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Study Guide

Field 058: Primary Special Education (PK–5)
Sample Multiple-Choice Questions

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Domain I–Child Development and Individual Learning Differences

Competency 0001
Understand child development and factors that influence human development and learning from birth to age ten (grade five).

A community has been recently impacted by a natural disaster. Since the disaster, a fourth-grade student has developed anxiety and has withdrawn from friends, preferring to stay close to family members. Together, the student, their parents/guardians, and their teacher develop a plan for school and home to assist the student through this challenge. According to the principles of child development, this practice will primarily benefit the student by:

  1. supporting the student’s perseverance during adverse times through supportive adult relationships.
  2. demonstrating for the student the significance of continuing academic learning in times of distress.
  3. aiding the student’s development of confidence by setting achievable goals for the student in a challenging time.
  4. determining for the student appropriate learning objectives that are attuned with the student’s needs during difficult experiences.
Answer
Correct Response: A. Experience of childhood trauma can impact the way a student forms relationships with others. Developing a plan for caring adults to support the student both in and out of school can promote the student’s sense of security, attachment, and connectedness. Research indicates these are important protective skills for promoting self-determination.

Competency 0001
Understand child development and factors that influence human development and learning from birth to age ten (grade five).

The following is a conversation between two prekindergarten children who are pretending to cook in the kitchen center.

Child 1: Put the eggs in here and mix them with the flour, sugar, and butter.

Child 2: Okay. I’ll get the big spoon. What flavor should we make this cake?

Child 1: Well, what do you like?

Child 2: I like everything, but I don’t like chocolate.

Child 1: What about vanilla cake with strawberries on top?

Child 2: That sounds yummy. I’ll cut the strawberries!

Which of the following social-emotional strengths is demonstrated by Child 2?

  1. understanding that a peer has a similar perspective
  2. feeling empathy for a peer after recognizing their emotions
  3. using problem-solving to resolve a conflict with a peer
  4. cooperating with a peer while sharing a common goal
Answer
Correct Response: D. The children in the scenario engage in pretend play while solving a problem and working to achieve a common goal collaboratively. They demonstrate conversational turn-taking, asking questions to determine preferences (e.g., “Well, what do you like?”) and commenting to communicate agreement (e.g., “That sounds yummy.”), and express plans of action (e.g., “I’ll cut the strawberries!”). While playing, the children coordinate actions (e.g., “Put the eggs in here and mix them with the flour, sugar, and butter.”) to achieve the common goal of baking a cake.

Competency 0002
Understand how children construct knowledge and then use this understanding to create opportunities for children to learn about and explore their world.

A prekindergarten class learns one-to-one correspondence and counting skills. The teacher plans to reinforce children’s development of these skills throughout the day. For example, when in the pretend kitchen area of the classroom, the teacher asks a child to use these skills to determine how many pots the child is using to cook. Which of the following statements most effectively explains the rationale supporting this approach to children’s development across domains?

  1. Young children learn new skills when high expectations are communicated clearly.
  2. Young children learn best when concepts are taught through engaging play.
  3. Young children learn to generalize new skills in the order they are learned.
  4. Young children learn and progress through stages when instruction is explicit.
Answer
Correct Response: B. Young children learn a variety of skills through concrete, interactive experiences. Play incorporates many skills which are important for the child’s early development and learning. Play is motivating to the child, incorporates multisensory engagement, and requires integrating new learning into schematic knowledge. These factors can promote the child’s ability to acquire skills and generalize and maintain new learning.

Competency 0002
Understand how children construct knowledge and then use this understanding to create opportunities for children to learn about and explore their world.

Fifth-grade students engage in a weekly story dramatization activity in which they role-play character actions and dialogue from a familiar story using student-created props, costumes, and backdrops. A story dramatization activity such as role-play has which of the following primary advantages?

  1. developing conflict resolution skills through complex role-playing
  2. integrating narrative language with collaborative and purposeful play
  3. encouraging conversational exchanges using content-specific vocabulary
  4. practicing self-regulation while role-playing characters engaging socially
Answer
Correct Response: B. Story dramatization activities such as the one described in the scenario provide students with opportunities to engage in collaborative play while developing their narrative language and social communication skills. Story dramatization activities have been shown to promote students’ achievement in story recall, writing, and reading comprehension and foster their development of social-emotional skills, such as self-confidence, self-regulation, and interpersonal communication.

Domain II–Assessment, Progress Monitoring, and Individual Program Planning

Competency 0003
Understand formal and informal assessment instruments and procedures for evaluating strengths and needs of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

While administering the Kindergarten Readiness Assessment (KRA) during the first weeks of school, the teacher uses the following strategies to maximize the participation of all students.

  1. repeating the directions as many times as needed for a student with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
  2. allowing a student who was not feeling well extra time to complete an assignment
  3. permitting an English learner to change a response to a correct one
  4. permitting a student with hearing loss to change seats during a direct assessment activity
  5. allowing a student to hold the stimulus booklet instead of leaving it on the table

Which of the following options describes this assessment administration?

  1. maximizing the need for accommodations and modifications given the students’ disabilities
  2. providing additional allowable supports to students with disabilities
  3. applying universally designed allowances of general administration procedures
  4. using differentiation practices that would result in scores that would be considered invalid and unreliable
Answer
Correct Response: C. Universally designed allowances for general administration procedures refer to assessment accommodations that do not change what the assessment is intended to measure. These universal accommodations can be utilized by students regardless of special education eligibility or disability and are designed to promote students’ access to the assessment.

Competency 0003
Understand formal and informal assessment instruments and procedures for evaluating strengths and needs of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

For full and individual initial evaluations, a primary intervention specialist often administers standardized assessments using digital testing formats. Using technology when administering assessments would most directly support which of the following outcomes?

  1. allowing more accommodations in comparison to paper formats
  2. promoting efficiency by supplying immediate scoring results
  3. permitting increased flexibility when rating student performance
  4. increasing students’ familiarity with formal assessment approaches
Answer
Correct Response: B. Digital testing formats streamline the assessment process given that they are programmed to immediately calculate assessment results, such as students’ raw scores, scaled scores, percentile ranks, and confidence intervals. Digital testing formats increase efficiency because they reduce time spent on administrative tasks associated with scoring standardized assessments.

Competency 0004
Understand policies, principles, and procedures related to referral, eligibility, program planning, and placement of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A functional behavior assessment (FBA) is being conducted for a kindergarten student who exhibits behavioral difficulties. The student often screams and throws materials (e.g., books, pencils) in class. A behavior intervention specialist uses a motivation assessment scale as one source of data to collect information about this behavior. A summary of the scale results is shown below.

Escape from task demand Desire for attention Desire for tangible object or activity Sensory stimulation
80% 0% 0% 20%

Based on this information, which of the following strategies is likely to be most effective?

  1. ensuring the student’s work is at an appropriate instructional level and prompting the student to ask for clarification of the work when needed (e.g., “I need help”)
  2. modeling for the student the question, “Can I play with [preferred peer]?” or “Can you look at my work now?”
  3. teaching the student to request competing sources of stimuli for the behavior during work (e.g., “Can I use my headphones?”)
  4. encouraging the student to ask, “Am I doing good work?” and providing verbal praise contingent on the absence of challenging behavior
Answer
Correct Response: A. The purpose of an FBA is to determine the function of a student’s challenging behavior and provide data to develop interventions to effectively address these behaviors. Interventions may be designed to establish effective learning conditions and teach and reinforce alternative appropriate behaviors that meet that same need. In this scenario, the student’s challenging behavior is primarily escape-motivated. Effective intervention would include designing the student’s work to be at the appropriate instructional level and teaching the strategies to obtain clarification or request a break.

Competency 0004
Understand policies, principles, and procedures related to referral, eligibility, program planning, and placement of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

Use the information below to answer the question that follows.

The guidelines for literacy interventions in the table below were developed by a team of general education teachers and primary intervention specialists.

a table depicting guidelines for literacy interventions
Step Tier Recommendation
1 1

Screen all students for potential reading difficulties at the beginning and middle of the school year.

Closely monitor students who may be at risk for reading disabilities.
2

Provide differentiated reading instruction for all students based on their current reading strengths and needs.
3 2

Provide intensive, systematic instruction addressing up to three reading skills in small groups of students who score below the benchmark score on screening.

Groups meet between three and five times a week for 30 to 45 minutes.
4

Monitor the reading progress of students receiving Tier 2 interventions at least once every two weeks.

Intervention teams should design Tier 3 intervention plans for students who are making insufficient progress.
5 3

Provide daily, intensive instruction to promote the reading proficiency of students who have demonstrated minimal progress after receiving Tier 2 intervention.

Summarizing recommendations, as shown in the table, would most directly support which of the following outcomes?

  1. prescribing evidence-based curricula that promote students’ acquisition of reading and writing skills
  2. increasing referrals for full and individual initial evaluations to determine eligibility for special education services
  3. providing reading and writing enrichment to a wide range of students with various learning needs
  4. distinguishing between students who require support from those who require individualized instruction
Answer
Correct Response: D. Establishing clear processes for screening, monitoring progress, differentiating instruction, defining hierarchies of intervention, and identifying timelines of intervention would provide primary intervention specialists and general education teachers with a framework for meeting the learning needs of students. Monitoring progress while providing increasingly intensive interventions would provide valuable data about students’ responsiveness to instructional strategies and supports. In addition to supporting data-informed decision making, analysis of data collected systematically would allow the primary intervention specialists and general education teachers to distinguish between students who require support from those who require individualized instruction.

Domain III–The Learning Environment and Social-Emotional Learning, Interventions, and Supports

Competency 0005
Understand practices for establishing positive and productive learning environments for students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A first-grade student often tells classmates what to do, cuts in front of others in line, interrupts people when they are talking, and struggles to make friends as a result of these behaviors. The student ignores teachers when they remind the student to let others speak or to take turns. Which of the following strategies would most effectively support the student in building relationships with peers and foster a positive classroom environment?

  1. teaching, modeling, and reinforcing positive behavior interactions and expectations with the student
  2. recognizing that these behaviors are temporary and demonstrating patience with the student
  3. creating, assigning, and enforcing negative consequences for the student’s disrespectful behavior
  4. encouraging peers to openly communicate their perspectives of the student’s behavior
Answer
Correct Response: A. When creating a positive classroom environment, it is essential to explicitly teach, model, and reinforce social skills and behavioral expectations. Using visuals and common language can support the student to remember roles and specific guidelines. Embedding opportunities to practice pro-social skills in large- and small-group activities, role-playing situations, and previewing expectations during upcoming events or situations can support the reinforcement of positive behaviors. 

Competency 0005
Understand practices for establishing positive and productive learning environments for students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

Following a lesson, a primary intervention specialist encourages students to communicate their understanding of the learning objective using the four-point scale below.

4 3 2 1
I could teach the learning objective to others. I understood the learning objective. I need a little more practice to understand the learning objective. I need help to understand the learning objective.

The teacher’s approach most directly reflects which of the following principles?

  1. Self-reflection provides the teacher with more accurate data to specifically identify students' misconceptions.
  2. Self-reflection fosters students’ ownership of learning and motivation as well as engagement in the learning process.
  3. Self-reflection supports students’ understanding of which strategies most effectively address their learning needs.
  4. Self-reflection provides the teacher with data about which learning activities are effective and ineffective.
Answer
Correct Response: B. Embedding self-reflection in daily lessons is likely to foster students’ ability to recognize their growth and progress toward learning objectives. This awareness supports students’ ability to engage in self-directed learning, which in turn supports their motivation and engagement in learning activities.

Competency 0006
Understand strategies and methods for teaching and supporting social-emotional competence and developing interpersonal skills for students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A primary intervention specialist wants to create a supportive classroom environment that encourages students to develop the social-emotional skills to stay motivated and work toward attainable goals. Which of the following strategies has a positive impact on the development of persistence?

  1. highlighting the feedback loop between self-efficacy beliefs and intelligence
  2. using extrinsic motivation techniques that reinforce failure as something to avoid
  3. showing students connections between their learning and their personal aspirations
  4. creating a sense of academic community for students with higher-level competencies
Answer
Correct Response: C. Strategies that effectively work to develop persistence in children prioritize improving a child’s sense of competence. Focusing on a child’s strengths and personal goals and aspirations and breaking goals into attainable expectations are strategies that promote a child's sense of competence and improve motivation for persistence. 

Competency 0006
Understand strategies and methods for teaching and supporting social-emotional competence and developing interpersonal skills for students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

As students interrupt lessons with questions or comments that are unrelated to the target concept, the primary intervention specialist writes these topics on the whiteboard under the heading “Parking Lot.” These topics are then addressed at the end of the activity or, if time does not allow, at the end of the week. Viewing interruptions as learning opportunities in this way would most directly support which of the following student outcomes?

  1. providing data about students’ essential understandings following learning activities
  2. capturing students’ opinions to encourage respectful discussions from varying perspectives
  3. promoting engagement by encouraging students to make decisions about what they learn
  4. limiting disruptions to increase students’ ability to closely attend to learning activities
Answer
Correct Response: C. The teacher’s decision to create a “Parking Lot” is an effective classroom management approach that reduces disruptions while encouraging students to ask questions and make comments that may or may not be related to the lesson. Students are likely to feel valued when the topics they are curious about, even when not related to the lesson, are given time for exploration and discussion. Additionally, the “Parking Lot” allows the teacher to immediately respond to students’ learning needs, to address misconceptions and clarify concepts, and to create opportunities for students to identify topics they are interested in learning about.

Domain IV–Specialized Instructional Planning, Design, and Delivery

Competency 0007
Understand evidence-based strategies and practices for developing and implementing effective planning and instruction in a variety of settings for students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A primary intervention specialist regularly uses the following strategy when facilitating whole-class discussions with a fourth-grade class:

  1. Teacher poses an open-ended question to class.
  2. Teacher provides time to think about responses.
  3. Teacher strategically pairs students to talk about responses.
  4. Students share their thinking with a peer.
  5. Students share their thinking with the larger group.

This strategy primarily scaffolds students in:

  1. generalizing learning to real-life and authentic contexts.
  2. citing evidence to back up personal opinions.
  3. activating schematic knowledge on a specific topic.
  4. formulating ideas and verbalizing thinking in a low-risk setting.
Answer
Correct Response: D. This strategy primarily provides an opportunity for students to process information with a peer and express their thinking in a low-risk setting. Having multiple opportunities to answer questions and consider expressing key content promotes students’ engagement and ability to verbalize their thinking with the larger group.

Competency 0007
Understand evidence-based strategies and practices for developing and implementing effective planning and instruction in a variety of settings for students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

While modeling how to use a number line to solve addition problems using unit fractions, a primary intervention specialist creates an anchor chart. The teacher then displays the anchor chart and encourages students to reference it as they engage in independent practice. The teacher’s approach to using the anchor chart would most directly support which of the following student outcomes?

  1. understanding how to solve fraction problems conceptually
  2. distinguishing between fraction numerators and denominators
  3. comparing two fractions using reasoning about their size
  4. representing fraction decomposition and composition visually
Answer
Correct Response: A. An anchor chart that captures a visual model like a number line and the procedure for adding unit fractions would promote students’ conceptual understanding of fraction addition and recall of the mathematical procedure for solving addition problems with fractions. Creating an anchor chart as part of a lesson promotes students’ engagement and produces a meaningful visual referent to support students’ small-group and independent work.

Competency 0008
Understand evidence-based instructional strategies, methods, and activities for promoting the academic achievement and learning of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A fifth-grade student with an emotional impairment selects books of interest from the classroom library but struggles to read for the whole time allotted for independent reading. Though the student begins reading attentively, the student tires easily and closes the book and rests for the remainder of the time. The primary intervention specialist considers strategies to motivate the student in increasing the time spent reading during this block of time. Which of the following strategies would be most effective for this purpose?

  1. reminding the student of the rules and routines of reading time, emphasizing the rule of reading the whole time
  2. selecting several interesting books for the student to read and assigning the student specific books to finish each day
  3. working with the student to set a goal for the number of minutes spent reading each day and listing ideas for meeting that goal with the student
  4. arranging a comfortable area for the student to read in quietly with a partner who reads at a similar level
Answer
Correct Response: C. In this scenario, the student has selected books of interest to read during independent reading time. Strategies to increase a student’s sustained amount of independent reading time include setting meaningful reading goals with the student and involving the student in how to achieve these goals. Involving students in selecting the number of minutes they will read each day is a goal that is able to be measured, tracked, and achieved by the student.

Competency 0008
Understand evidence-based instructional strategies, methods, and activities for promoting the academic achievement and learning of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

Fifth-grade students research the contributions of a historical figure and prepare a presentation to share their findings with the class. Students use the following rating scale to provide feedback to peers about their presentations.

a sample evaluation table
Presentation Skills Never Sometimes Always
The presenter made eye contact with the audience. intentionally left blank intentionally left blank intentionally left blank
The presenter spoke clearly and loudly enough to be heard. intentionally left blank intentionally left blank intentionally left blank
The presenter spoke at an appropriate pace for the audience to understand. intentionally left blank intentionally left blank intentionally left blank
The presenter remained on topic throughout the presentation. intentionally left blank intentionally left blank intentionally left blank
The presenter responded to questions from the audience. intentionally left blank intentionally left blank intentionally left blank

Which of the following statements best illustrates the primary benefit of students providing feedback as shown in the rating scale?

  1. The rating scale provides a framework for students to analyze pragmatic language skills.
  2. The rating scale better captures students’ speaking skills within dynamic social situations.
  3. The rating scale communicates expectations and how student performance will be measured.
  4. The rating scale encourages students to determine the accuracy of the information presented.
Answer
Correct Response: A. The rating scale in the scenario identifies the specific pragmatic language skills that students are evaluating and provides a standardized approach for providing feedback. Using the rating scale ensures that students are providing peer feedback that is focused and aligned with targeted learning standards or Individualized Education Program ( I E P ) goals.

Domain V–Professional Relationships and Responsibilities

Competency 0009
Understand ways to develop effective collaboration and communication processes to promote home/school engagement, and engage with members of the school and community to promote the educational achievement of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A primary intervention specialist is working in collaboration with a general education teacher to integrate grade-level standards with students’ Individualized Education Program (IEP) goals. Which of the following instructional goals would this practice most effectively achieve for students with disabilities?

  1. incorporating progress-monitoring rubrics
  2. promoting the inclusion of differentiated instruction
  3. providing instruction in the least restrictive environment (LRE)
  4. developing rigorous benchmarks
Answer
Correct Response: B. Differentiating instruction is a research-based instructional design that refers to tailoring lessons and activities to meet the individual strengths and needs of students. A teacher can differentiate a variety of factors, including the content, instruction, delivery, products, or learning variety to meet the needs of a learner. Promoting the inclusion of differentiated instruction includes teaching students according to their zone of proximal development and integrating grade-level standards with individualized learning goals.

Competency 0009
Understand ways to develop effective collaboration and communication processes to promote home/school engagement, and engage with members of the school and community to promote the educational achievement of students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

The following is an excerpt from an email sent by a primary intervention specialist to the parents/guardians of a second-grade student.

We look forward to meeting with you to update your child’s Individualized Education Program next week. Part of the discussion will be to highlight your child’s strengths and determine appropriate goals. We would like to incorporate your ideas and goals into the planning process.

Preparing the student’s parents/guardians for the meeting about their child’s Individualized Education Program ( I E P ) is most likely to support which of the following meeting objectives?

  1. ensuring that the team addresses each area that the parents/guardians prioritize when developing the long-term objectives for the student
  2. highlighting the legal obligations families have regarding contributions toward their children’s educational plans
  3. encouraging the parents/guardians to decide what parts of the curriculum are most important for their child
  4. focusing the team on viewing the student as an individual with many characteristics and skills
Answer
Correct Response: D. The purpose of the primary intervention specialist’s email is to inform the parents/guardians about the focus of the upcoming  I E P  meeting, which is to collaboratively identify the student’s strengths and determine appropriate goals. The primary intervention specialist’s approach is likely to promote parent/guardian participation and emphasize the student’s unique characteristics, skills, and assets.

Competency 0010
Understand the professional responsibilities and legal and ethical issues relevant to teaching students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

At the start of the school year, teachers review the district’s teaching framework and identify the elements they would like to address during their professional development activities for that academic year. Which of the following strategies most effectively supports teachers in identifying their own strengths and needs in determining goals for professional growth?

  1. collecting articles or videos aligned to elements of the teaching framework
  2. creating a rubric for scoring their own teaching performance
  3. observing master teachers working with children with disabilities
  4. completing a self-assessment that includes reflection on previous work
Answer
Correct Response: D. Self-assessment is a practice that is critical in evaluating someone’s own teaching values, beliefs, and practices. Research supports the use of reflective practices to help teachers identify their own strengths and needs and determine areas to prioritize for professional growth. This process can help teachers take an active and informed role in their own teaching practice.

Competency 0010
Understand the professional responsibilities and legal and ethical issues relevant to teaching students with disabilities in grades PK–5.

A primary intervention specialist is preparing for an observation by an administrator as part of their professional review process. The teacher would like to use this observation to determine areas for professional growth. Which of the following actions would provide the teacher with the most relevant information to guide goal development?

  1. selecting a new teaching strategy to try out during the observation and asking for feedback on the strategy
  2. identifying some constructive questions related to professional practice for the administrator to address in the observation
  3. practicing the task that will be observed with students ahead of time to enhance instruction
  4. providing the administrator with a summary of identified strengths from past observations to avoid content overlap
Answer
Correct Response: B. Constructive questions related to professional practice would elicit meaningful feedback about the effectiveness of the primary intervention specialist’s implementation of classroom management strategies, instructional approaches, and/or assessment practices. Receiving meaningful and relevant feedback would identify professional areas that the primary intervention specialist can improve upon.