Virginia Special Needs & Inclusive Education 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which federal law prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in schools receiving federal funding and does NOT require an IEP?
- IDEA
- Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Correct answer)
- ADA Title II
- Every Student Succeeds Act
Correct answer: Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
Section 504 prohibits disability discrimination in federally funded programs and provides accommodations through a 504 Plan, not an IEP.
Question 2: A student's IEP goal states: 'Given a graphic organizer, the student will write a five-sentence paragraph with 80% accuracy across 4 out of 5 trials.' This goal exemplifies which characteristic of a well-written IEP goal?
- It is culturally responsive
- It is measurable and includes conditions, behavior, and criteria (Correct answer)
- It references grade-level standards directly
- It is collaboratively written by the student
Correct answer: It is measurable and includes conditions, behavior, and criteria
A well-written IEP goal includes a condition (given a graphic organizer), a measurable behavior (write a paragraph), and specific criteria (80% across 4/5 trials).
Question 3: When a student with a disability is suspended for more than 10 cumulative school days in a year, schools must conduct a:
- Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA)
- Manifestation Determination Review (MDR) (Correct answer)
- Comprehensive re-evaluation
- Crisis intervention meeting
Correct answer: Manifestation Determination Review (MDR)
A Manifestation Determination Review is required to determine whether the student's behavior was caused by or related to their disability before extended removal.
Question 4: A teacher notices a student with a learning disability is consistently struggling on multiple-choice tests but demonstrates understanding through class discussions. The most appropriate accommodation is:
- Reducing the number of multiple-choice questions
- Allowing oral responses or alternative assessment formats (Correct answer)
- Giving the student additional homework to reinforce content
- Assigning a peer tutor to help during tests
Correct answer: Allowing oral responses or alternative assessment formats
Allowing oral responses or alternative formats removes the barrier of written expression while still assessing the student's actual knowledge.
Question 5: Which of the following is an example of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in a classroom?
- Creating individualized lesson plans for each student with a disability
- Providing all students with multiple means of representation, action, and engagement (Correct answer)
- Developing a separate curriculum for students receiving special education services
- Assigning an aide to every student with a documented disability
Correct answer: Providing all students with multiple means of representation, action, and engagement
UDL proactively designs instruction to be accessible to all learners by offering multiple means of representation, action/expression, and engagement.
Question 6: In Virginia, once a parent gives written consent for an initial special education evaluation, the school has how many school days to complete the evaluation?
- 30 school days
- 60 school days (Correct answer)
- 45 school days
- 90 calendar days
Correct answer: 60 school days
Virginia regulations require that initial evaluations be completed within 60 school days of receiving parental consent.
Question 7: A student with an intellectual disability benefits most from instruction that emphasizes:
- Rote memorization of abstract concepts
- Functional life skills and explicit, repetitive instruction with real-world application (Correct answer)
- Independent discovery-based learning
- Advanced reading and writing skills above grade level
Correct answer: Functional life skills and explicit, repetitive instruction with real-world application
Students with intellectual disabilities learn best through explicit, repeated instruction connected to functional, real-world contexts.
Virginia Special Needs & Inclusive Education 3
Which federal law prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in schools receiving federal funding and does NOT require an IEP?