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This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. What are people quick to do in the type of culture Gladwell examines in Kentucky?

2. What is the KIPP Academy?

3. What does Gladwell call the culture of many people who settle in Kentucky?

4. Where does it crash?

5. What cultural legacy among Asian peoples does Gladwell discuss?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is KIPP and who are its students?

2. What does Suren Ratwatte say about a Colombian airliner that crashes in New York?

3. How is a work ethic related to growing rice?

4. Explain the term "Power Distance Index" and who coins the term.

5. What is the third lesson of Joe Flom?

6. How do Korean Airlines change their bad record of crashes?

7. What does Gladwell think is the cause of families feuding?

8. What does Gladwell say about early American educational theorists?

9. How does Harlan gain notoriety in its early days?

10. How do the students at KIPP Academy differ from those of other public schools?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Gladwell measured things such as to what extent the people of a country trust and follow authority, and with what degree of willingness. This measurement is called the "Power Distance Index" or PDI. Countries like the United States have a low PDI, meaning that people interact with figures of authority without much deference and are ready to challenge authority when the situation calls for it. Countries like South Korea and Colombia have a high PDI, meaning that they recognize many levels of authority in a cultural hierarchy and are reluctant to challenge authority.

1. Why do you think recognizing many levels of authority in a cultural hierarchy might influence a person to not challenge authority? Use examples from Outliers to support your answer.

2. Give an example, not discussed in Outlier, and discuss, in depth, where challenging authority would have a negative result. Use examples from Outliers to support your answer.

3. Give an example, not discussed in Outlier, and discuss, in depth, where challenging authority would have a positive result. Use examples from Outliers to support your answer.

Essay Topic 2

Outliers belongs to the non-fiction genre. Discuss the following:

1. Define the literary term "genre" and give several examples of three other genres in addition to the non-fiction genre.

2. Discuss two reasons why it might be useful to label a text by genre and two reasons it might be disadvantageous to label a text by genre.

3. What do you think is the difference between a non-fiction and a novel?

Essay Topic 3

Wolf concludes that there is something about the town itself that keeps its residents free from heart disease. He discovers that the town has a very high sense of community. People are very social and several generations of families live together. There are many clubs and other organizations and people are involved with their community. These seem to be contributing conditions to the relative good health of the residents of Roseto. It is not who they are as individuals, but where they are from that keeps them healthy.

1. Why do you think being a member of a close-knit community might make a person healthier? Use examples from Outliers to support your answer.

2. Do you think a group of individuals from the same area who are more unhealthy than the average American could be unhealthy because of where they live? Why or why not? Make up an example of why this might be true. Use examples from Outliers to support your answer.

3. Discuss what makes a community close-knit and how a small town that does not have a close-knit community might be able to promote one. Use examples from Outliers to support your answer.

(see the answer keys)

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