The Testing

Multiple Choice and Long Answer questions create ideal opportunities for whole-text review, unit exam, or summative assessments.

Multiple Choice

1. How are Cia and Zeen alike?

A) They both dislike school but strive for power.

B) They both want to be chosen for The Testing.

C) They both refuse to listen to their father.

D) They both decide to move away permanently.

2. What reasoning does Dr. Barnes seem to use to decide if the ends justify the means?

A) As long as no one dies and he helps build a safer world, his actions are justified.

B) As long as The Testing ranks all candidates fairly and efficiently, his actions are justified.

C) As long as no one gets permanently injured and he builds leaders, his actions are justified.

D) As long as he maintains order and keeps advancing society, his actions are justified.

3. Which of the following do the testers seem to value most?

A) The learning of challenging facts

B) Relationships with family and friends

C) Helping others first

D) Strong decisions under pressure

4. Which best characterizes Cia’s reaction to not being chosen for The Testing?

A) Relief, followed by guilt

B) Intense disappointment

C) Both happiness and anxiety

D) Understanding and hope

5. What is one way nature has changed as a result of the wars?

A) Animals are now more powerful than humans and rule Earth.

B) No more trees exist.

C) Fruits and vegetables have been modified.

D) Water cannot be found in nature.

6. Which of the following events best builds the theme of The Environment, Its Destruction, and Human Dependence?

A) Cia sets snares to trap animals for food.

B) Zeen modifies the transit communicator.

C) Brick shoots mutated humans.

D) The Testing officials spy on the candidates.

7. What does the novel imply about human nature?

A) Humans will inevitably destroy the planet and each other.

B) Humans struggle to care for each other, and our most basic instinct is to fight.

C) Humans who demonstrate kindness are rewarded in most systems.

D) Humans have resilience and the capacity to rebuild.

8. How does Dr. Barnes react when he sees Tomas and Cia struggling to finish the practical test?

A) He cancels the test immediately and summons doctors.

B) Visibly upset, he refuses to watch and walks away quietly.

C) He watches them calmly without helping or interfering.

D) He cheers them on and encourages others to do the same.

9. What is significant about the lightning bolt mark Cia makes on Zeen’s transit communicator?

A) It is a clue to how to finish the practical test.

B) It signals the only link to her memories of The Testing.

C) It represents Zeen’s accomplishments that began Cia’s journey.

D) It is a sign of her love for Tomas.

10. How does Will’s relationship with Cia shift over the course of the novel?

A) At first they are friends, then they become enemies, and they end with Will not remembering many of their interactions.

B) When they meet, they instantly like each other, and their bond grows steadily during The Testing until the final moments.

C) They dislike each other strongly initially but grow to begrudgingly respect each other by the end of the practical exam.

D) Will likes Cia throughout the novel, but Cia dislikes Will until the end when he saves Tomas’s life.

11. What does the novel suggest about guns?

A) The novel suggests guns should only be in the hands of those in power.

B) The novel shows how quickly guns can lead to devastation.

C) The novel implies that guns are only used for protection.

D) The novel argues that guns make the world safer.

12. In which of the following ways does Cia demonstrate the power of youth resistance?

A) Cia participates in a walkout and protest march at school and later during The Testing.

B) Cia organizes her friends, and they vote en masse to remove the leaders of her town.

C) Cia subverts The Testing by reclaiming her memories of what really happened.

D) Cia refuses to engage in the practical part of The Testing until all are guaranteed safety.

13. Which of the following statements best summarizes nature’s involvement in The Testing?

A) Nature is very slightly involved; most of The Testing, especially the practical portion, occurs inside a very controlled building.

B) Nature is somewhat involved because a few written questions ask about candidates’ knowledge of nature.

C) Nature is involved throughout the process in some ways, including storms candidates must monitor and questions about the natural terrain.

D) Nature is involved in crucial ways: in written questions, in testing activities, and in surviving the practical exam.

14. How do adults try to help youth in the novel?

A) Cia’s father gives her important information before The Testing and keeps Zeen from receiving potentially dangerous attention.

B) The teacher at Five Lakes helps more of her students get chosen for The Testing each year.

C) Dr. Barnes gives each candidate private advice throughout the practical part of The Testing.

D) The people monitoring the written portions of The Testing make sure each candidate is comfortable and reassured.

15. Which of the following is the accurate order of the novel’s events?

A) Cia is given a shot that erases most memories of The Testing to that point; Zeen modifies the transit recorder; Malachi dies when shot by a nail; a mutated human scratches Cia’s arm, which becomes infected.

B) Malachi dies when shot by a nail; a mutated human scratches Cia’s arm, which becomes infected; Cia is given a shot that erases most memories of The Testing to that point; Zeen modifies the transit recorder.

C) A mutated human scratches Cia’s arm, which becomes infected; Cia is given a shot that erases most memories of The Testing to that point; Zeen modifies the transit recorder; Malachi dies when shot by a nail.

D) Zeen modifies the transit recorder; Malachi dies when shot by a nail; a mutated human scratches Cia’s arm, which becomes infected; Cia is given a shot that erases most memories of The Testing to that point.

Long Answer

Compose a response of 2-3 sentences, incorporating text details to support your response.

1. What motivates Zeen’s father to take the credit at the Graduation Day Speech for developing a new potato, even though it was not his accomplishment?

2. How has Cia changed from Graduation Day to the end of The Testing?