ASSESSMENT

Full Name: ________________________________________________

Date: February 9, 2024

Class: Grade 9 Program: L.P.
Section: N/A Level: 9 Group: N/A
Subject: English Assessment: Test
Duration: 45 minutes Score: ________ / [20]
Instructor(s): Mr. Chaker Mansour, Mr. Johnny Achkar
Description

Comprehension Quiz

Objectives

This assessment aims at assessing students’ ability to:

 Identify and articulate the main concept of the supernatural as presented in the text.
 Identify pronoun reference.
 Complete graphic organizer with problem and solution.
 Complete gaps with suitable words.
 Use different tenses

Instructions

 Write with Blue or Black a pen

 Do not use TipX
 Do not write on the question sheet

Page 1 of 4
Read the following text in which the writer describes the exam superstitions that he's observed
around hìm throughout his education. Answer the questions that follow when you are through
with reading.
Exam Superstitions
1. One of my school friends had this habit of wearing the same shirt every day for all the days of an
exam - be it the quarterly or the annual. We were sure he'd wear the same yellow full sleeves day after
day. The shirt was too worn out, totally faded. I came to know it was actually a yellow shirt, only when
he told me! In fact I remember seeing couple of patches in the arm pit area, but all these didn't stop him
from trusting his old shirt. Never did he come without his good old "yellow" shirt!
2. This made me think why I had no such beliefs or “superstitions” myself. Maybe if I had something
my grades wouldn't be this abysmal. Anyway, all the shirts I used to wear to college were kind of worn
out already. Things other than clothes were of interest to me then. So I guess I had this same- object
luck all the time.
3. Thinking about it, I now realize that nearly all my friends had at least one exam-superstition. One of
my 9th standard friends didn't cut his hair during the annual exam, while another friend didn't take a
bath throughout the exams. This was kind of awkward for all of us as he used to sweat a lot!! I am used
to skipping bath too, during exams, but that was purely because I thought I could use those 15 minutes
for reading a couple of more pages. I used to open the text book only the day before the exam, so I
needed all the time that I could get for at least passing the exam. Math and Chemistry were the prime
candidates for me to skip the bath during my school/UG days.
4. During the exams, I have noticed God becoming an important entity in all students' lives. My mom
used to shout at me, to see the God before going to the exams, but most of the times her sound advice
didn't penetrate my numb skull as my mind was full of some formulae or some text which I absorbed or
mugged up in the last minute. My level of talking usually went down during exams. Maybe this was
my exam-superstition, if you can call it one - "to talk less", as I was afraid if I talked about other things,
I would lose the thread of what I learnt for the next exam.
5. Superstitions used to vary a lot; From 8.30 "I will to eat only 2 make idlies in the morning of the
exam” to “I will only come by the 8:30 bus” to “I will make use of only this hero pen for all the exams”
to “ I will wear the same/dress everyday". There are too many to count here. Luckily, my friends’
circle was made of so many varied characters. I had a nice exposure to this wonderful world of exam
superstitions. There were couple of weird habits too – “bringing a peacock feather and keeping it out
near the paper during the exam” beats it all! One of my 8th standard friends used to do this. “Tying a
knot in the corner of the hand-kerchief at the start of the exam and untying it only after the exam” was
an intriguing one too.
6. I am pretty sure these habits die hard. Only a small percentage of people who used to have these
beliefs during their school days grow out of them. These habits are carried forward in to the corporate
world too. Wait, could this be why my colleague was stinking so much that day during his
presentation?? May be, and maybe not.

Page 2 of 4
I. Comprehension Questions

Answer the following questions in complete sentences of your own.

(Do not just quote the answers)

1. In reference to paragraph 2, why was the author interested in exam superstitions (3 points)

2. Depict 2 figure of speech from the text, as specified in parentheses, and indicate whether it's a simile,

metaphor, or personification. Justify your answer. (Paragraphs 4  6) (3 points).

3. According to paragraph 6, what is the reason that the author gives for the presence of superstitions those

days? (3 points)

B. What does each of the following underlined words in the text refer to? (2 points)

1. It in paragraph (1)

2. This in paragraph (2)

3. This in paragraph (3)

4. I in paragraph (4)

C. Read the following statements, and write F for Facts and O for opinions next to each. (2 points)

1. I am pretty sure these habits die hard. ________

2. Superstitions used to vary a lot. ________

3. I had a nice exposure to this wonderful world of exam superstitions. ________

4. There were a couple of weird habits. ________

Page 3 of 4
D. The table below shows percentages of fear of mysteries by age. Read the table carefully then answer the

following question. (2 points)

Percentages of Fear by Age

Age 0-3 years old 4-8 years old 9-13 years old 14-18 years old

Percentages 85% 78% 50% 25%

- What do the percentages indicate about the relationship between age and fear of mysteries? Explain with

evidence.

E. Find words in the article that most likely have the following meanings. (Score: 02)

1. terrible; dreadful. (Paragraph 2)

2. damaged; shabby (Paragraph 1)

3. major; main. (Paragraph 3)

4. experience (Paragraph 5)

F. Fill in the blanks with the correct verb tense (3 points)

1. John ____________________(stop) working by the time we arrive.

2. He _____________________(struggle) for several years before the business finally took.

3. It’s getting cold! I ____________________(close) the window.

4. My airplane ____________________(arrive) at 3 pm next Saturday.

5. We __________________(have) 3 tests so far this term.

6. The little girl is dirty from head to foot. She __________________(play) in the mud.

Good luck 😊
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