Reading Comprehension Test

A SCHOOL ON EVERY DOORSTEP

In India there are 1.4 million children aged 6 - 11 who do not attend any school. That is why in 1988, two passionate teachers Ranjani Paranjpe and Bina Lashkari started a non-formal education project, Door Step School,  for 50 children in a small slum in Mumbai. A year later the project became an official educational program aiming to teach children to at least read and write.

At the beginning, the teachers walked from door to door looking for children who did not go to school,  speaking to parents and asking them to send the children to their school. They arranged classrooms everywhere: in marketplaces,  on pavements, at railway stations and ever in the bus.

The idea spread very quickly to neighboring communities. More and more teachers as well as volunteers decided to join the programme. Now, the Door Step School has at team of 1,000 teachers and volunteers across eight districts in India and deals with more than 70,000 students every year.

Since 1988, the teaching conditions in the Door Step School have changed a lot. Now, busses called School on Wheels serve as libraries and mobile classrooms with computers,  TVs and DVD players. Apart from learning basic skills such as reading, writing and  arithmatic,  children also have lessons on hygiene or health and safety.

Reading Comprehension Test.

Read the text about the Door Step School in India carefully. Then complete the True/False and Multiple-Choice exercises below.

1. True or False

1. Door Step School was started in 1988 by two teachers in Mumbai.

2. The first Door Step School was for 500 children in a big city.

3. The main goal was to help children learn to read and write.

4. At the beginning, teachers waited for children to come to school.

5. Classes were sometimes held in marketplaces and railway stations.

6. Volunteers also joined the project later.

7. Today, the Door Step School has only 100 teachers.

8. There are more than 70,000 students in the programme every year.

9. Modern School on Wheels buses are used as mobile classrooms.

10. Children now also learn about health and safety.

2. Multiple Choice Questions

1. Why was the Door Step School started?
   1. Because children didn’t want to go to school.
   2. Because many children in India could not attend school.
   3. Because the teachers wanted to build a new school building.
   4. Because the government asked them to.
2. Who started the Door Step School project?
   1. Two parents from Mumbai.
   2. Two volunteers from Delhi.
   3. Two teachers, Ranjani Paranjpe and Bina Lashkari.
   4. A group of students.
3. Where did the first Door Step School begin?
   1. In Delhi.
   2. In a small slum in Mumbai.
   3. In a village near Kolkata.
   4. In a school building.
4. Where did teachers hold their first lessons?
   1. Only in classrooms.
   2. In parks and sports fields.
   3. In marketplaces, on pavements, and even in buses.
   4. Only in libraries.
5. How many teachers and volunteers are now part of the programme?
   1. About 100.
   2. About 1,000.
   3. About 10,000.
   4. About 70,000.
6. How many students does the Door Step School help each year?
   1. 1,000
   2. 7,000
   3. 70,000
   4. 700,000
7. What is School on Wheels?
   1. A bus that brings children to school.
   2. A bus used as a library and mobile classroom.
   3. A special government programme.
   4. A TV show for children.
8. What do children learn now besides reading and writing?
   1. Sports and music.
   2. Drawing and dancing.
   3. Hygiene, health, and safety.
   4. Cooking and gardening.

3. Vocabulary Task

Match the words with their meanings:

1. Volunteer  –  A) A person who works without being paid.

2. Slum  –  B) A very poor area in a city where people live in bad conditions.

3. Programme  –  C) A planned series of actions or activities.

4. Hygiene  –  D) Keeping yourself and your environment clean to stay healthy.

5. Mobile classroom  –  E) A classroom that can move from place to place.

. Answer Key

True/False:
1–T, 2–F, 3–T, 4–F, 5–T, 6–T, 7–F, 8–T, 9–T, 10–T

Multiple Choice:
1–B, 2–C, 3–B, 4–C, 5–B, 6–C, 7–B, 8–C