TExES 331 Domain IV MC

18. An English language arts teacher would like to build on students' interests when planning instruction and begins by promoting students' independent reading. Which of the following strategies is likely to be most effective for promoting student interest in reading?

• A. having and documenting conversations with students about books they have recently read for pleasure

• B. providing students with extra credit points for the number of pages read and sharing with the class the top earners each week

• C. building a classroom library of books designated as appropriate for the grade level and allowing students to bring books from home to donate

• D. giving students daily class time to independently read an assigned novel and providing an activity menu to help them track their reading

19. In an effort to reduce negative effects of unconscious bias in the classroom, a high school conducts an in-service for faculty. At the beginning of the session, the presenter defines the term unconscious bias and provides several real-world examples of unconscious bias. The primary purpose of this introductory activity is most likely to develop the teachers' ability to:

• A. disclose personal unconscious biases in a safe space.

• B. reduce effects of unconscious bias on instructional practices.

• C. recognize that unconscious bias is a part of human cognition.

• D. facilitate discussions with colleagues about unconscious bias.

20. Four students in a seventh-grade English language arts class are emergent bilingual students. The teacher wants to establish a strong relationship with the students' parents/guardians before providing them with information about ways to support their children's English literacy skills at home while valuing the students' home languages. In addition to sending home a letter written in English and the students' home languages, which of the following communication approaches would best help the teacher achieve this goal?

• A. encouraging the parents/guardians to speak English with their children

• B. explaining the importance of having books in the home and providing a list of recommended books available at the local public library

• C. asking the parents/guardians to describe their hopes and dreams for their children

• D. offering the parents/guardians suggestions about activities and resources that will help their children practice their English skills at home

21. An English I student who has difficulty generalizing instructions has an Individualized Education Program (IEP) goal of following group instructions to complete writing assignments. To support this IEP goal, which of the following scaffolding strategies would be most appropriate for the teacher to use during a writing assignment that includes several stages and multiple tasks?

• A. planning peer check-ins at several points during the assignment

• B. providing step-by-step instructions with visual cues for the student to use to complete the assignment

• C. providing annotated graphic organizers that students can use at each stage of the assignment

• D. reviewing an exemplar text that meets expectations for the final product for the assignment

22. A high school teacher is considering various types of assessments to use to evaluate students' writing. Which of the following statements provides the best reason for the teacher to use portfolios for assessing students' writing competencies?

• A. A portfolio offers the teacher and students an informal, criterion-referenced method of assessment.

• B. A portfolio provides a formal approach because it is characterized by a one-time look at students' writing.

• C. This approach allows a teacher to easily compare similarities and differences between students' work.

• D. Students are able to reflect on their own progress by making comparisons to their previous work and abilities.

42. An English II teacher is planning a cross-curricular unit in partnership with the tenth-grade math teacher. To prepare students for the unit, the teacher provides instruction on composing meaningful explanatory essays that use appropriate genre characteristics and craft. Which of the following writing assignments would be most appropriate for this purpose?

• A. an argumentative paper that takes a stance on including basic computation in the math curriculum

• B. a research paper about the important contributions of a particular early mathematician

• C. a procedural essay explaining the steps involved in solving a particular math equation

• D. a reflective essay that describes the students' memories of learning math concepts at an early age

43. A teacher is teaching a class that includes several emergent bilingual students. The teacher would like to determine how well the emergent bilingual students are able to read and understand texts prior to planning instruction. Which of the following activities would most effectively help the teacher informally assess the reading abilities of these students?

• A. administering a reading comprehension checkpoint to the students

• B. reviewing the students' scores on standardized reading tests from previous years

• C. giving a lecture to the students about a reading passage the class has read

• D. observing the students as they read aloud together in pairs

44. A seventh-grade teacher has accessed the Texas Formative Assessment Resource (TFAR), an online tool containing items aligned to the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS), and is using it to create various assessment instruments to use throughout the year. To develop an evaluation that identifies the depth of students' standards knowledge, which of the following issues is most important to consider?

• A. when the assessment is administered in relation to when the standards were introduced

• B. the number of items per standard that are included on the assessment

• C. whether the assessment covers the entire standards blueprint

• D. the types of items that are included for each standard in the assessment tool