WorksheetsESL practice test 1
Total questions: 81
Worksheet time: 44mins
A teacher is reviewing classroom data reflecting EL students' performance in a middle school science class. The teacher reviews the following notes about a recent immigrant currently categorized as an intermediate EL.
-Never ask questions when I introduce a ew assignment; instead, speaking in Spanish, turns to ask a classmate.
-During informal class activities, interacts comfortably with classmates but speaks in Spanish.
-When asked a question during class discussions, responds monosyllabically.
-In group work, sits quietly, non-participatory, but seems to understand what her group members are saying.
-When asked about incomplete homework assignments, she shrugs her shoulders. If I ask for details, she usually says, "Didn't do it."
*This teacher's notes will be useful in making an informal assessment about the student's proficiency in which of the following areas?*
Academic language proficiency
Listening and speaking
Content-area knowledge
General language proficiency
Which of the following adjustments should the teacher make in teaching activities to promote EL students' language development?
Whenever El students are speaking in Spanish, the teacher should interrupt them, tell them they have to speak in English, and have them come up to the desk for reteaching.
During lectures, the teacher should stop occasionally and ask an advanced EL student to translate the information for classmates who are having trouble understanding the content.
The teacher should model think aloud that illustrate how to express understanding, confusion, questions, need for more explanation, and other responses to typical class situations.
The teacher should have a question and answer session at the end of each lecture, requiring every student in the class to ask one question.
A high school biology teacher is starting a unit that addresses state assessment standards on knowledge of interactions among biological systems in plants. Which of the following instructional activities would most effectively promote EL students' achievement in this area?
The teacher assigns a group project: each group identifies a specific plant and uses visuals and props to demonstrate how various systems contribute to growth.
The teacher has students fill in a graphic that identifies parts of a plant's ecosystem.
The teacher takes his students on a walk around the campus to point out different types of plants growing on the school grounds.
The teacher shows students the state assessment standards in biology and explains the concepts and defines all the content-specific terms in each standard.
Which of the following statements best summarizes the way an ESL teacher can use results of mandated assessment to improve student achievement in the classroom?
Although scores on mandated state exams provide summative assessment data, teachers can use information about performance in discrete areas of the exams to devise formative assessments embedded in day-to0day class activities.
Because mandated state exams create a great deal of anxiety among teachers and students, the teacher should concentrate on improving students' comprehension of academic content instead of integrating state testing requirements.
Because state exams are high stakes for students and teachers, teachers should revise their curriculum to cover only material included on the mandated exams.
Teachers should adapt all course content to reflect the format of state assessments and administer benchmarks every few weeks.
Which THREE of the following conditions explain how students in Texas are identified as LEP/EL students?
The student does not meet English proficiency requirements as indicated by the state-approved English language proficiency test.
The student is unable to respond readily to instructions in English.
The parents provide written approval for entry into the recommended language program.
The home language survey indicates that a language other than English is the primary language.
The student has had no classroom instruction in the United States.
A middle school science teacher is reading a set of students lab reports The following is in Remi's report:
-I knew that if I just had too more minutes, I could of finished.
*Remi's sentence demonstrates difficulty in which of the following areas?*
Using past tense forms correctly
Distinguishing between the oral and written forms of homonyms
Using modals correctly
Spelling
A middle school science teacher is reading a set of students lab reports The following is in Remi's report:
-I knew that if I just had too more minutes, I could of finished.
**In response to the last report item, "Explain your major understandings about lab procedures in completing this experiment," Remi writes:
-You should never feel bad just cuz u didn't finish.
** Which of the following feedback strategies should the teacher use to help Remi understand how to present his content-area knowledge in completing the science experiment report?**
The teacher should mark an X through cuz and u and write "misspelled" in the margin.
The teacher should use Remi's sentence in the next day's Daily Oral Language exercise and have the students try to correct the sentence.
The teacher should affirm the learner's frustration over not completing the experiment, explaining that next time, he should use science terms to explain why he didn't finish.
The teacher should leave the sentence as is since writing is not the focus of the science class.
A fifth grade teacher's class includes beginning and intermediate ESL students. The teacher has students keep a section in their writing notebooks to jot down words that they encounter in their independent reading. The teacher calls these "Wow Words." There are only three "rules" for Wow Words: (1) jot down new words that you want to learn; (2) jot down words you already know but have never used and you want to use in your writing or speech; (3) jot down the sentence in which you found the word. This activity focuses on which of the following areas of language?
Phonology
Lexicon
Morphology
Pragmatics
Which THREE of the following strategies represent effective practices in delivering instruction in a content-based math class?
The teacher has students write a summary of the class lesson at the end of each class.
The teacher defines key vocabulary words on the whiteboard, breaking them into syllables, and asking learners to repeat the words as he pronounces them.
The teacher administers a quiz based on a problem from last night's homework to determine the students' weak areas.
The teacher defines key vocabulary at the beginning of the day's lesson.
The teacher picks a problem from last night's homework and has three student volunteers do a think aloud to demonstrate how they solved the problem.
Which TWO of the following scenarios illustrate why ESL teachers need a strong foundation in the structure of English?
A math student is having a lot of trouble pronouncing quadrilateral.
A science teacher administers homework quizzes at the beginning of each class period, but 90% of the students consistently fail.
A history teacher wants students to memorize the names of the presidents of the United States.
A social studies teacher wants students to write sentences that show cause-and-effect outcomes triggered by runoff in areas with limited vegetation.
Beginning EL students in an elementary math class are having a lot of trouble doing simple problems, but they do not tell the teacher what they find difficult about the problems. The teacher has a short discussion after each math problem is explained, but the students do not respond. Which of the following L2 acquisition concepts probably explains what is going on?
Silent period
Limited Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills
Interlanguage
Limited Cognitive Academic Language Proficiency
Which THREE of the following instructional strategies promote students' content-area achievement?
The teacher identifies and defines roots relevant to content-area vocabulary.
The teacher has students identify subjects, verbs, and adjectives in sentences from the chapter they are studying.
The teacher guides students in doing interactive vocabulary activities focusing on key words from the lesson.
The teacher helps students write sentences that reflect important content-area knowledge by creating stems that the students can complete working in pairs or independently.
The teacher has students copy sentences from their content-area textbooks in order to learn correct punctuation.
A teacher is starting a unit on local plants in a middle school science class. Most of the students are beginning and intermediate EL students. The teacher wants to make sure the activities in the new unit help students understand science content but also promote their language proficiency.
-The teacher gives each student three plastic zippered bags and asks them to collect leaves from three different plants they see each day on the school grounds or in their neighborhoods. How does this introductory strategy demonstrate a recommended strategy for content-area teaching in ESL environment?
Students can have fun while completing the assignment.
New content acquisition will be reinforced through hands-on activities.
Students will not need to use language strategies in completing this assignment.
Students will demonstrate the extent to which they can follow basic instructions.
A teacher is starting a unit on local plants in a middle school science class. Most of the students are beginning and intermediate EL students. The teacher wants to make sure the activities in the new unit help students understand science content but also promote their language proficiency.
-When they bring in their three leaves, the teacher gives the students this assignment:
Each of you is going to present your three leaves and explain where you found them. As you show them to the class, try to identify some of the features that make each leaf distinct from the others or features that the leaves have in common.
**How does this instructional activity demonstrate effective strategies for promoting EL students' understanding of content-area information?**
The oral language activity forces students to speak in L2 without relying on L1 vocabulary.
The activity reinforces new science vocabulary for this unit.
The activity creates a non-academic environment which should reduce students' anxieties over participating in class discussions.
The activity integrates oral language and prior knowledge as a beginning point for new content-area learning.
A teacher is starting a unit on local plants in a middle school science class. Most of the students are beginning and intermediate EL students. The teacher wants to make sure the activities in the new unit help students understand science content but also promote their language proficiency.
-As a culminating activity for this unit, the teacher asks students to interview one family member about a favorite or special plant. The students are to create a construction paper poster with a drawing of the plant and a short written account of the interview. The teacher displays the posters on the wall outside the classroom. How does this instructional activity promote the EL students' content-area learning?
Students will use family connections and language background to support new content-area learning.
Students will integrate new science vocabulary into their written accounts of the interview with a family member.
Including a drawing of the family member's favorite plant will allow the teacher to test the students' understanding of basic unit information.
After reading all the interviews, the teacher will be able to determine if reteaching is necessary in this unit.
Which THREE of the following scenarios best depict application of sheltered instruction?
A history teacher is beginning a unit on women politicians in Texas. He starts the unit by posting illustrations with bio blurbs about each woman.
A math teacher wants students to solve a volume problem involving the number of jelly beans that fit in a 1 x 1 cube. He gives each group a bag of jelly beans to experiment with the formulas.
A literature teacher is about to start a lesson on a story that students were assigned for homework.
A social studies teacher is starting a unit on rivers in Texas. Students are divided into groups and each group is assigned the task of coming up with the names of at least three rivers in Texas.
An English teacher is about to start a lesson on a commonly taught short story. The teacher asks for a volunteer to do a think aloud on the first three paragraphs of the story.
Which TWO of the following strategies represent how EL students might rely on L1 knowledge?
Translating challenging L2 passages into L1
Pronouncing L2 words using sounds of L1
Asking L2 speakers to explain challenging text
Looking up new L2 words in an L2 dictionary
In an elementary-level ESL class, the teacher starts the day by saying "Good morning" to each child, greeting each one by name. The morning greeting is followed by a 10minute SSR (Sustained Silent Reading) period. The teacher signals the end of SSR by ringing a small bell. Then the teacher says, "Group leaders, it's time to get the math workbooks." Which THREE of the following ESL teaching strategies are reflected in these activities?
Routines keep EL learners from getting boared when they don't understand directions.
Routines reinforce EL students' understanding of content-area material.
Routines help EL students feel that they are a part of the classroom community.
Routines enable EL students to participate meaningfully in classroom activities.
Routines support EL students' understanding of the order of classroom procedures.
Able is an EL student in a high school history class. His essay on the beginnings of slavery in America includes the following sentences.
(1) The slavery begins in 1619
(2) A ship bring to the shore a lot of African captive.
(3) In the beginning, the business man trade food for the Africans.
- Which TWO of the following L1 to L2 errors are shown in the passage?
Verb tense
Interference
Plural formation
Spelling
Word choice
Able is an EL student in a high school history class. His essay on the beginnings of slavery in America includes the following sentences.
(1) The slavery begins in 1619
(2) A ship bring to the shore a lot of African captive.
(3) In the beginning, the business man trade food for the Africans.
-Sentence (3) in Abel's draft reflects which of the following structures?
Fragment
Simple sentence
Complex sentence
Compound sentence
Mr. Nyugen has a Grade 10 class with intermediate and advanced ELs. He wants students to understand how context impacts language choices. In a short pre-assessment activity, he does a quick poll to see how many students are familiar with the popular video game Fortnite. He sees that everyone in the class has either played or knows of the game. The teacher hands out two passages: (1) a transcript of a short conversation among several students as they talk during lunch about their latest Fortnite gaming session and (2) a paragraph from a student process essay explaining how to play Fortnite. Mr. Nyugen asks students to work in groups to create a T-chart comparing the language in the two samples, focusing on the difference they can identify. This activity primarily addresses which of the following areas of language study?
Semantics
Syntax
Non-verbal communication
Registers
A junior high school English teacher wants to support EL students' writing proficiency by developing higher-level vocabulary. The teacher breaks the students into groups, gives each group a high-bounce rubber ball, and has the students bounce their balls. The task is for each group to come up with five different synonyms for bounce based on wat they observed when they bounce their ball.
-This activity illustrates which of the following ESL instructional approaches?
Classroom activities that use Total Physical Response
Classroom activities that rely on the Immersion Approach
Classroom activities to develop Basic Interpersonal Communicative Strategies (BICS)
Classroom activities to develop Cognitive/Academic Language Proficiency (CALP)
A junior high school English teacher wants to support EL students' writing proficiency by developing higher-level vocabulary. The teacher breaks the students into groups, gives each group a high-bounce rubber ball, and has the students bounce their balls. The task is for each group to come up with five different synonyms for bounce based on wat they observed when they bounce their ball.
-Which TWO of the following evaluations of the activity best illuminate how it supports EL students' language proficiency?
The activity promotes ELPS writing expectations focused on vocabulary that adds detail to writing.
The activity introduces an element of play into an academic learning task.
The activity enables students to rely on multiple ways of learning to complete the academic task.
The activity allows students to use their L1 knowledge to create new L2 learning.
A junior high school English teacher wants to support EL students' writing proficiency by developing higher-level vocabulary. The teacher breaks the students into groups, gives each group a high-bounce rubber ball, and has the students bounce their balls. The task is for each group to come up with five different synonyms for bounce based on wat they observed when they bounce their ball.
- Which of the following descri8ptions best explains how the activity integrates opportunities to develop communicative competency?
Students will practice using a dictionary to look up synonyms for bounce and learn new words they can integrate into their lexicon.
Student will be able to act out scenes involving bouncing as they search for new verbs.
Students will have an authentic opportunity to use oral language skills in completing this activity with their group.
Students will engage in kinesthetic activities to reinforce their understanding of the new words.
A junior high school English teacher wants to support EL students' writing proficiency by developing higher-level vocabulary. The teacher breaks the students into groups, gives each group a high-bounce rubber ball, and has the students bounce their balls. The task is for each group to come up with five different synonyms for bounce based on wat they observed when they bounce their ball.
-After the group presents their set of 5 synonyms for the verb bounce, the teacher asks students to pick one verb, draw a picture that shows a character doing something that shows the verb in action, and write one sentence using the verb. The students read their sentence to the class. Then the teacher circulates throughout the class to help students revise their sentences if they used the verb incorrectly. This activity best illustrates which of the following instructional activities?
Integration of art into a grammar lesson
Authentic assessment
Informal presentation
Critical thinking skills applied in a writing task
A junior high school English teacher wants to support EL students' writing proficiency by developing higher-level vocabulary. The teacher breaks the students into groups, gives each group a high-bounce rubber ball, and has the students bounce their balls. The task is for each group to come up with five different synonyms for bounce based on wat they observed when they bounce their ball.
- Which THREE of the following instructional delivery practices are illustrated in this vocabulary development activity?
Using realia
Experiential learning
Pre-teaching key vocabulary
Scaffolding
Culturally relevant pedagogy
Which of the following statements correctly expresses understandings about EL students' acquisition of listening and speaking competencies in L2?
In order to read and write in L2, students must first acquire L2 communicative competency skills at a relatively high proficiency level.
EL students generally acquire communicative competency more easily than literacy competencies, usually demonstrating proficiency in about two years.
For EL students, proficiency in the reading, writing, speaking, and listening domains develops simultaneously rather than sequentially.
To help students succeed academically, teachers should focus on reading and writing proficiency because literacy scaffolds communicative competency.
A grade 3 teacher introduces new content vocabulary to her beginning EL students each Monday. To reinforce their initial understanding of the new words, she posts labeled pictures of the words throughout the classroom. She wants to promote their listening and speaking proficiency in the context on content instruction. Which of the following instructional activities most effectively addresses the teacher's goal?
The teacher puts up the lists of new content words, pronounces each one, asks for volunteers to pronounce the words, and then leads the class in choral response to pronounce each word.
Working in groups, students pick one of the new words to explore by looking in their books, using the dictionary, and using other class resources. Each group does a short presentation to introduce the class to the new word.
The teacher gives students two days to learn the words. They spend a few minutes each day pronouncing the words out loud in unison. On the third day, they have a spelling test on all the new words.
The teacher shows an animated video in which animal characters introduce the new words on the list. After the video, the teacher gives students a short test to determine which words they seemed to understand best.
A high school EL student routinely says supposably instead of supposedly. What does this construction indicate about this speaker's current oral language proficiency?
The student does not know how to spell supposedly.
The student's pronunciation suggests she is approximating the sounds she hears when other speakers utter the words supposedly.
The student is not using her monitor in oral language production.
The word supposedly is not in the student's lexicon; this explains why she is mispronouncing it.
A grade 2 El teacher asks her students to bring a special object from home (like a toy,, a photograph, a book, a gift, etc.). On storytelling day, the students take turns describing their object and telling the story of why it is special to them. Which of the following English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS) expectations for speaking is best addressed through this instructional activity?
Narrating and explaining
Distinguishing sounds and intonations in English
Integrating new vocabulary into day-to-day language
Using grade-level content area vocabulary
To promote her grade 5 EL students' academic language proficiency, a science teacher takes her students to the school library once a week and has them check out books on topics related to the unit they are currently studying. The teacher notices that in the library, students talk constantly, showing each other their books, and reading each other's books. She recognizes this as an opportunity to promote her students' communicative language development with a follow-up activity after the library session. Which of the following instructional activities best addresses the teacher's intent?
Assigning students book reports on the book they pick and posting the report on the class Writing Wall.
Having each student do a book talk on his/her book
Having each student post the title of his/her book on the Class Note Wall
Having students do internet research to find information on the authors of their books
In assigning listening and speaking class activities, an ESL teacher needs to take into account individual differences in language and culture because
students' diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds can interfere with assimilation.
culturally-based behavioral and social norms impact oral language interactions in the class environment.
most ESL students are very uncomfortable about speaking in public.
rates of oral language acquisition vary significantly among individual students.
The following sentence occurs in a student essay describing lessons learned in a physical education class.
From jumping rope to doing many crunches were just some of the many things you could do in this class.
- Which of the following descriptions correctly analyzes the syntactic problems in this sentence?
The sentence starts with an introductory prepositional phrase.
The sentence is a run-on because the comma after crunches is missing.
Two prepositional phrases are used in the subject position, creating a sentence that lacks a grammatical subject.
The sentence has a compound subject.
A middle school teacher assigns her class of intermediate ESL students a short essay on the topic "How we learn," but her students tell her that they don't know what to write. The teacher tells her students, "we find the best writing by thinking about what we know from our own lives." Then the teacher puts the following graphic on the board with examples from her own experiences, explaining the lesson she learned with each "zone." The teacher then has students create their own graphic in their notebooks.
- In creating her own Learning Zone chart, the teacher is implementing which of the following linguistic accommodation strategies?
Scaffolding
Segmenting
Modeling
Graphic presentation
A middle school teacher assigns her class of intermediate ESL students a short essay on the topic "How we learn," but her students tell her that they don't know what to write. The teacher tells her students, "we find the best writing by thinking about what we know from our own lives." Then the teacher puts the following graphic on the board with examples from her own experiences, explaining the lesson she learned with each "zone." The teacher then has students create their own graphic in their notebooks.
-In creating the Learning Zones graphic, the teacher is demonstrating reliance on which of the following teaching concepts?
Culturally relevant pedagogy
Funds of knowledge
Learner-driven syllabus
Process writing
A middle school teacher assigns her class of intermediate ESL students a short essay on the topic "How we learn," but her students tell her that they don't know what to write. The teacher tells her students, "we find the best writing by thinking about what we know from our own lives." Then the teacher puts the following graphic on the board with examples from her own experiences, explaining the lesson she learned with each "zone." The teacher then has students create their own graphic in their notebooks.
- When the students are creating their own Learning Zones graphic, the teacher encourages students to work in pairs as they come up with events to put in their cells. After 5 minutes, the teacher asks each pair to present one story from their charts. This activity is likely to promote which of the following language competencies?
Oral communication
Collaborative work
Metacognitive strategies
Content-area vocabulary
A middle school teacher assigns her class of intermediate ESL students a short essay on the topic "How we learn," but her students tell her that they don't know what to write. The teacher tells her students, "we find the best writing by thinking about what we know from our own lives." Then the teacher puts the following graphic on the board with examples from her own experiences, explaining the lesson she learned with each "zone." The teacher then has students create their own graphic in their notebooks.
-The teacher also wants to use this activity to support students' literacy development. Which TWO of the following additional activities would support this learning goal?
Students draw images of a scene from their Lesson Zones.
Students do internet research to find a video that illustrates one of the activities they put in their zones.
Students do a quickwrite of one of the event they put in their Learning Zones graphic.
Students pick one of their Learning Zone events and create a word cloud of ideas and details they remember from the event.
Students work in pairs to ask each other questions about the event in the zones.
Which of the following statements best explains why idioms pose particular challenges for ESL students?
Idioms frequently are based on sophisticated allusions EL students are not likely to recognize.
The meaning of idioms cannot be derived from the literal meaning of the component words in the expression.
Idiomatic expressions can be understood only if the speaker knows the genesis of the expression.
Idioms usually have ambiguous meanings.
The following verb forms occur in an essay written by a grade 5 ESL student.
- What do these forms indicate about the students' current English language proficiency?
The writer is overgeneralizing in use of the past morpheme.
The writer has limited understanding of verb tense forms in English.
The writer has not yet internalized rules for irregular verb forms in English.
The writer lacks phonological understanding to recognize that the --ed suffix sounds "wrong" when attached incorrectly.
Which of the following passages shows the correct use of verb tenses and verb forms?
He got his first pen when he was eight. He wrote his story and felt he had grown up. He felt the story or the words he wrote won't be erased.
He got his first pen when he was eight. He wrote his first story and felt he had grown up. He felt the story or the words he wrote will not be erased.
He got his first pen when he was eight. He wrote his first story and felt he had grown up. He felt the story or the words he wrote would not be erased.
He got his first pen when he was eight. He wrote his first story and felt he had grown up. He feels the story or the words he writes won't be erased.
An EL student writing a story about an experience when he was in ninth grade includes the following sentence in his draft:
Because we wanted to end the course with excellent grades, we all assisted class everyday.
-The writer's use of assisted instead of attended is an example of which of the following common L2 acquisition difficulties?
Approximation
False cognate
Generalization
Interference
A teacher is conducting a read aloud session in a Grade 6 language arts class, with the students sitting in a circle, each student taking a turn to read a few lines aloud. George is a newcomer ESL student. The teacher notices that George is following along closely in his storybook, tracing the words with his finger. When it's his turn, George says, "Cannot." George's response might be explained by which of the following SLA concepts?
L1 dependence
Lack of comprehensible input
Monitor hypothesis
Interlanguage
A teacher is presenting a mini-lesson on figurative language. Students are show the following passage.
Instead of starting the new lesson like we did every day, she asked us what we thought could make out science class more fun. That's when an explosion of comments erupted out of us like lava flowing from a volcano.
-Which of the following terms is the best label for the underlined phrase?
Hyperbole
Imagery
Simile
Alliteration
Janie is a middle school student whose family recently emigrated from Nicaragua. On the first day of class, she told her teacher that she had to drop out of school in her native country a year ago; she has had no tutoring or formal schooling in the interval. She has the following conversation with her science teacher.
Janie: Is because loss... uhmm... oosbi. No finish... uhmm... the homework... the speetmen.
Teacher: You were unable to complete your lab experiment, Janie? You lost your USB? SO you could not do your lab report? (speaking slowly and clearly enunciating and making eye contact with Janie)
Janie: No.
Teacher: Do you think you could complete your homework during your study period?
Janie: Uhmm... Estoody time. Finish. Si.
Teacher: That's great, Janie. I hope to get your science report later today. (Smiling with thumbs up)
Janie: (Smiles with thumbs up)
-Based on this brief exchange, which of the following statements offers the best description of Janie's L2 development at this point?
Janie has virtually no understanding of English grammar.
Janie's syntactic and phonological output point to interference from Spanish grammatical structures.
Janie is not capable of complementing a logical utterance in English.
Janie is unable to use her L1 competence as scaffolding for her L2 development.
Janie is a middle school student whose family recently emigrated from Nicaragua. On the first day of class, she told her teacher that she had to drop out of school in her native country a year ago; she has had no tutoring or formal schooling in the interval. She has the following conversation with her science teacher.
Janie: Is because loss... uhmm... oosbi. No finish... uhmm... the homework... the speetmen.
Teacher: You were unable to complete your lab experiment, Janie? You lost your USB? SO you could not do your lab report? (speaking slowly and clearly enunciating and making eye contact with Janie)
Janie: No.
Teacher: Do you think you could complete your homework during your study period?
Janie: Uhmm... Estoody time. Finish. Si.
Teacher: That's great, Janie. I hope to get your science report later today. (Smiling with thumbs up)
Janie: (Smiles with thumbs up)
-Which of the following statements best explains her teacher's responses during the conversation about homework?
The teacher seems to be encouraging Janie's oral language competence by responding to her in complete sentences that reflect Janie's communicative intention.
The teacher is more interested in having the assignment completed than in helping Janie improve her language proficiency.
Because of Janie's limited English proficiency, the teacher probably does not understand what Janie is saying; consequently, she makes no effort to correct her.
The teacher thinks Janie does not understand what she's saying to her, so she repeats and exaggerates her response to Janie.
Janie is a middle school student whose family recently emigrated from Nicaragua. On the first day of class, she told her teacher that she had to drop out of school in her native country a year ago; she has had no tutoring or formal schooling in the interval. She has the following conversation with her science teacher.
Janie: Is because loss... uhmm... oosbi. No finish... uhmm... the homework... the speetmen.
Teacher: You were unable to complete your lab experiment, Janie? You lost your USB? SO you could not do your lab report? (speaking slowly and clearly enunciating and making eye contact with Janie)
Janie: No.
Teacher: Do you think you could complete your homework during your study period?
Janie: Uhmm... Estoody time. Finish. Si.
Teacher: That's great, Janie. I hope to get your science report later today. (Smiling with thumbs up)
Janie: (Smiles with thumbs up)
- This conversation between Janie and her teacher best reflects which of the following aspects of second language acquisition?
Cognitive / Academic Language Proficiency (CLAP)
Filter
Basic Interpersonal Communicative Skills (BICS)
Interlanguage
Janie is a middle school student whose family recently emigrated from Nicaragua. On the first day of class, she told her teacher that she had to drop out of school in her native country a year ago; she has had no tutoring or formal schooling in the interval. She has the following conversation with her science teacher.
Janie: Is because loss... uhmm... oosbi. No finish... uhmm... the homework... the speetmen.
Teacher: You were unable to complete your lab experiment, Janie? You lost your USB? SO you could not do your lab report? (speaking slowly and clearly enunciating and making eye contact with Janie)
Janie: No.
Teacher: Do you think you could complete your homework during your study period?
Janie: Uhmm... Estoody time. Finish. Si.
Teacher: That's great, Janie. I hope to get your science report later today. (Smiling with thumbs up)
Janie: (Smiles with thumbs up)
-Janie's pronunciation of USB an oosbi is indicative of which of the following L2 acquisition strategies?
Transfer
Incorrect translation
Risk taking
Inactive filter
Janie is a middle school student whose family recently emigrated from Nicaragua. On the first day of class, she told her teacher that she had to drop out of school in her native country a year ago; she has had no tutoring or formal schooling in the interval. She has the following conversation with her science teacher.
Janie: Is because loss... uhmm... oosbi. No finish... uhmm... the homework... the speetmen.
Teacher: You were unable to complete your lab experiment, Janie? You lost your USB? SO you could not do your lab report? (speaking slowly and clearly enunciating and making eye contact with Janie)
Janie: No.
Teacher: Do you think you could complete your homework during your study period?
Janie: Uhmm... Estoody time. Finish. Si.
Teacher: That's great, Janie. I hope to get your science report later today. (Smiling with thumbs up)
Janie: (Smiles with thumbs up)
- Which THREE of the following assessments of the teacher's holistic response best illustrates the teacher's understanding of L1 to L2 acquisition?
The teacher seems focused on making sure Janie understands how to correctly pronounces the words she has mispronounced.
The teachers offers affective support for Janie's communicative efforts.
The teacher wants Janie to understand that missing an assignment is not a problem.
The teacher is focused on establishing meaningful communication with Janie.
The teacher seems to understand that Janie is struggling with L2 structures but is using L1 support to express herself.
A high school ESL teacher has students ranging from intermediate to high advanced in his class. He assigns the following project
Pick a movie in your native language. Create a poster that includes information about the baic plot elements (the characters, the key evens, the conflict, and the outcome). Your poster should also include information about how this film is a good presentation of your country and/or culture. Each of you will have five minutes to present your movie poster to the class and explain why this is your favorite film. Workdays: Two class periods followed by two presentations periods.
-Which of the following teaching goals does this assignment best addressed?
To create an opportunity for students to develop writing skills.
To test students' ability to do a formal class presentation.
To teach students critical viewing skills in the context of international films.
To integrate listening, speaking, and writing skills an authentic, multicultural periods.
Mr. Hodges teachers U.S. history in a content-bases ESL program. The class is made up of intermediate and advanced ESL students. To promote students' understanding of history content when he presents a lesson, he writes key words and focal points on the board as he lectures. Which of the following additional strategies would most effectively promote students' understanding in this content-based ESL class?
The teacher starts each class with a pretest and ends with a quiz on the material covered that day.
The teacher asks students to read aloud from the history book and corrects any mispronunciations.
At the end of the class, the teacher asks students to submit questions about anything they didn't understand from the lesson.
The teacher stops every 10-15 minutes to conduct a "state-of-the-class" session during which he poses questions about key points and encourages students to explain what they understand and identify what they don't understand.
A high school teacher plans a unit focused on a frequently taught story from American literature. Because half of his students are intermediate to advanced ESL students, he needs to provide approximate accommodations to create comprehensible input. Which of the following instructional activities should the teacher select to meet this goal?
Before starting the unit, the teacher writes 20 vocabulary words on the board and gives students a class period to look them up.
Students watch a film on the author's novels and stories, focusing on the shared thematic elements.
The teacher begins the unit with a "book talk" in which he introduces the characters, the initiation event, and touches on the conflict, and then reads a few pivotal passages from the story.
For homework prior to the first unit day, students are required to read the story and answer a set of questions.
Ms. Pierce teachers Grade 7 intermediate EL students. During their language enrichment period, she hands out the following exercise. Her students are clustered into base groups, but she instructs them to work independently for 5 minutes and then network with their group members to complete the exercise.
**picture**
-What is the label generally given to this type of exercise?
Cloze exam
Daily Oral Language
Sustained Silent Reading
Read aloud
Ms. Pierce teachers Grade 7 intermediate EL students. During their language enrichment period, she hands out the following exercise. Her students are clustered into base groups, but she instructs them to work independently for 5 minutes and then network with their group members to complete the exercise.
**picture**
-This type of learning activity is primarily intended to promote proficiency in which of the following areas?
Metacognition
Syntax and Semantics
Comprehension
Vocabulary
Ms. Pierce teachers Grade 7 intermediate EL students. During their language enrichment period, she hands out the following exercise. Her students are clustered into base groups, but she instructs them to work independently for 5 minutes and then network with their group members to complete the exercise.
**picture**
-Ms. Pierce discovers that some of her students are frustrated because they can't figure out the "right answers." Which of the following modifications should she make to support students' efforts to complete this activity effectively?
She provides a list of possible choices for each blank, including some alternatives that are inappropriate for the context of the blank.
She asks for volunteers to read the passage aloud in front of the class, saying "blank" every time they come to a blank and having the class call out a possible word.
She tells students who are frustrated to look up words they don't know in the passage.
She provides picture books and elementary-level story books on the general topic of the passage and tells students to read several of these books if they don't understand how to fill in the blanks.
Mr. Sauls teachers high school biology class made up of native speakers and intermediate to advanced ESL students. A good bit of the course work involves conducting experiments in class by following written directions provided by the teacher. Students work collaboratively on each experiment.
-Mr. Sauls notices that each time a new experiment is assigned, the EL students turn away from their assigned groups and talk in their native language with EL students in other groups. Which of the following strategies would most effectively support the teacher's goal to use collaborative work to promote his EL students' language competence?
The teacher tells the EL students that to learn science content, they must speak in English rather than in their L1.
The teacher restructures the groups to include two or more EL students in each group.
Using an internet translation tool, the teacher translates the experiments into the students' L1.
The teacher moves from group to group and reads the instructions orally to each group.
Mr. Sauls teachers high school biology class made up of native speakers and intermediate to advanced ESL students. A good bit of the course work involves conducting experiments in class by following written directions provided by the teacher. Students work collaboratively on each experiment.
-Which of the following teaching activities would enable Mr. Sauls to promote his EL students' understanding of science content?
To help the students understand the scientific concepts addressed by the hands-on experiments, he has the EL students read elementary-level books on the relevant science concepts.
Before the next experiment, the teacher schedules a computer lab period so that EL students can search for information on the experiment on websites in their native language.
Before the next experiment, the teacher models a similar experiment and posts illustrations throughout the room to reinforce the EL students; understanding of the procedures.
Before the next experiment, the teacher administers a pre-test to predict areas in which students may have comprehension problems.
Mr. Sauls teachers high school biology class made up of native speakers and intermediate to advanced ESL students. A good bit of the course work involves conducting experiments in class by following written directions provided by the teacher. Students work collaboratively on each experiment.
-As part of each experiment, each student has to write a report explaining the results of the experiment. Because he wants to ensure tat his teaching strategies address English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS) for writing, Mr. Sauls invites an English teacher colleague to conduct a writing workshop as the students complete their reports. Which of the following strategies would best enable Mr. Sauls to meet ELP's expectations for writing?
During the workshop, the English teacher reviews each report and marks all errors in spelling, punctuation, and word choice; the students then rewire the reports reflecting the corrections made by the English teacher.
As part of the workshop, students exchange reports for peer editing; Mr. Sauls tells students that they need to find at least 5 errors in each report they read and correct them for their classmates.
Because the ESL students probably lack sufficient vocabulary to write their reports correctly, the English teacher encourages the ESL students to write their reports in L1 first and then translate their writing into L2.
The English teacher and Mr. Sauls use directive and non-directive strategies in conferences with the students to help them craft well-written sentences using terminology that reflects their understanding of the science content.
A middle school history teacher has noticed that the EL students in the class misuse prepositions frequently in their written responses to class readings. The students rely on basic prepositions (like on, in, to, of). The teacher wants to encourage the students to start using prepositions like beyond, beneath, concerning, underneath. Which of the following activities might best address the instructional objective to promote EL students' ability to integrate a variety of prepositions into their writing?
The teacher administers a quiz consisting of paragraphs from the latest chapter. The directions are to circle every preposition in the passage.
The teacher puts a list of 50 prepositions on the board. The students are divided into groups, and each group is given the task to look up 5 of the prepositions and write the meaning next to the words on the board.
The teacher writes 25 prepositions on the board. The teacher distributes visuals showing scenes from the chapter the class is currently studying. The directions are to generate a list of 10 prepositional phrases (using 10 different prepositions) describing the scene in the photograph.
The teacher returns the students' last graded chapter response and has students work with partners to integrate more prepositional phrases into their essay.
A high school history teacher decides that instead of delivering a lecture, she will have students act out key scenes from the historical events in the unit they are currently doing. Working in groups, students will conduct come internet research on the historical figures involved, write a script for a three-minute scene, and present their scene to the whole class using props that they have made themselves. Which of the following statements best explains how this activity demonstrates effective ESL teaching methods?
Because history content tends to be challenging for EL students, this activity will enhance student learning by introducing an element of fun into an otherwise routine academic environment.
This activity will foster a higher level of content mastery by forcing students to read the chapter multiple times.
Because the assignment is a departure from the usual lecture format, students will work harder to understand the content on their own.
This highly interactive, collaborative assignment will encourage students to work at higher cognitive levels by integrating reading, writing, speaking, and listening domains.
Which of the following descriptions define two-way dual language/immersion education?
An educational approach that separates EL students from native English speakers in order to immerse learners in the L2 environment by providing intensive, targeted instruction in English with supplementary scaffolding from L1.
An educational approach that integrates native English speakers and EL students in a context that provides language and content area instruction in L1 and English.
An educational approach that brings together EL and native English language students in a supplementary class where all students learn both English and L1.
An educational approach that integrates native English speakers and EL students in a self-contained classroom; all instruction is in English, with "immersion" referring to allowing students to learn the two languages naturally using their first language acquisition skills.
Which of the following explains the L2 (English) to L1 instruction ratio in Texas dual language immersion programs?
The ratio is always left up to the instructor's discretion since the instructor is best able to determine learners' needs.
At least half of the instruction is delivered in L1.
The ratio is 50/50 from kindergarten through Grade 4 when it becomes 90% English / 10% L1.
The ratio is 100% L2 from kindergarten through Grade 2 when it becomes 90% English to 10% L1.
Specifications for ESL programs in Texas are mandated by which of the following?
The Texas Education Agency
The U.S. Department of Education
The Texas Education Code
Every Student Succeeds Act
A school district establishes an ESL program for young students who have recently arrived in the United States and who have limited or no academic background in their native language or in English. The program addresses acculturation, language, and affective and academic aspects of the children's educational experience The program is a temporary "stopover." The goal is to transition these students into a traditional ESL program. What label is typically applied to this type of program?
Transitional ESL program
Initial Language program
Assimilation program
Newcomer program
The fundamental purpose of federal and state regulations regarding ESL education is which of the following?
To provide equal educational opportunities for all learners
To develop a citizenry that is fluent in Englsih
To promote English as the official language of the United States
To promote assimilation of immigrants by reducing students' dependence on L1 in everyday social and academic activities
A Grade 3 teacher in a two-way dual language/immersion program is conducting a geography lesson in her class. She has large pictures of geographical sites such as volcanoes, rivers, rain forests, deserts, canyons, etc. She gives each group a picture and directions for the geography assignments. Which of the following directions for further class activity would best reflect the characteristics of a two-way dual language/immersion program?
Each group collaborates in writing a paragraph in English describing their picture.
Each group creates a T-chart showing words that describe the picture with L1 words on one side and L2 on the other.
The teacher creates a master list of English words that describe geographical sites. Each group selects the words that fit their picture.
Each group collaborates in writing a paragraph in L1 describing their picture.
Research on ESL instruction shows that use of multiple scaffolds promotes young learners' social adjustment and academic learning. Which of the following descriptions provides the best examples of learning scaffolds?
The teacher reinforces daily instruction with a quiz at the end of he school day; students score each other's quizzes and ask questions about the right and wrong responses.
The teacher uses props and pictures to support new learning in all subjects, makes extensive use of print throughout the room, and structures lessons to integrate cooperative learning.
The teacher uses short, animated videos to introduce every lesson in content areas and asks students to summarize their understanding of each video.
The teacher uses instructional materials which offer L1 and L2 versions of every lesson to create a learning environment that addresses the affective needs of all the students.
A high school teacher presents a unit on the 1960s civil rights movement in a sheltered social studies class. The lesson includes film clips, news stories and magazine pictures published in the 1960s, and excerpts from speeches from key civil rights leaders, as well as textbook chapters.
-Additionally, the teacher creates a Civil rights Around the world bulletin board and adds a first entry on Nelson Mandela. She tells students that each group needs to contribute a picture and short explanation of civil rights activists from other countries or cultures to add to the bulletin board. She integrates computer-assisted instruction and tells students they may do their computer work in their L1 if they choose. Which of the following explanations best addresses the connection between this instructional strategy and EL student learning?
The integration of technology with the option to use internet resources in their L1 will promote students' content-area knowledge and language acquisition.
By integrating materials other than the traditional textbook, the teacher demonstrates how history books present limited views of historical events.
The students will be able to create multimedia products to connect knowledge of this important period in American history to historical events in cultures throughout the world.
By integrating electronic resources, the teacher creates a class environment that reduces the effort that learners need to expend and reduce anxiety over required class work.
A high school teacher presents a unit on the 1960s civil rights movement in a sheltered social studies class. The lesson includes film clips, news stories and magazine pictures published in the 1960s, and excerpts from speeches from key civil rights leaders, as well as textbook chapters.
-As a culminating activity, the teacher organizes the class into a large circle for a round-robin discussion. Each student completes the sentence, "I admire ___ (the historical figure that the student choses) because ____." Then, the teacher has each student write a letter to the historical figure they mentioned. This activity best reflects which of the following ESL instructional strategy?
The teacher creates an assignment that EL students can complete effortlessly.
The teacher creates a learning environment in which students find meaningful connections to content-area knowledge presented in a multicultural setting.
The teacher creates an assignment that allows for authentic assessment in contrast to the traditional end-of-unit test.
The teacher makes an assignment that will encourage students to do additional research in order to complete the letter satisfactorily.
An English teacher reads aloud a chapter from a novel to her middle school EL students. The chapter is about Rey, a Hispanic boy, who jumps out of a tree to prove to his friends that he's a man. The chapter includes quite a few sentences that show code-switching between English and Spanish as the narrator muses about how he has to jump to fulfill cultural expectations. At the end of the read aloud, the teacher asks, "How many of you have done something similar to what Rey did?" She invites students to share their stories. This teaching activity creates a multicultural learning environment primarily by
showing students that even a simple childhood event can be turned into a story.
encouraging ESL students to talk comfortably in a classroom oral language activity.
showing students connections between shared common childhood experience and culturally driven behaviors.
showing students how integrating L1 is essential to effectively presenting an experience in L2.
A middle school teacher shows her ESL class film clips of people from different countries and cultures greeting each other. This instructional strategy primarily focuses on
showing students that shaking hands is not a universal greeting.
developing students' awareness of cultural diversity.
emphasizing the need to watch videos set in other countires.
reinforcing students' understanding of body language in communicating.
A high school teacher has his ESL class listen to excerpts from several types of music: a classical piece, a popular rap song, a country-western song, a classic rock song, a K-pop song, and a Mexican corrido. Each group picks a song and completes the following sentences about the person who might listen to that song:
My listener's favorite food is ___
My listener usually wears ___
My listener drives a ___
My listener would never, ever ___
My listener's hobby is ___
-This activity is likely to help students understand that cultural bias is connected to
different preferences.
limited understanding of a language.
conflicts between old and young persons.
stereotyping.
Early in the school year, a middle school ESL teacher gives each student a 4x6 card and makes the following assignment:
**Picture**
After the students complete their cards, the teacher has each student read his/her statement. Then the teacher posts all the cards, word side showing, on the Class Community Board.
-This activity primarily promotes which of the following components of creating and maintaining an effective multicultural learning environment?
By sharing information about themselves, the students will work more effectively in groups.
By sharing information about themselves, students will develop awareness of and respect for each other's cultural diversity.
By displaying the cards on the board, the teacher will have readily available examples of L1 and L2 words for grammar and writing lessons.
By having students read their statements orally, the teacher will establish a baseline for tracking students' speaking skills throughout the year.
A teacher in a newcomer program has a "parents are stars" segment every Friday. The teacher invites parents to offer demonstrations and instruction in L1 culture-specific topics. This strategy primarily addresses which of the following ESL teaching recommendations?
The teacher is demonstrating that learning takes place at home as well as at school.
The teacher is providing downtime to keep students from being overwhelmed by the linguistic and academic content of the ESL program.
The teacher is fostering meaningful parent participation in their children's school activities.
The teacher is partnering with parents in order to fulfill requirements of the Texas English Language Proficiency Assessment System (TELPAS)>
The math and science teachers at a large urban high school with a higher number of EL students are concerned that they are not sure about how to promote their EL students' communicative language development. They want to integrate strategies that will support content-area learning while also developing listening and speaking skills. Which of the following strategies would best address the math and science teachers' concern?
The teachers form a subcommittee to find information on the TEA website. Then, the teachers have a follow-up meeting with all the science and math teachers to share information about TELPAS.
The teachers ask the principal for guidance in finding materials to prepare students for success on the communicative language components of TELPAS. The teachers show the principal their class performance on the latest TELPAS exam to support their request.
The teachers do some research on teaching communicative competence in content-area classes and implement those strategies. The teachers observe each other and offer feedback on strategies that seem to best address communicative proficiency needs.
The teachers ask the campus speech teachers for guidance in teaching students to do oral presentations. The teachers then assign each science and math class a multi-modal project as the culminating assignment for the current grading period.
The math and science teachers at a large urban high school with a higher number of EL students are concerned that they are not sure about how to promote their EL students' communicative language development. They want to integrate strategies that will support content-area learning while also developing listening and speaking skills. Which of the following strategies would best address the math and science teachers' concern?
The teachers form a subcommittee to find information on the TEA website. Then, the teachers have a follow-up meeting with all the science and math teachers to share information about TELPAS.
The teachers ask the principal for guidance in finding materials to prepare students for success on the communicative language components of TELPAS. The teachers show the principal their class performance on the latest TELPAS exam to support their request.
The teachers do some research on teaching communicative competence in content-area classes and implement those strategies. The teachers observe each other and offer feedback on strategies that seem to best address communicative proficiency needs.
The teachers ask the campus speech teachers for guidance in teaching students to do oral presentations. The teachers then assign each science and math class a multi-modal project as the culminating assignment for the current grading period.
An elementary school with a large number of students identified as EL is aiming for 100% parental approval for placing students in the district's language programs. Which of the following strategies would best address the school's goal to facilitate family involvement in EL students' educational experiences?
Inviting families to a meeting where several teachers do a class demonstration showing how L1 instruction and ESL methods are integrated into daily instruction.
Sending parents an information brochure on the benefits of ESL education.
Sending a letter to the impacted families explaining the ESL program guidelines stipulated by the Texas Education Code and the Every Student Succeeds Act.
Inviting parents to a special Parent-Teacher organization meeting where a question-and-answer-session on ESL education is the only item on the agenda.
Which THREE of the following entities are officially included in the Language Proficiency Assessment Committee (LPAC)?
A member of the local school board
A member of the school's parent-teacher association
A parent of a student participating in a language program
Teachers certified as bilingual or ESL teachers
A campus administrator
Which of the following best describes the individual teacher's role in the LPAC's decision regarding students' readiness to exit a language program?
To inform parents of each student's progress in language acquisition and core course performance at the end of each semester.
To evaluate a student's readiness to exit a language program based on the student's classroom performance and potential.
To work closely with the LPAC to determine EL students placement options at the end of each academic year.
To serve as an advocate for each learner by providing research-based ESL instruction to guide students towards success on high-stakes assessments.
Parental notification that a student has been classified as an EL and is recommended for placement in the school district's bilingual or ESL program comes from which of the following entities or individual?
The language Proficiency Assessment Committee
The student's English Language Arts teacher
The school principal
The school district's ESL Coordinator
A teacher new to the ESL program in a school district in Texas wants to learn the state-mandated responsibilities for teachers in bilingual and ESL programs. Which of the following resources would provide the most through, up-to-date information for this new teacher seeking information on ESL teacher resonbilities?
The Language Proficiency Assessment Committee Framework Manual
The Texas Education Agency's Supporting English Learners in Texas web portal
The Texas Education Code
The English Language Proficiency Standards
Two elementary school ESL teachers are talking about preparing students for the upcoming state0mandated exams in writing, reading, and math. They have this converstation in the lunchroom.
Teacher 1: Now that it's crunch time, I'm focusing everything on the Enlsih speakers.
Teacher 2: And your EL kids?
Teacher 1: At this point, I'd be wasting valuable class time on them. Everyone knows they're not going to do well regardless of what we do. So, I say, focus on the English speakers; at least, we know they'll do okay. But the LEP's... well, they're going to fail no matter what.
-Which of the following terms best describes the attitude reflected by Teacher 1's comments?
Bias
Cultural insensitivity
Results-driven pedagogy
Teaching to the test
