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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. According to Ashton-Warner, what is the only answer to destructiveness?

2. What was one bird NOT mentioned as being seen outside the school?

3. What "univited insect" was NOT seen in the classroom?

4. To what ancient writing system did Ashton-Warner refer at the beginning of the book?

5. Where did the smaller children sometimes go during the shared reading period?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why did Ashton-Warner believe that standardized reading texts were damaging to children?

2. Why was teaching the class so back-breaking, according to Ashton-Warner?

3. What did Ashton-Warner mean by "tone" in the classroom?

4. What was the role of handwriting in the Maori students' stories?

5. What did Ashton-Warner mean when she referred to a workbook as a "middleman"?

6. Why was it important for the teacher to be a good conversationalist in the classroom?

7. Why did Ashton-Warner throw out words that students did not recognize the second time?

8. How did the Maori early readers provide a bridge to eventual reading of European material?

9. In what way does nature provide lessons that books or indoor plantings cannot?

10. Why did Ashton-Warner say that the discussions of the children's stories were the "most significant" feature of the class?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ashton-Warner wrote in detail about the importance of "first words" for beginning readers and how the traditional reading books used among young children did not use those words. Write an essay exploring how the use of a child's first words can enhance the learning process. Do children from different cultures develop different first words? Does learning to read from another culture's books necessarily lead to stunted development? If individual children are given their own unique texts, at what point can a teacher introduce standardized books to the entire classroom?

Essay Topic 2

Ashton-Warner's students spend much time dancing in the classroom, whether as a form of exercise or in free-dance exploration. Write an essay exploring the use of dance in the classroom. What are the benefits of giving students access to this art form? Are the benefits solely physical? Does dance help center children and does it have an effect on concentration? How can free-dance periods help children express themselves and how can that impact other areas of the curriculum?

Essay Topic 3

As Ashton-Warner listened to a Maori adult teach her students a traditional song, she realized that she could not have done that because she was not Maori herself. She knew she could not bring forth the same passion that the Maori teacher did. How did being white affect Ashton-Warner's abilities as a teacher to a mostly-Maori classroom? Did it limit her in any way? Was she required to make changes to her technique because of the racial difference? Were there other situations (besides the traditional song) in which Ashton-Warner would have been at a significant disadvantage as a white person? Is it necessary to have teachers reflect the ethnic or racial makeup of their classrooms?

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