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. Some of the coworkers have to pay $60 a night for a hotel room because they can not save up the ___________ for a first and last month rent payment.

2. What area of the restaurant is locked up when it is assumed that the dishwasher is stealing from the restaurant?

3. At what publication does the editor who assigns the story to Barbara work?

4. What is the name Barbara uses for the family restaurant where she chooses to work first in Florida?

5. The author most dislikes the visible __________ at the restaurant where she works since they complain and never leave good tips.

Short Essay Questions

1. What will Barbara not rely on in order to get a job and to support herself, as one of the rules of her experiment?

2. What is Barbara's fear about working in the area where she currently lives, Key West?

3. Why do people end up living with others or in conditions they don't want to live in, according to Barbara?

4. How long a period of time will the author spend in each location?

5. What statement does the author make which leads to her getting the assignment to write this book?

6. Why doesn't Barbara think the physical exertion of her new job should be bothering her so much?

7. What does the interviewer at a grocery store warn Barbara about when she puts in her application?

8. What does Barbara find out about Gail and what she has to do when her boyfriend suddenly dies?

9. What is the one thing that Barbara says she will not mention as she is applying and working during this experiment?

10. What is surprising to Barbara about the many places to which she has applied for a job?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

It seems that most of the places where Barbara worked didn't want to give employees any time off or any breaks.

Part 1: Why do you think the places of employment were unwilling to give breaks to the workers?

Part 2: What do you think may have happened to morale and productivity if the employees had been allowed to take breaks?

Part 3: Why do you think breaks are necessary within the course of a working shift?

Essay Topic 2

One of the biggest beliefs the author holds about the way a person can better themselves in the world is that education can allow a person to do anything and to be something more.

Part 1: How does the author's educational level help her in the process of this project?

Part 2: Why do you think the other workers around the author don't realize she is more educated than them?

Part 3: Why do you think the author expected the others she worked with to notice her educational level? What does this say about the author?

Essay Topic 3

It seems that the odds are against those who are in minimum wage jobs. From the costs of housing to the way these workers are often not paid well, it seems the cycle of poverty may never end.

Part 1: Why do you think minimum wage workers can not get ahead in their lives?

Part 2: Do you think outside influences are the main reasons why people can not lift themselves from poverty? Why or why not?

Part 3: Do you think society willfully creates conditions in which minimum wage workers can not succeed? Why or why not?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 826 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample