GACE Special Education 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A student who is deaf uses American Sign Language (ASL) as their primary language. Under IDEA, the IEP team must consider which communication need?
- Whether the student should learn to speak English before receiving services
- The student's language and communication needs, including opportunities to communicate with peers and professionals in the student's language (Correct answer)
- Placing the student in a school for the deaf regardless of parent preference
- Eliminating ASL use to promote oral communication development
Correct answer: The student's language and communication needs, including opportunities to communicate with peers and professionals in the student's language
IDEA requires IEP teams to consider the communication needs of students who are deaf or hard of hearing, including opportunities to use their language with peers and professionals.
Question 2: A teacher uses a graphic organizer to help a student with a learning disability organize ideas before writing. This is an example of which instructional support?
- Modification
- Accommodation (Correct answer)
- Supplementary aid
- Related service
Correct answer: Accommodation
A graphic organizer is an accommodation—it changes how a student accesses or demonstrates learning without altering the grade-level content standard.
Question 3: When conducting a reevaluation under IDEA, how often must a student with a disability be reevaluated?
- Annually
- Every 2 years
- At least every 3 years unless parents and the IEP team agree it is unnecessary (Correct answer)
- Only when the school requests it
Correct answer: At least every 3 years unless parents and the IEP team agree it is unnecessary
IDEA requires reevaluation at least every three years (triennial), though it may occur more frequently and can be waived if parents and the school agree it is unnecessary.
Question 4: A student with ADHD has difficulty sustaining attention during lengthy reading tasks. Which accommodation would be most directly targeted to this deficit?
- Extended time on tests
- Breaking reading assignments into shorter segments with frequent breaks (Correct answer)
- Reducing the reading level of assigned texts
- Allowing the student to choose their own reading materials
Correct answer: Breaking reading assignments into shorter segments with frequent breaks
Breaking tasks into shorter segments directly addresses attention span limitations by reducing the duration of sustained focus required at any one time.
Question 5: Which measurement approach is used to graph a student's progress over time and compare it to a performance aim line to determine if instruction is effective?
- Norm-referenced assessment
- Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) with progress monitoring (Correct answer)
- Ecological assessment
- Criterion-referenced testing
Correct answer: Curriculum-based measurement (CBM) with progress monitoring
CBM with progress monitoring uses frequent, brief assessments graphed over time with an aim line to evaluate whether instructional interventions are producing adequate growth.
Question 6: A student with a traumatic brain injury (TBI) returns to school after hospitalization. Which team member should be most involved in helping the educational team understand the student's new cognitive and physical needs?
- The student's previous general education teacher
- The school psychologist only
- A medical liaison or rehabilitation specialist familiar with TBI, alongside the full IEP team (Correct answer)
- The school principal
Correct answer: A medical liaison or rehabilitation specialist familiar with TBI, alongside the full IEP team
Students returning after TBI benefit from collaboration between rehabilitation specialists who understand the injury's impact and the full IEP team who can translate that into educational supports.
Question 7: A behavior intervention plan (BIP) should include which essential component beyond identifying the target behavior?
- A list of the student's academic deficits
- Replacement behaviors that serve the same function as the problem behavior (Correct answer)
- A schedule for suspending the student if behavior continues
- Parent signatures acknowledging consequences
Correct answer: Replacement behaviors that serve the same function as the problem behavior
Effective BIPs teach replacement behaviors that are functionally equivalent to the problem behavior, giving the student an appropriate way to meet the same need.
GACE Special Education 4
A student who is deaf uses American Sign Language (ASL) as their primary language.
Under IDEA, the IEP team must consider which communication need?