GCPS Instructional Strategies 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A teacher incorporates student choice in how they demonstrate mastery — through a written report, a poster, or a recorded video. This practice aligns MOST closely with which framework?
- Response to Intervention (RTI)
- Universal Design for Learning (UDL) — multiple means of action and expression (Correct answer)
- Socratic Seminar
- Explicit instruction model
Correct answer: Universal Design for Learning (UDL) — multiple means of action and expression
UDL's principle of multiple means of action and expression allows students to demonstrate knowledge in ways that play to their strengths.
Question 2: Which strategy is MOST effective when teaching abstract concepts to concrete-operational learners?
- Presenting only symbolic and abstract representations
- Using hands-on manipulatives and real-world examples (Correct answer)
- Requiring students to memorize definitions first
- Lecturing with text-heavy slides
Correct answer: Using hands-on manipulatives and real-world examples
Concrete manipulatives and real-world examples bridge the gap between abstract concepts and concrete operational thinking.
Question 3: A teacher is planning a lesson for English Language Learners (ELLs) alongside native speakers. Which modification MOST supports ELL comprehension without lowering rigor?
- Giving ELLs easier texts with simpler questions
- Providing visual supports, sentence frames, and bilingual glossaries (Correct answer)
- Excusing ELLs from all writing assignments
- Separating ELLs into a different classroom
Correct answer: Providing visual supports, sentence frames, and bilingual glossaries
Scaffolds like visual supports, sentence frames, and glossaries make grade-level content accessible to ELLs while maintaining academic rigor.
Question 4: In a flipped classroom model, what activity typically occurs OUTSIDE of class?
- Group discussion and problem-solving
- Standardized testing
- Watching instructional videos or reading new content (Correct answer)
- Teacher-led direct instruction
Correct answer: Watching instructional videos or reading new content
In a flipped classroom, students engage with new content (videos, readings) at home so class time is used for application and discussion.
Question 5: A student with an IEP requires extended time on assessments. Under IDEA, the teacher is REQUIRED to:
- Provide extended time only on state tests
- Implement the accommodation as written in the IEP for all qualifying assessments (Correct answer)
- Decide on a case-by-case basis whether to honor the accommodation
- Notify parents before each test whether the accommodation will be given
Correct answer: Implement the accommodation as written in the IEP for all qualifying assessments
IEP accommodations are legally binding and must be implemented consistently across all qualifying assessments and instructional settings.
Question 6: Which questioning technique encourages deeper thinking by asking students to build on each other's responses during class discussion?
- Cold calling with binary yes/no questions
- Socratic questioning and accountable talk (Correct answer)
- Fill-in-the-blank verbal prompts
- Choral response drills
Correct answer: Socratic questioning and accountable talk
Socratic questioning and accountable talk protocols prompt students to elaborate, agree, disagree, and extend peers' ideas.
Question 7: A teacher uses think-pair-share before calling on students. What is the PRIMARY purpose of this sequence?
- To reduce the amount of teacher talk time
- To allow all students processing time and increase participation quality (Correct answer)
- To let faster students give answers while others listen
- To replace written responses with verbal ones
Correct answer: To allow all students processing time and increase participation quality
Think-pair-share gives all students individual processing time and peer rehearsal before sharing, improving the quality and inclusivity of participation.
GCPS Instructional Strategies 3
A teacher incorporates student choice in how they demonstrate mastery — through a written report, a poster, or a recorded video.
This practice aligns MOST closely with which framework?