Students love these psychology quizzes just as much as I like giving them out. I usually do this as a whole class. Or if my class is rather large, I might have them talk about the answers to these questions in smaller groups. I like to go over this one together in case there are any questions or new terms that need to be explained.
I try to have them give the answer and then give a reason to generate more conversation. Having students discuss what the questions mean is also a nice way to go about using this in class. I often looked for quizzes, tests, and surveys that might be suitable for class.
Class Level: Intermediate to high Class Size: Can be modified for a class of up to 10 or small groups of 3 to 4.
A Walk in the Woods
1. You are walking in the woods: Who are you walking with?
2. 
As you walk through the woods, up ahead, you see an animal in front of you: What kind of animal is it?
3. What interaction takes place between you and the animal? (What happens between you and the animal?)
4. You walk deeper into the woods. You enter a clearing, and before you is your dream house. Describe it’s size
5. Is your dream house surrounded by a fence?
6. You enter the house. You walk in the dining area and see a dining room table.
Describe what you see on and around the table.
7. You exit the house through the
back door. Lying in the grass is a cup.
What material is the cup made of (ceramic, glass, paper, etc.)?
8. What do you do with the cup? (Take it, leave it there, use it, etc.)
9. You walk to the edge of the property, where you find yourself standing at the edge of a body of water.
What type of body of water is it? (Creek, river, lake, ocean, etc.)
10. How will you cross the water? (Swim, take a boat, cross a bridge, etc.)
Answers to the Quiz
This has been a relational psychology test. The answers given to the
questions have been shown to have a relevance to values and ideals that
we hold in our personal lives. The analysis follows:
- The person who you are walking with is the most important person in your life.
- The size of the animal is representative of your perception of the size of your problems.
- The severity of the interaction you have with the animal is representative of how you deal with your problems (passive, aggressive).
- The size of your dream home is representative of the size of your ambition to resolve your problems.
- No fence is indicative of an open personality. People are welcome at
all times. The presence of a fence is more indicative of a closed
personality. You’d prefer people to not drop by unannounced. - If your answer did not include food, people, or flowers, then you are generally unhappy.
- The durability of the material with which the cup is made is representative of the perceived durability of your relationship with the person from number 1. For example, styrofoam, plastic, and paper are all disposable, and you don’t really value the person long term. Glass and ceramic are a little more precious and mean you have a strong but fragile relationship; metal, wood, and plastic indicate a strong, long-lasting relationship.
- What you do with the cup is representative of your attitude toward the person in number 1.
- The size of the body of water is representative of the size of your sexual desire.
- How wet you get in crossing the water is indicative of the relative importance of your sex life.
This Class is Intended for Adults
As you can see by the last couple of subjects, you may or may not want to have those questions in there. Depending on the class, I sometimes had to adjust the questions. You might also have to consider the culture and mix of students when you are discussing these questions.
I never really had a problem with my classes, but you might want to hold off on using this type of topic until your students get to know you better. There are several taboo and controversial subjects that students actually love to talk about. You have got to be aware of the age and maturity level of your students as well as the political implications.
I was teaching soldiers for a bit in Korea, and they are not really allowed to talk about their political beliefs. I got around that sometimes by assigning them a pro or con side, and then they had to defend that position no matter what their personal thoughts were.
That gives me a great idea for a class topic. Coming soon, I’ll have debate topics and how I usually ran a debate class. Until then, remember that Teaching English is Fun!
Jim
