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Section 4: Sample Selected-Response Questions English Language Arts and Reading 4–8 (217)Expand All Answers | Collapse All Answers This section presents some sample exam questions for you to review as part of your preparation for the exam. To demonstrate how each competency may be assessed, sample questions are accompanied by the competency that they measure. While studying, you may wish to read the competency before and after you consider each sample question. Please note that the competency statements do not appear on the actual exam. The sample questions are included to illustrate the formats and types of questions you will see on the exam; however, your performance on the sample questions should not be viewed as a predictor of your performance on the actual exam. Selected-Response Questions with RationalesEach sample exam question here includes the correct answer and a rationale for each answer option. Domain I—Foundations of ReadingCompetency 001—(Foundations of Teaching Reading): Understand research-based, evidence-based, and culturally relevant foundational concepts, principles, and best practices related to reading instruction and assessment.1. A teacher notices that while students generally understand what they are reading and are able to retell or summarize texts, many students do not understand the texts at a deeper level. Which of the following techniques would be most appropriate for the teacher to use to promote all students' deeper comprehension?
2. In the first weeks of class, a fourth-grade teacher gives students a reading and writing assignment. As the teacher walks around the room monitoring the students, the teacher identifies possible signs of dysgraphia. Which of the following student behaviors is an indicator of dysgraphia?
Competency 002—(Foundational Reading Skills): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to the development of foundational reading skills, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level foundational reading skills.3. A fourth-grade student reads words from a grade-level word list while the teacher records the student's pronunciation of the words on the chart below.
Given these results, the teacher plans to promote the student's letter-sound relationship skills by providing opportunities for practice in:
4. A fifth-grade student is having difficulty understanding multiple-meaning words in a text. Which of the following techniques would likely be most effective for the student to use to distinguish between the different word meanings?
Competency 003—(Word Analysis Skills and Reading Fluency): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to the development of word analysis skills and fluency, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level word analysis skills and reading fluency.5. During word analysis instruction, a fourth-grade teacher shows students how to recognize and form irregular plurals that are created by changing the final letter or letters of the base word (e.g., fungus/fungi, medium/media). Which of the following strategies best shows a systematic approach to this word analysis concept?
6. As an intervention for students with reading challenges, a teacher displays a map of Texas and shows students video clips of Francisco Coronado's search to find gold and other tales of buried treasure in Texas. The teacher leads a discussion about how the tales may have affected settlement of Texas, acknowledging the students' comments as they are made. Then the teacher gives the students a text about Coronado to read. Which of the following evidence-based statements best reflects the primary purpose of providing this type of meaning-based literacy activity in interventions?
Competency 004—(Vocabulary Development): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to vocabulary development, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level vocabulary knowledge and skills.7. Which of the following sets of steps would best help students analyze context when they encounter unfamiliar words?
8. A seventh-grade teacher is preparing a lesson that will promote students' ability to use and understand the meaning of various antonyms and synonyms to develop comprehension of a text. Which of the following activities would be most appropriate for this purpose?
Domain II—Text Comprehension and AnalysisCompetency 005—(Reading Comprehension Development): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to the development of reading comprehension, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level reading comprehension strategies.9. Seventh-grade students read a fiction text in which important social issues are revealed through the book's setting, main character, and plot. The students also read a recent newspaper article that addresses some of the same social issues. The teacher asks the students to write a personal response to one or more of the social issues reflected in the texts. According to best practices, which of the following strategies would be most appropriate and effective for the teacher to use to prepare the students for this task?
10. Which of the following scenarios provides the best example of responsive teaching?
Competency 007—(Reading Informational and Argumentative Texts): Understand the elements and characteristics of informational and argumentative texts, analyze how authors use these elements and characteristics to achieve specific purposes, and demonstrate knowledge of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to engage in text-based analyses of complex informational and argumentative texts.11. Students in a fifth-grade English language arts class discuss an informational article they have read on the topic of plastic pollution. A transcript of the discussion appears below.
The teacher's approach in the class discussion is most clearly intended to promote the students' ability to:
12. A sixth-grade teacher plans a series of questions for a class discussion about an informational text the students have read. Which of the following questions would be most appropriate for promoting the students' evaluative thinking about the author's craft?
Domain III—Oral and Written CommunicationCompetency 008—(Composition): Understand the characteristics of various genres of written text; apply knowledge of strategies for developing well-organized, engaging, written texts that achieve specific purposes for specific audiences; and apply knowledge of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to develop well-organized, engaging, written texts that achieve specific purposes for specific audiences.13. Read the excerpt below from the first draft of the introduction of an argumentative essay; then answer the question that follows.
A sixth-grade teacher plans to include the excerpt in a lesson on using evidence to support a claim. Which of the following student activities would be most appropriate for the teacher to facilitate during the lesson?
14. Read the excerpt below from the first draft of a response to a novel; then answer the question that follows.
A seventh-grade teacher plans to use the excerpt as a model during a lesson on revision strategies. Which of the following revised versions of the underlined sentence would offer the best example of how to revise for coherence and clarity?
Competency 009—(Inquiry and Research): Demonstrate knowledge of strategies for conducting focused inquiry and research and presenting the results in an appropriate, responsible, and ethical manner and of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to conduct focused inquiry and research and present the results in an appropriate, responsible, and ethical manner.15. A group of sixth-grade students is planning a presentation about the water supply in El Paso, Texas. The students have generated the following research question. Why are some people concerned about El Paso's water supply? Which of the following questions would best help the group refine their research question?
16. Before seventh-grade students begin a research project, the teacher provides criteria for evaluating online sources. Which of the following approaches would be most effective in further promoting the students' ability to evaluate online sources?
Competency 010—(Listening and Speaking): Demonstrate knowledge of strategies for critical listening and collaborative speaking and of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' skills in critical listening and collaborative speaking, including using differentiation strategies that are culturally and academically appropriate for all students.17. An English language arts teacher is preparing guidelines for public speaking for use by students. To avoid potential cultural insensitivity, the teacher should eliminate which of the following guidelines from the list?
Domain IV—Educating All Learners and Professional PracticeCompetency 011—(Differentiation Strategies in Planning and Practice): Understand how to identify and implement developmentally and culturally appropriate strategies and data-driven practices to effectively teach and engage all learners.18. Read the excerpt below from the Code of Ethics and Standard Practices for Texas Educators; then answer the question that follows.
An eighth-grade teacher has assigned a project in which students will examine the history of baseball and ways it has impacted American culture. The teacher would like to communicate with students regarding writing assignments and research activities in conjunction with this project. Given the information provided, which of the following actions by the teacher would be the most appropriate way to use technology in accordance with Standard 3.9?
19. A fourth-grade teacher develops a series of questions as part of a thematic reading unit on the seasons for a class. Which of the following strategies should the teacher use to effectively apply universal design for learning (UDL) guidelines while gathering information from students about their prior knowledge on the topic?
Competency 012—(Culturally Responsive Practices): Understand how to identify and implement culturally responsive, developmentally appropriate practices to effectively teach and engage all learners.20. While attending a regional professional development workshop, a fifth-grade team of teachers participates in a small-group discussion on implicit bias and instruction. During the discussion several teachers verbally agree that they have not selected more diverse texts for their reading curriculum because "sometimes diverse texts are not rigorous enough." Which of the following steps should an English language arts teacher take first to address the effect such implicit bias has on instruction?
Competency 013—(Data-Driven Practice and Formal/Informal Assessment): Understand the types, selection, and uses of data-driven, developmentally appropriate assessments and assessment practices to effectively support program improvement and all students' learning.21. A fifth-grade class includes a group of students who did not pass the reading portion of the State of Texas Assessments of Academic Readiness (STAAR) in fourth grade. Which of the following processes would most effectively measure progress and inform instruction for this group of students?
22. A middle school teacher is evaluating classroom assessment practices and identifying assessment outcomes with regard to students' Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) mastery. Which of the following statements best describes the value of using an assessment matrix with the reading TEKS for this purpose?
Clustered QuestionsRead the excerpt below from The Book of Salt, a novel by Monique Truong; then answer the three questions that follow.
Competency 006—(Reading Literary Texts): Understand the genre-specific characteristics, structures, and purposes of diverse traditional, contemporary, and classical literary texts; analyze how authors use these elements and characteristics to achieve specific purposes; and demonstrate knowledge of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to engage in text-based analyses of a range of complex literary texts.23. In the excerpt, the author uses nature imagery primarily to:
24. A teacher wants to promote students' ability to understand the central idea of the excerpt by synthesizing information provided in the excerpt. Which of the following sets of questions uses scaffolding most effectively for this purpose?
25. A teacher wants to create a writing prompt that will help students draw personal connections with the narrator's reflections on time and distance in the excerpt. Which of the following writing prompts would be most appropriate for the teacher to use for this purpose?
Additional Selected-Response QuestionsThis section includes additional sample selected-response questions for you to review in preparation for the exam. The correct answer is provided for each question below. Domain I—Foundations of ReadingCompetency 001—(Foundations of Teaching Reading): Understand research-based, evidence-based, and culturally relevant foundational concepts, principles, and best practices related to reading instruction and assessment.26. A sixth-grade teacher wants students to make a text-to-self connection with the topic of a text that they are going to read. Which of the following activities would be most effective in supporting this goal?
27. A sixth-grade teacher delivers a lesson that focuses on comparing characters in a drama. The teacher asks students to use a T-chart to write their ideas and then displays a volunteer student's completed chart to begin a discussion. The class reflects on the student's ideas in pairs. The teacher then brings the whole group together to continue the character analysis. This scenario demonstrates the teacher's understanding that effective differentiated instruction should include:
Competency 002—(Foundational Reading Skills): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to the development of foundational reading skills, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level foundational reading skills.28. A team of seventh-grade teachers wants to help their diverse group of students develop strong literacy and oral communication skills. Which of the following activities would likely be most effective in reaching this goal?
29. Which of the following student activities would be most appropriate for informally assessing fifth-graders' ability to identify and use adages as outlined in the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) for English Language Arts and Reading foundational vocabulary standards?
Competency 003—(Word Analysis Skills and Reading Fluency): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to the development of word analysis skills and fluency, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level word analysis skills and reading fluency.30. An eighth-grade teacher is evaluating supplemental texts on U.S. history and wants to select texts for working with a small group of students who are reading below grade level. The teacher's intention is to help the students read at grade level. When considering the quantitative dimensions of text complexity, the teacher should consider the:
31. While assessing students' oral reading fluency, a teacher notes that a student slows down frequently to confirm and self-correct, which results in a loss of reading momentum. While discussing the text with the student after the reading, the teacher determines that the student's comprehension of the text is satisfactory. Given this student's assessment results, the teacher should take which of the following steps to improve the student's fluency?
Competency 004—(Vocabulary Development): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to vocabulary development, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level vocabulary knowledge and skills.32. A teacher reads aloud to students from various texts daily and talks with the students about the texts. This practice best demonstrates the teacher's awareness of which of the following concepts related to vocabulary development?
33. A teacher is preparing fourth-grade students to read a book that contains several idioms. Before reading, the teacher engages the students in identifying and learning the meanings of some common English-language idioms. Which of the following strategies would likely be most effective for the teacher to use for this purpose?
Domain II—Text Comprehension and AnalysisCompetency 005—(Reading Comprehension Development): Understand concepts, principles, and best practices related to the development of reading comprehension, and demonstrate knowledge of developmentally appropriate, research- and evidence-based assessment and instructional practices to promote all students' development of grade-level reading comprehension strategies.34. During a focused-reading lesson, sixth-grade students are rereading a text about the suffragist movement and reviewing higher-order questions. Which of the following questions would be most appropriate for the teacher to ask as part of this activity?
35. Which of the following scenarios in a fifth-grade classroom best shows students engaged in a focused-reading activity?
36. A teacher is listening to a fourth-grade student's oral reading of a text. During the reading, the student pauses and looks puzzled after a reading miscue. According to best practices for promoting students' ability to self-monitor during reading, which of the following steps would be most appropriate for the teacher to take first?
37. A seventh-grade student, who has mastered reading fluency and has at-grade-level vocabulary knowledge, struggles with literal and inferential comprehension of a previously read informational text. The student is likely to benefit most from an intervention in which the teacher:
Competency 006—(Reading Literary Texts): Understand the genre-specific characteristics, structures, and purposes of diverse traditional, contemporary, and classical literary texts; analyze how authors use these elements and characteristics to achieve specific purposes; and demonstrate knowledge of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to engage in text-based analyses of a range of complex literary texts.38. A sixth-grade teacher would like to assess students' understanding of an author's use of flashbacks for plot development in a novel they are reading in class. Which of the following student activities would be most appropriate for this purpose?
Competency 007—(Reading Informational and Argumentative Texts): Understand the elements and characteristics of informational and argumentative texts, analyze how authors use these elements and characteristics to achieve specific purposes, and demonstrate knowledge of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to engage in text-based analyses of complex informational and argumentative texts.39. Students in an eighth-grade class are preparing to read an argumentative essay. Which of the following activities would be most effective for promoting the students' ability to distinguish fact from opinion in the essay?
40. An eighth-grade English language arts teacher plans to have students read and discuss an essay about how the designation Ms. became an alternative to "Miss" and "Mrs." during the women's movement of the 1970s. The teacher uses entrance cards to assess the students' knowledge of the topic and determines that their knowledge is limited. Which of the following strategies would be most appropriate for the teacher to use to support the students' comprehension of the essay?
Domain III—Oral and Written CompositionCompetency 008—(Composition): Understand the characteristics of various genres of written text; apply knowledge of strategies for developing well-organized, engaging, written texts that achieve specific purposes for specific audiences; and apply knowledge of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to develop well-organized, engaging, written texts that achieve specific purposes for specific audiences.41. A student is developing an essay on the topic of bird-watching. Which of the following versions of an introductory sentence would be most appropriate for the student to use to engage readers' attention?
42. A seventh-grade teacher wants to assess students' writing skills before starting a lesson on writing formal correspondence. Which of the following writing prompts would be most appropriate for the teacher to use for this purpose?
Competency 009—(Inquiry and Research): Demonstrate knowledge of strategies for conducting focused inquiry and research and presenting the results in an appropriate, responsible, and ethical manner and of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' ability to conduct focused inquiry and research and present the results in an appropriate, responsible, and ethical manner.43. While gathering information about Big Bend National Park from online sources, a student finds the two statements that appear below.
Which of the following sentences drafted by the student most effectively synthesizes the information provided in the two statements?
44. Seventh-grade students read Farewell to Manzanar: A True Story of Japanese American Experience During and After the World War II Internment, a memoir by Jeanne Wakatsuki Houston and James D. Houston. After reading the memoir, the students' teacher wants them to conduct research on an aspect of the Japanese American experience during the 1940s. Which of the following activities would be most appropriate for the students to engage in first?
Competency 010—(Listening and Speaking): Demonstrate knowledge of strategies for critical listening and collaborative speaking and of research-based strategies and best practices for promoting students' skills in critical listening and collaborative speaking, including using differentiation strategies that are culturally and academically appropriate for all students.45. During a unit on the Harlem Renaissance, an eighth-grade teacher presents the information below as part of a slideshow.
While presenting the slide, the teacher states that Dorothy West was fourteen years old when her stories were published in The Boston Post. Which of the following questions should the teacher ask to develop the students' critical-listening skills?
46. A group of fifth-grade students is discussing a passage from a novel they are reading in class. When the teacher asks the group to describe the setting, one student says, "It's a weird and mysterious house," and the rest of the class agrees. Which of the following responses by the teacher would most effectively help the other students in the group elaborate on the first student's statement?
47. An eighth-grade teacher notices that several students tend to dominate speaking opportunities in the classroom. The teacher is planning a literature unit that will include whole-class instruction and small-group collaboration on a project. The teacher wants to ensure that all students will have opportunities to have their voices heard during these activities. Which of the following instructional practices would be most appropriate for the teacher to use?
Domain IV—Educating All Learners and Professional PracticeCompetency 011—(Differentiation Strategies in Planning and Practice): Understand how to identify and implement developmentally and culturally appropriate strategies and data-driven practices to effectively teach and engage all learners.48. Based on feedback received from students, an eighth-grade teacher is providing more opportunities for students to work on tasks independently. While the students read a short story independently, the teacher wants them to actively participate and understand what they are reading. Which of the following strategies would be most effective for keeping students engaged and monitoring their understanding of the short story?
Competency 012—(Culturally Responsive Practices): Understand how to identify and implement culturally responsive, developmentally appropriate practices to effectively teach and engage all learners.49. A sixth-grade English language arts teacher wants to foster a positive relationship between students and the course content where students begin to see their classroom as a writing community. Which of the following approaches would be most appropriate for the teacher to use to promote higher student expectations for themselves in class?
50. A middle school English language arts teacher wants to motivate students to read independently for pleasure and to build knowledge. Which of the following approaches would be most effective for the teacher to use to achieve this goal?
AcknowledgmentsTruong, Monique. The Book of Salt. Houghton Mifflin. 2003. p. 190 Mountain Trails Lodge & Outdoor Learning Center, Fort Davis, Texas. Return to Navigation Which of the following ways best explains how the United States attempted to influence the outside world following the conclusion of the First World War *?Which of the following ways best explains how the United States attempted to influence the outside world following the conclusion of the First World War? It used trade and investment in order to maintain international connections.
Which of the following types of evidence would most directly support the argument peiss makes in the excerpt?Which of the following types of evidence would most directly support the argument Peiss makes in the excerpt? Writers commentary about urban life in newspapers and magazines from the 1860s to 1900.
Which of the following spurred the Manhattan Project?The Manhattan Project was started in response to fears that German scientists had been working on a weapon using nuclear technology since the 1930s. On December 28, 1942, President Franklin D.
Which of the following postwar developments most directly contributed to the ideas in the excerpt?1) Which of the following postwar developments most directly contributed to the ideas in the excerpt? The foreign policy strategy of supporting developing nations as a means to prevent the spread of communism.
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