2. Rodriguez has acknowledged that his relationship with his family changed as he became more educated. What does he say about how that affected his success?

3. How does Rodriguez feel about his education?

4. How does Rodriguez feel about learning English?

5. What does Rodriguez say about how the people around him now say his name?

Short Essay Questions

1. What does Rodriguez identify as the pros and cons of bilingual education?

2. Rodriguez's family continues to speak to him in Spanish. What does that suggest about what they think about the value of Spanish?

3. Beyond the simple accomplishment of learning another language, what importance does Rodriguez place on learning English?

4. Rodriguez is trained in Catholic ideas and rituals at a young age. What does this do to his understanding of other religious beliefs and practices?

5. What does Rodriguez say about his experience of growing up Catholic?

6. What do other people think of the "scholarship boy"?

7. What does Rodriguez say about how bilingual education affects the intersection of public and private languages?

8. How does Rodriguez respond when people ask him how he was successful in school? Is his answer completely honest? Why or why not?

9. What does Rodriguez suggest education does to the scholarship boy? Why does he say that?

10. Does Rodriguez's family have the same level of education he does?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Rodriguez is told that men behave in one way and women behave in another way. He is embarrassed because based on those standards, he acts more like a woman than a man.

Part One: How does Rodriguez's family define male and female behavior? Why do you think they have those opinions?

Part Two: Do the characters in the book follow those guidelines for male and female behavior? What happens to characters who do not follow the guidelines? What happens to characters who do follow the guidelines? What is Rodriguez saying about gender roles?

Essay Topic 2

Rodriguez identifies with a student description in a textbook, the "scholarship boy." He feels that is a good representation of how he was as a student.

Part One: Describe the scholarship boy. Identify how that type of student is seen by the teacher, by fellow classmates, and how he sees himself. Identify why Rodriguez related to that description, and use specific examples to support your answer.

Part Two: Write a brief description of the kind of student you are. Identify how that type of student is seen by the teacher, by fellow classmates, and how he/she sees himself/herself. Compare and contrast your description with that of the scholarship boy.