FTCE Reading Instruction 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which assessment is BEST used to determine whether a student's reading difficulties stem from limited phonological awareness versus limited oral language?
- An informal reading inventory
- A phonological processing battery paired with a language sample (Correct answer)
- A running record with miscue analysis
- A standardized vocabulary test
Correct answer: A phonological processing battery paired with a language sample
Combining a phonological processing battery with a language sample allows the examiner to distinguish between phonological-based and language-based reading difficulties.
Question 2: According to Simple View of Reading, reading comprehension is the product of:
- Phonics skill and fluency
- Decoding ability and language comprehension (Correct answer)
- Vocabulary knowledge and background knowledge
- Word recognition and writing ability
Correct answer: Decoding ability and language comprehension
The Simple View of Reading (Gough & Tunmer) states that Reading Comprehension = Decoding × Language Comprehension.
Question 3: A student consistently omits endings such as -ed and -s when reading aloud. This pattern most likely reflects a weakness in:
- Phonemic awareness
- Morphological awareness (Correct answer)
- Orthographic mapping
- Prosodic sensitivity
Correct answer: Morphological awareness
Omitting grammatical morphemes (-ed, -s) signals a weakness in morphological awareness, specifically recognizing how word endings change meaning.
Question 4: Which instructional design principle is most important when selecting decodable texts for beginning readers?
- Texts should include high-frequency irregular words for practice
- Texts should contain mostly phonics patterns already taught (Correct answer)
- Texts should be at the student's frustration level to build challenge
- Texts should feature a wide variety of unfamiliar vocabulary
Correct answer: Texts should contain mostly phonics patterns already taught
Decodable texts should overwhelmingly feature phonics patterns already taught so students can practice applying their decoding skills successfully.
Question 5: Which comprehension monitoring strategy teaches students to notice when they do not understand a passage and to take action?
- Summarizing
- Fix-up strategies (Correct answer)
- Text-to-self connections
- Visualization
Correct answer: Fix-up strategies
Fix-up strategies are comprehension monitoring tools that direct students to re-read, read ahead, or use context clues when understanding breaks down.
Question 6: When teaching morphology, which sequence is developmentally most appropriate for elementary students?
- Latin and Greek roots → inflectional endings → compound words
- Compound words → inflectional endings → derivational suffixes → Latin roots (Correct answer)
- Derivational suffixes → compound words → inflectional endings
- Latin roots → compound words → inflectional endings
Correct answer: Compound words → inflectional endings → derivational suffixes → Latin roots
Research supports beginning with transparent compound words, then inflectional endings, then derivational morphology, and finally Latin/Greek roots.
Question 7: A teacher uses a KWL chart before, during, and after a nonfiction unit. The primary purpose of the 'W' column is to:
- Document words students find difficult
- Set purposes for reading by recording what students want to learn (Correct answer)
- Assess what students already know before reading
- Record writing topics students want to explore
Correct answer: Set purposes for reading by recording what students want to learn
The 'W' column (What I Want to Know) activates curiosity and establishes a reading purpose, improving engagement and comprehension.
FTCE Reading Instruction 3
Which assessment is BEST used to determine whether a student's reading difficulties stem from limited phonological awareness versus limited oral language?