View a FREE sample

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

Short Answer Questions

1. Why does Rod arrive late for his final exam?

2. Why does Rod's instructor try to discourage him from taking the final exam?

3. At the beginning of Chapter 6, Rod jokes that Jack is jealous of what?

4. What is the name of Helen's knife?

5. What sort of outerwear does Rod plan to take with him, for the survival test?

Short Essay Questions

1. What strange sound prevents Rod from sleeping comfortably during his first night on the unknown planet?

2. Where has Rod's new partner, Jack, been sleeping?

3. What advice does Deacon Matson give Rod, regarding the final exam?

4. What career field does Rod wish to pursue?

5. What major setback does Rod suffer at the conclusion of Chapter 3?

6. Why do Rod, Jack, and Jimmy decide to signal other students to join their group?

7. What unusual phenomenon do Jack and Rod see in the sky at the end of Chapter 5, in addition to the pentagonal constellation?

8. How does Rod first encounter a student worthy of partnership?

9. List several ways in which the futuristic Earth of "Tunnel in the Sky" differs from our present-day planet.

10. Why does Helen advise Rod not to carry a gun during his survival final exam on an unknown planet?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

What clues does the author provide as the novel progresses that dopey joes may not be mere harmless, slow, clumsy creatures? What ultimate impact do the dopey joes have on the settlement created by the stranded students? What lesson does Heinlein wish to impart, by showcasing the dramatic changes exhibited by the dopey joes?

Essay Topic 2

Near the end of the novel when officials from Terra arrive to rescue the students, why is Rod the only one who wishes to stay on the new planet? Why are the other students so anxious to leave, even though many had previously stated that they would never want to return home? What irresistible attractions draw them home, that could never be replicated in Cowpertown?

Essay Topic 3

What is Rod's dream job? Why is such a job important in his world? How do his experiences throughout "Tunnel in the Sky" prepare him for such a career? Why does he almost abandon his dreams near the end of the novel, when rescuers arrive?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 849 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample