TExES Exam TExES (ESL 154) 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which instructional strategy best supports academic vocabulary development for ELLs across content areas?
- Having students memorize dictionary definitions for homework
- Word walls, semantic mapping, and repeated exposure in meaningful contexts (Correct answer)
- Avoiding technical vocabulary until students reach advanced proficiency
- Teaching vocabulary only during designated ESL pull-out time
Correct answer: Word walls, semantic mapping, and repeated exposure in meaningful contexts
Vocabulary is best acquired through multiple exposures in varied contexts using visual and semantic connections.
Question 2: What distinguishes Basic Interpersonal Communication Skills (BICS) from Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency (CALP)?
- BICS is more complex and takes longer to develop than CALP
- BICS refers to social language acquired in 1-3 years; CALP refers to academic language taking 5-7+ years (Correct answer)
- CALP and BICS develop simultaneously at the same rate
- BICS is only relevant for reading, while CALP applies to speaking
Correct answer: BICS refers to social language acquired in 1-3 years; CALP refers to academic language taking 5-7+ years
Cummins distinguished BICS (social language, 1-3 years) from CALP (academic language, 5-7+ years) to explain why fluent-sounding ELLs still struggle academically.
Question 3: An ESL teacher collaborates with a content-area teacher to co-plan a unit. This model is best described as:
- Pull-out ESL instruction
- Collaborative/push-in ESL instruction (Correct answer)
- Submersion or sink-or-swim approach
- Heritage language instruction
Correct answer: Collaborative/push-in ESL instruction
Collaborative or push-in instruction involves ESL and content teachers co-planning to integrate language support within the mainstream classroom.
Question 4: Which factor is most important when selecting reading materials for ELL students?
- Ensuring all texts are below grade level to prevent frustration
- Matching text complexity to both language proficiency and content objectives with appropriate scaffolds (Correct answer)
- Choosing texts exclusively from students' home cultures
- Selecting only texts with no culturally specific references
Correct answer: Matching text complexity to both language proficiency and content objectives with appropriate scaffolds
Effective text selection balances comprehensibility with grade-appropriate content, using scaffolds to bridge the gap.
Question 5: A teacher uses sentence frames such as 'I agree with ___ because ___' during academic discussions. This strategy primarily supports ELLs by:
- Replacing the need for students to think critically
- Providing linguistic scaffolds that enable participation in academic discourse (Correct answer)
- Limiting student creativity in language use
- Assessing grammar accuracy in a low-stakes setting
Correct answer: Providing linguistic scaffolds that enable participation in academic discourse
Sentence frames scaffold the language structures needed for academic discussion without reducing cognitive demand.
Question 6: Which home language survey outcome should trigger a formal English proficiency assessment in Texas?
- The student's parents indicate any language other than English is used at home (Correct answer)
- The student self-identifies as bilingual
- The student has lived outside the United States
- The teacher observes the student speaking another language at recess
Correct answer: The student's parents indicate any language other than English is used at home
In Texas, any indication on the home language survey that a language other than English is used triggers mandatory English proficiency screening.
Question 7: The Language Experience Approach (LEA) supports ELL literacy development primarily by:
- Using commercially published controlled-vocabulary readers exclusively
- Having students dictate personal narratives that become their reading texts (Correct answer)
- Teaching phonics rules in isolation before any connected text reading
- Focusing on grammar correction before students write independently
Correct answer: Having students dictate personal narratives that become their reading texts
LEA connects oral language to print by using students' own language and experiences as the basis for reading instruction.
TExES Exam TExES (ESL 154) 3
Which instructional strategy best supports academic vocabulary development for ELLs across content areas?