LIMITED TO 5 PAGES”. Far away, a custodian’s cart squeaks steadily.

MS. WARD: I used to stay late to grade.

LEON: Now you stay late to find paper.

MS. WARD: (looking at the trophy case) We’re awarding survival.

What do the bolded details most clearly suggest about the school?

Read the excerpt from an original drama.

Stage directions: A factory break area. A wall clock is missing its minute hand. A safety poster is sun-bleached, its date reading “2011.” Ear protection dispensers are empty, with a note: “NEXT SHIPMENT TBD.”

DION: How long’s lunch?

REY: However long you can pretend you don’t hear the machines.

DION: We don’t even have plugs.

REY: Pretend harder.

Which inference about the setting is best supported by the bolded details?