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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What comment from a professor makes Rodriguez rethink his use of the label "minority student"?
(a) That he does not count as a minority.
(b) That he automatically gets an "A" because he is a minority.
(c) That his opinion is based on his minority status.
(d) That he is a bad writer because he is a minority.

2. How does Rodriguez's sister's friend challenge his ideas about complexion?
(a) She is dark-skinned but spends more time indoors than he does.
(b) She is black, but not poor.
(c) She is white, but not rich.
(d) She is light-skinned but spends more time outdoors than he does.

3. Where did Rodriguez teach in the 1960s and 1970s?
(a) UC Berkeley.
(b) Harvard.
(c) Stanford.
(d) UCLA.

4. When does Rodriguez think that minority students should get help?
(a) When they are in high school.
(b) At the earliest possible age.
(c) When they look for a first job.
(d) When they start college.

5. According to Rodriguez, who does affirmative action help?
(a) Minority students who already have some advantages.
(b) White students who want an excuse for not getting into school.
(c) White college professors who feel guilty about the Civil Rights Movement.
(d) All minority students.

6. How does Rodriguez feel about writing a book on his family?
(a) It is very hard for him.
(b) He is excited about it.
(c) It is very easy for him.
(d) He is worried about what his family will say.

7. Now that he is a teacher, what does Rodriguez blame white students for?
(a) They are arrogant and selfish about their grades.
(b) They are rude to the minority students.
(c) They do not make an effort to help poor white students get an education.
(d) They think they are smarter than the professors.

8. According to Rodriguez's family, how are men supposed to be?
(a) Gentle, polite, and soft-spoken.
(b) Ruggedly handsome, strong in character, and responsible.
(c) Tough, aggressive, and bossy.
(d) Intelligent, kind, and good at providing for a family.

9. When Rodriguez applies for teaching jobs, what happens?
(a) He is told the schools will not hire a minority candidate.
(b) He does not get any job offers.
(c) He gets lots of good job offers.
(d) He gets one or two offers from out-of-state schools.

10. What does Rodriguez think about his ability to succeed with women?
(a) He can only flirt with dark-skinned women.
(b) He will fail because his skin color makes him ugly.
(c) He will attract a lot of women because he is "exotic."
(d) He will succeed because he has such a beautiful "tan."

11. When a student complains that he is being kept out of law school, what does Rodriguez do?
(a) Stay out of it.
(b) Support his case.
(c) Argue against his case.
(d) Tell him to stop whining.

12. Because of his skin color, what did Rodriguez's parents worry about?
(a) That he would get involved with a gang.
(b) That he would take a hard labor job.
(c) That people would discriminate against him.
(d) That he would have a harder time in school.

13. What is the main reason for Rodriguez's success?
(a) The support of his parents.
(b) His great teachers at Stanford.
(c) His "minority student" status.
(d) His hard work and good educational background.

14. What is Rodriguez aware of when he visits his rich friends?
(a) His friends are fascinated by his skin color.
(b) There are dark-skinned servants, but he is a friend, not a servant.
(c) His friends talk about skin color differently than his family does.
(d) His friends treat him differently because of his skin color.

15. In the last chapters of the book, what is Rodriguez keeping secret from his family?
(a) That he's writing a book.
(b) That he wants to be a construction worker.
(c) That he no longer goes to church.
(d) That he dropped out of school.

Short Answer Questions

1. When Rodriguez gets a summer job during college , what does it teach him about "real work"?

2. How does Rodriguez say that the white students react to affirmative action?

3. What does Rodriguez have to do if he is going to write this book?

4. What new academic field do these minority college students ask for?

5. Based on his conversation with his classmate, what does Rodriguez decide?

(see the answer keys)

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