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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 were Ashton-Warner and Mr. Tremaine drinking while talking on the porch?

2. What did Ashton-Warner call the "weakest" words in the language?

3. How many words had Tame learned, according to the chart in "Post Holiday Notes"?

4. What instrument did the seven-year-old twins play after the event for Kahu?

5. What did Mere and June rub on their faces?

Short Essay Questions

1. Why was Ashton-Warner surprised at the appearance of the new classrooms when she visited?

2. Why did Ashton-Warner say that when giving first words to her students, she avoided showing them any illustrations of those words?

3. Why was Ashton-Warner upset about the way she handled Mark Cutter when his mother insisted that her son was advancing too quickly in class?

4. What revelation did Ashton-Warner have in "Post-Holiday Notes" about using Maori readers with both Maori and white students?

5. What did Ashton-Warner think about as she gazed at the empty site where her old classroom had once stood?

6. Why was Ashton-Warner so worried about the prospect of being visited by the inspector?

7. How did Ashton-Warner view the importance of handwriting?

8. How did the behavior of the children differ in the new classrooms compared to when Ashton-Warner taught at the school?

9. How did sentence length differ between whites and Maoris?

10. How did Ashton-Warner describe the moments in her life when she knew the meaning of what was happening to her?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Ashton-Warner wrote at length about the importance of tone in the classroom. Write an essay exploring how tone is set in the classroom and how several people have a role in setting that tone. Does the tone have to be the same from classroom to classroom or school to school? Or should there be variations based on the unique needs of the teachers and students? How does a teacher determine what tone works best for her students and how does she achieve that tone, especially if it differs from what she would normally like to see?

Essay Topic 2

A professor told Ashton-Warner that "tidiness kills education." She so admired the expression that she asked him to repeat it. How was this philosophy reflected in Ashton-Warner's teaching style? What advantages are there to maintaining a sense of chaos and disorder in the classroom? Is learning a neat and tidy activity, or is it naturally messy? How can teachers ensure that maintaining a "neat" classroom does not interfere with students' natural learning patterns?

Essay Topic 3

The Maori children in Ashton-Warner's classroom encountered racism from the majority white population in New Zealand. How did these attitudes affect the students at home and in the community? How did it affect them in the classroom? Did having a white teacher have an impact on them, even if she was open and accepting of them? How do societal assumptions and expectations impact a child's ability to perform in school? Do children internalize the prejudices they encounter or are they able to escape them in the classroom? How do teachers deal with the impact these prejudices may have on their students? Is it possible to fully counter them in school?

(see the answer keys)

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