The multiple-choice
questions on the Written Examination include both content
questions, in which knowledge about reading and reading
instruction is directly assessed, and contextualized
questions that assess the candidate’s ability to
apply specific knowledge, to analyze specific problems,
or to conduct specific tasks related to reading instruction.
Approximately 20% of the multiple-choice questions assess
competencies in Domain I of the RICA
Content Specifications, 30% assess competencies
in Domain II, 30% assess competencies in Domain III,
and 20% assess competencies in Domain IV. This section
of the Written Examination contains 70 multiple-choice
questions.
Each question is a
multiple-choice question with four answer choices. Candidates
should read each question carefully and choose the ONE
best answer. When taking the Written Examination, try
to answer all questions. In general, if you have some
knowledge about a question, it is better to try to answer
it. You will not be penalized for guessing.
| 1. |
Compared
with standardized reading assessments, one important
advantage of informal reading assessments is that
they allow the teacher to:
|
| |
A. |
characterize
a student's reading proficiency in terms of typical
grade-level performance.
|
| |
B. |
personalize
reading assessments to identify the needs of individual
students.
|
| |
C. |
avoid
bias in the administration and interpretation of
reading assessments.
|
| |
D. |
compare
the reading performance of individual students to
other students in the class. |
Explanation
of Correct Response
Question #1 assesses competency
1.1 of the RICA Content Specifications. Answer choice
B is correct. When teachers use informal reading assessments,
they are able to create individualized assessments that
focus on targeted reading skills and thus can provide
substantial insight into a student’s specific reading
strengths and needs. In contrast, standardized reading
assessments typically test many skills at once and yield
results that are more useful for obtaining a general
overview of student achievement. In addition, the content
of standardized reading assessments cannot be modified
for individual students. Informal assessments are more
useful for engaging in day-to-day instructional decision
making. Answer choices A, C, and D describe benefits
and features of standardized rather than informal reading
assessments.
| 2. |
During
class discussions about stories, Rosalinda, an English
language learner, often mispronounces key words
from the stories. The teacher's best response would
be to:
|
| |
A. |
ask
Rosalinda to pause and correct her pronunciation
before she continues with her remarks.
|
| |
B. |
analyze
Rosalinda's pronunciation patterns and plan an intervention
to address her needs.
|
| |
C. |
encourage
other students in the class to help Rosalinda work
on pronouncing words correctly.
|
| |
D. |
write
down the words and include them on a list of words
for Rosalinda to practice pronouncing.
|
Explanation of
Correct Response
Question #2 assesses competency
2.2 of the RICA Content Specifications. Answer choice
B is correct. In an effective classroom reading program,
teachers must be prepared to provide students with individualized
skills instruction that addresses their specific reading
needs. In the situation described in the question, the
student's mispronunciations may interfere with reading
development. The teacher should respond by planning
and implementing an intervention specially designed
to meet this student’s specific needs. Answer choices
A, C, and D are not likely to be effective in addressing
the student’s needs. In answer choice A, the teacher
appears to expect the student to publicly correct her
own pronunciation errors. In answer choice C, the teacher
places the responsibility for helping the student on
classmates, who are clearly not qualified to plan and
implement interventions. In answer choice D, the student
is asked to correct her own pronunciation errors without
benefit of teacher instruction.
| 3. |
A
kindergarten teacher could informally assess a student's
phonemic awareness by asking the student to:
|
| |
A. |
identify
the sound he/she hears at the beginning, middle,
or end of a spoken word (e.g., "What sound
do you hear at the end of step?").
|
| |
B. |
listen
to a tape-recorded story while looking at the book,
then answer several simple questions about the story.
|
| |
C. |
identify
the letters in the alphabet that correspond to the
initial consonant sounds of several familiar spoken
words.
|
| |
D. |
listen
to the teacher read aloud a set of words with the
same beginning sound (e.g., train, trap, trouble),
then repeat the words.
|
Explanation of
Correct Response
Question #3 assesses competency
3.1 of the RICA Content Specifications. Answer choice
A is correct. Phonemic awareness is the conscious awareness
that words are made up of individual speech sounds (phonemes).
Of the answer choices given, only choice A, in which
a student identifies a sound heard at the beginning,
middle, or end of a spoken word, is an appropriate assessment
of phonemic awareness. Answer choice B assesses listening
comprehension, answer choice C assesses knowledge of
letter-sound correspondences, and answer choice D assesses
auditory memory.
| 4. |
Which
of the following strategies would best help a kindergarten
student with visual discrimination difficulties
distinguish between frequently confused letters?
|
| |
A. |
creating
sandpaper letters that the student can trace with
his/her finger while saying the letter name
|
| |
B. |
helping
the student locate the letters within the text of
a favorite book
|
| |
C. |
repeating
the name of each letter several times as the student
points to the letter
|
| |
D. |
encouraging
the student to observe closely as the teacher writes
the letters
|
Explanation of Correct
Response
Question #4 assesses competency 4.3 of the RICA Content
Specifications. Answer choice A is correct. Multisensory
techniques, such as having students trace sandpaper
letters with their fingers while saying the corresponding
letter names, can help students recognize letter shapes
and learn the names of letters. These techniques have
been shown to be effective in working with students
with visual discrimination problems that interfere with
their ability to distinguish between particular letters.
The activities described in answer choices B, C, and
D would be less effective because they provide fewer
opportunities for the student to practice multisensory
techniques.
| 5. |
A
first-grade teacher provides students with explicit,
systematic phonics instruction to promote their
reading development. When designing activities to
teach letter-sound correspondences, the teacher
should:
|
| |
A. |
provide
reading opportunities for students to practice sounds
in context after studying the sounds in isolation.
|
| |
B. |
make
certain that students have mastered vowel sounds
before focusing on consonants.
|
| |
C. |
ensure
that students master the spelling of practice words
using the target sound before teaching a new sound. |
| |
D. |
include
instruction in related consonant blends when introducing
individual consonants.
|
Explanation of Correct
Response
Question #5 assesses competency 5.2 of the RICA
Content Specifications. Answer choice A is correct.
A key principle of reading programs that provide explicit,
systematic phonics instruction is to have beginning
readers first learn specific letter-sound correspondences
in isolation and then practice the sounds they have
learned when reading decodable text. Providing students
with opportunities to apply knowledge in this way helps
reinforce new learning. Answer choices B and D identify
inappropriate instructional sequences for first-grade
students. Answer choice C is incorrect because it delays
introduction of new sounds for reading until spelling
of practice words has been mastered.
| 6. |
Ms. Carlyle,
a sixth-grade teacher, observes that several students
have misspelled the word pasteurize. After
writing pasteurize and Louis Pasteur
on the blackboard, the teacher explains how Pasteur
invented the process of pasteurization. Students
then discuss how the word Pasteur relates
to the word pasteurize. This instructional
activity is likely to foster students' reading development
primarily by:
|
| |
A. |
helping
students learn to use etymology to improve spelling
and promote word recognition.
|
| |
B. |
helping
students improve their spelling by comparing and
contrasting similar words.
|
| |
C. |
motivating
students to use orthographic patterns to expand
their vocabulary knowledge.
|
| |
D. |
motivating
students to improve their spelling through the use
of systematic study skills.
|
Explanation of
Correct Response
Question #6 assesses competency
6.2 of the RICA Content Specifications. Answer choice
A is correct. In the instructional situation described
in the question, the teacher helps students use the
origin (etymology) of the word pasteurize to
enhance their spelling accuracy and word recognition.
Answer choices B, C, and D describe other approaches
that could be used to promote spelling and word recognition
skills; they do not describe the strategy used by the
teacher in the question.
| 7. |
A
teacher plans to assess a student's comprehension
of a short story through oral retelling. After the
student silently reads the story, the teacher will
prompt the student's retelling by asking open-ended
questions. To prepare for this assessment, the teacher
reads the story carefully and composes the questions.
Which of the following additional steps would
be most helpful for the teacher to take before the
retelling activity begins? |
| |
A. |
Prompt
the student to recall similar tasks he or she has
previously performed.
|
| |
B. |
Prepare
a checklist of the key elements that an effective
retelling of this story should include.
|
| |
C. |
Review
grades earned by the student on recent tests and
quizzes in language arts.
|
| |
D. |
Remind
the student to concentrate on recalling as many
details as possible during the retelling.
|
Explanation of
Correct Response
Question #7 assesses competency
7.1 of the RICA Content Specifications. Answer choice
B is correct. This teacher’s ability to assess
the student’s comprehension would be aided most
by preparing a checklist of the specific story elements
that should be included in the student’s responses
to the open-ended questions prepared by the teacher.
By specifying information to be included in each response,
the checklist would help the teacher evaluate the accuracy
and completeness of the student’s actual responses.
Answer choices A and C focus on the student’s past
experiences and performance and have little relevance
to the assessment preparations described in the question.
Answer choice D is incorrect because the student’s
retelling, for purposes of assessing comprehension,
should focus primarily on main ideas and relationships
in the story rather than on the recall of many details.
| 8. |
When
selecting texts for first graders to read in the
upcoming school year, a teacher should be aware
of the importance of: |
| |
A. |
focusing
primarily on realistic texts that mirror the children's
own experiences.
|
| |
B. |
including a wide range of fiction
and nonfiction texts in a variety of genres.
|
| |
C. |
focusing
largely on simple fictional narratives such as folk
and fairy tales.
|
| |
D. |
providing
students with transcripts of their own oral language
as their primary reading materials.
|
Explanation of
Correct Response
Question #8 assesses competency
8.2 of the RICA Content Specifications. Answer choice
B is correct. Students in a first-grade classroom are
likely to have varied backgrounds, interests, and needs,
and all students benefit from opportunities to engage
with many types of text. Therefore, when a teacher selects
texts for first graders to read during a school year,
a guiding principle should be to ensure inclusion of
a wide range of fiction and nonfiction texts in a variety
of genres. Answer choices A, C, and D identify specific
types of texts that would be useful to include as part
of a first-grade curriculum; however, no one type of
text should dominate student reading experiences.
Use the information
below to answer the two questions that follow.
