AECTP Special Education 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which instructional strategy is MOST effective for teaching phonemic awareness to students with dyslexia?
- Whole-language immersion without phonics
- Explicit, systematic, multisensory phonics instruction (Correct answer)
- Silent sustained reading periods
- Context clue reliance
Correct answer: Explicit, systematic, multisensory phonics instruction
Research consistently supports explicit, systematic, multisensory phonics instruction (e.g., Orton-Gillingham) as the most effective approach for students with dyslexia.
Question 2: A student with autism spectrum disorder has difficulty transitioning between activities. Which support strategy is MOST appropriate?
- Eliminating all transitions by keeping the student in one activity all day
- Providing visual schedules and advance warnings before transitions (Correct answer)
- Requiring the student to transition independently without support
- Sending the student to a separate room during transitions
Correct answer: Providing visual schedules and advance warnings before transitions
Visual schedules and transition warnings reduce anxiety and increase predictability for students with ASD who struggle with transitions.
Question 3: Under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, which students are eligible for accommodations?
- Only students with IEPs under IDEA
- Students with any physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity (Correct answer)
- Only students with documented medical diagnoses
- Students who fail state standardized assessments
Correct answer: Students with any physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity
Section 504 has a broader eligibility standard than IDEA, covering any student with a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits a major life activity.
Question 4: What does 'specially designed instruction' mean in the context of special education?
- Instruction delivered only by a special education teacher in a separate room
- Adapting content, methodology, or delivery to address a student's unique disability-related needs (Correct answer)
- Any modification made to the general curriculum
- Technology-based instruction for all students
Correct answer: Adapting content, methodology, or delivery to address a student's unique disability-related needs
Specially designed instruction under IDEA means adapting the content, methodology, or delivery of instruction to meet the unique needs resulting from the student's disability.
Question 5: A student with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) returns to school after hospitalization. Which step should the IEP team take FIRST?
- Wait 90 days to observe the student before modifying the IEP
- Conduct a reevaluation to assess current levels of performance and needs (Correct answer)
- Place the student in a self-contained special education classroom immediately
- Refer the student to a private school
Correct answer: Conduct a reevaluation to assess current levels of performance and needs
Following a TBI, the IEP team should reassess the student's current functioning because TBI can dramatically alter cognitive, behavioral, and academic abilities.
Question 6: Which of the following BEST describes 'universal design for learning' (UDL)?
- A retrofitting approach that adds accommodations after instruction is planned
- A proactive framework that designs flexible instruction to meet the needs of all learners from the start (Correct answer)
- A special education-only instructional model
- A standardized testing accommodation policy
Correct answer: A proactive framework that designs flexible instruction to meet the needs of all learners from the start
UDL is a proactive approach that builds in multiple means of representation, engagement, and expression to support all learners from the outset.
Question 7: An IEP goal states: 'Given a word problem, the student will identify the operation needed with 80% accuracy across 3 consecutive sessions.' What component is this goal demonstrating?
- Baseline data
- Measurable criteria (Correct answer)
- Supplementary aids
- Related services
Correct answer: Measurable criteria
The '80% accuracy across 3 consecutive sessions' component provides the measurable criterion that determines when the goal has been achieved.
AECTP Special Education 3
Which instructional strategy is MOST effective for teaching phonemic awareness to students with dyslexia?