Deck 6: Cognitive Development

Question 1

Which one of the following statements best illustrates a universal in development as developmentalists define the term?

A)Piaget proposed that formal operational thought is characterized by an ability to think abstractly about a wide variety of topics.
B)Contemporary theorists have derived the concept cognitive apprenticeship from Vygotsky's theory of development.
C)Young children show similar patterns in their early language development regardless of the specific language that they learn.
D)Piaget neglected to consider the influence of prior knowledge and experience on children's ability to think logically.

Answer 1

Young children show similar patterns in their early language development regardless of the specific language that they learn.

Question 2

As children grow older,many of their neurons begin to transmit messages more rapidly than they did in the early years of life,thanks to:

A)Increasing dominance of one brain hemisphere over the other.
B)The process of synaptogenesis.
C)The process of myelination.
D)An increasing variety of neurotransmitters.

Answer 2

The process of myelination.

Question 3

A sensitive period in development can best be described as:

A)A stage of development in which children display unpredictable (and often inappropriate)emotional responses.
B)A period during children's cognitive development in which they are highly distractible and frequently off task in the classroom.
C)An approach to teaching or parenting that takes a child's developmental level into account.
D)An age range during which environmental conditions are most likely to have an effect on a particular aspect of development.

Answer 3

An age range during which environmental conditions are most likely to have an effect on a particular aspect of development.

Question 4

In Piaget's theory,a scheme can best be described as:

A)A lifestyle or family pattern.
B)A set of motor skills that preschoolers develop.
C)A repeatedly used group of similar thoughts or actions.
D)A mental picture of oneself.

Question 5

Which one of the following statements reflects what developmentalists mean by the term maturation?

A)Developmental changes that are controlled largely by heredity
B)Developmental changes related specifically to children's physical development
C)Developmental changes related specifically to children's emotional development
D)Developmental changes that reflect increasingly appropriate social behavior

Question 6

Which one of the following is false?

A)Students' behaviors affect their development.
B)Students alter their environment through their internal variables,such as their genes and traits.
C)Students often search for environments that are a good fit for their internal variables and behaviors.
D)Students' development proceeds more quickly when their behaviors precede their internal variables,such as genes and traits.

Question 7

Which one of the following statements best describes a nativist perspective of child development?

A)Children are naturally disposed to think about their environment in particular ways; in a sense,some basic knowledge about the world is "pre-wired."
B)Children construct increasingly sophisticated views of the world based on their many experiences with it.
C)Initially,children unconsciously develop a rather complex and confused view of the world,but this view becomes simpler and more straightforward as time goes on.
D)Children repeatedly parrot their parents' and teachers' beliefs,eventually adopting these beliefs as their own "knowledge."

Question 8

Most developmental theorists agree that:

A)Development occurs in stages,with each stage occurring at the same age for all children.
B)Developmental milestones appear in a consistent sequence for most children.
C)Physical development occurs in a predictable sequence,but cognitive development does not.
D)Cognitive development occurs in a predictable sequence,but physical development does not.

Question 9

If you were interested in how a child's culture influences cognitive development,you would be most likely to consider ________ approach to cognitive development.

A)Vygotsky's
B)a neurological
C)information processing theory's
D)Piaget's

Question 10

Which one of the following best illustrates Piaget's concept of accommodation?

A)When Anne completes 10 multiplication problems carelessly and in some cases incorrectly,she is given 10 more multiplication problems to solve.
B)Betsy writes down her definition of a mollusk-something she learned word for word from her textbook.
C)Carol copies everything her teacher writes on the blackboard.
D)Donna revises her understanding of what clouds are like when she studies them in science.

Question 11

Seth seems quite depressed much of the time. When his teacher takes him aside and asks what's wrong,he shrugs his shoulders and responds,"I don't know. I've felt sad for as long as I can remember." If you were to take a psychoanalytic approach to Seth's depression,which one of the following hypotheses would you be most likely to have?

A)Important people in Seth's life (perhaps his parents)typically give him more attention when he acts sad rather than happy.
B)Seth may have grown up in a family or culture that believes joy and happiness are "sinful" feelings that must be suppressed.
C)Unpleasant events in Seth's early childhood (perhaps abuse)are having a negative impact even though he can't recall them.
D)Seth is biologically prone to depression; perhaps he has a chemical imbalance that could be treated with medication.

Question 12

Which one of these is central to an information processing approach to child development?

A)How children learn from observing others
B)How children learn from what others tell them
C)What consequences follow children's behaviors
D)How mental processes change over time

Question 13

Which one of the following clearly illustrates Piaget's concept of assimilation?

A)A kindergarten child mistakenly writes on the chalkboard using a large white crayon instead of chalk.
B)A third grader develops the necessary eye-hand coordination for writing letters.
C)A sixth grader moves to a different school and changes styles to fit local fashions.
D)An eighth grader who continually uses the word "awesome" in his compositions is encouraged to use other,more specific adjectives.

Question 14

Which one of the following most accurately describes the general concept of temperament?

A)The ways that individuals have learned to react to environmental stimuli as a result of their past experiences
B)An inherited predisposition to interact with one's environment in certain ways
C)A tendency to exhibit occasional,unpredictable outbursts of anger
D)The extent to which people like or dislike themselves

Question 15

In the human brain,a great deal of synaptic pruning occurs in early childhood. This pruning appears to be:

A)The unfortunate result of insufficiently stimulating home and school environments.
B)An adaptive process that allows children to deal more efficiently with their environment.
C)Due to an imbalance of important nutrients,and especially to low levels of the B vitamins in many children's diets.
D)The result of the fact that the cortex is slowly taking over responsibility for functions that have previously been controlled by other parts of the brain.

Question 16

Which one of the following statements best describes a cognitive-developmental perspective of child development?

A)Children are naturally disposed to think about their environment in particular ways; in a sense,some basic knowledge about the world is "pre-wired."
B)Children construct increasingly sophisticated views of the world based on their many experiences with it.
C)Initially,children unconsciously develop a rather complex and confused view of the world,but this view becomes simpler and more straightforward as time goes on.
D)Children repeatedly parrot their parents' and teachers' beliefs,eventually adopting these beliefs as their own "knowledge."

Question 17

According to the textbook,which one of the following conclusions is most justified based on the research on brain development?

A)It is essential that children begin studying basic math and science before they reach the age of 7.
B)Classroom experiences can significantly enhance students' cognitive development throughout the elementary and secondary school years.
C)The ability to think abstractly depends on the development of many synaptic connections during the first five years of life.
D)Children probably won't acquire important motor skills (such as using a pencil or cutting with scissors)unless they begin developing those skills before or during the early elementary grades.

Question 18

Louis receives a new soccer ball and begins to dribble it in the same way he dribbles his basketball. His dribbling of the new ball reflects Piaget's concept of:

A)Concrete operations.
B)Accommodation.
C)Cognitive structure.
D)Assimilation.

Question 19

Which one of the following statements is true about learning and development?

A)Learning and development are synonyms.
B)Both learning and development are affected by one's experiences.
C)Learning is affected by genetics,but development is not.
D)Learning is affected by experience,but development is not.

Question 20

Which of the following theoretical perspectives of child development would be most helpful to you if you wanted to consider the effects of local libraries,natural history museums,and other community resources on children's cognitive development?

A)Nativism
B)Psychodynamic theory
C)Cognitive-developmental theory
D)Ecological systems theory

Question 21

Olivia understands why 3/5 and 9/15 are equivalent fractions. Based on this information,Olivia is reasoning in a manner consistent with Piaget's ________ stage of development.

A)concrete operations
B)preoperational
C)formal operations
D)sensorimotor

Question 22

Which one of the following students is definitely working in his or her zone of proximal development?

A)Arnold uses correct grammar and punctuation when he writes short stories.
B)Berta is beginning to learn basic woodworking techniques. She has trouble hammering a nail straight into a piece of wood unless her teacher stands beside her,helping her and reminding her of what to do.
C)Calvin is playing the clarinet in the band. He finds that it helps to keep the tempo if he taps the beat with his foot.
D)Doreen finds it virtually impossible to solve mathematical word problems even when her teacher gives her several helpful hints.

Question 23

Which one of the following statements reflects a concern about the separation and control of variables?

A)"How do you think I should make amends with Martha? If I tell her I'm sorry,she might think I'm lying."
B)"I'm catching more tadpoles today,but I don't know if it's because I'm using a larger container to catch them or because I'm scooping from a different part of the pond."
C)"I have two tests to study for tonight-science and Spanish. I'll study one subject before dinner and the other one after dinner so I don't get them confused."
D)"I'm trying to learn how to do a lay-up shot in basketball. Can you show me all the things I should do,going one step at a time?"

Question 24

Which one of the following best describes Piaget's concept of equilibration?

A)A child assimilates without accommodating.
B)A child accommodates without assimilating.
C)A child doesn't encounter any new or challenging ideas.
D)A child revises existing schemes to incorporate new experiences.

Question 25

James is talking about how much better the world would be if everyone simply agreed to "love one another" and "make peace,not war." In Piaget's view,James is most likely to be:

A)4 years old.
B)7 years old.
C)10 years old.
D)14 years old.

Question 26

From Vygotsky's perspective,what important role does inner speech play?

A)By giving ourselves a sequence of internal directions,we guide ourselves through complex tasks.
B)By mentally practicing various grammatical structures,we develop more complex language capabilities.
C)By internally speculating about what new words mean,we continue to increase the size of our vocabularies.
D)By talking to ourselves about what we should have done or said in a particular situation,we remember that situation more vividly.

Question 27

Roger is shown two piles of sand and says that each pile has the same amount. However,when one pile is flattened with a shovel,he now claims emphatically that the flattened pile has less sand. Piaget would suggest that Roger is in the ________ stage of development.

A)concrete operations
B)sensorimotor
C)formal operations
D)preoperational

Question 28

According to Piaget,three of the following are essential for cognitive development. Which one is not?

A)High self-esteem
B)Interaction with the physical environment
C)Accommodation of existing schemes
D)Social interaction

Question 29

Students in a fourth-grade reading group are reading a passage about snakes. Their teacher asks,"Who can think of a title for this passage that summarizes what the passage is about?" After hearing several good suggestions,the teacher says,"The author says that snakes are helpful to farmers. What evidence does she give to support her statement?" If we consider Vygotsky's concept of internalization,we might predict that such a discussion will:

A)Be more beneficial for students who are working outside their zones of proximal development than for students working inside their ZPDs.
B)Help students develop effective reading comprehension strategies (e.g.,summarizing,looking for supporting statements).
C)Help students develop a greater interest in learning for its own sake.
D)Be confusing and counterproductive for students who are not yet capable of abstract thought.

Question 30

Marcy is given her choice of two identical chocolate bars,one of which has been broken into four pieces. Marcy chooses the broken candy bar,believing that it has more candy. From Piaget's perspective,Marcy is showing a lack of ________,indicating that she has not yet completed the transition to the _________ stage of development.

A)proportional reasoning; concrete operations
B)proportional reasoning; formal operations
C)conservation; concrete operations
D)conservation; formal operations

Question 31

Imagine you are a third-grade teacher. If you look at cognitive development from Piaget's perspective,which stage would best characterize most of your students?

A)concrete operational stage
B)formal operational stage
C)preoperational stage
D)sensorimotor stage

Question 32

Other things being equal,which one of the following four boys is likely to learn and remember the most by reading a book about spiders?

A)Eight-year-old Albert,for whom the book is slightly above his zone of proximal development
B)Eight-year-old Bernard,who knows a lot more about spiders than the other three boys do
C)Ten-year-old Colt,who performs well on a task involving conservation of displaced volume
D)Ten-year-old Darren,who shows some understanding of simple proportions

Question 33

Which one of the following reflects class inclusion?

A)Getting cows and horses confused
B)Identifying a shape as a square one day but as a triangle the next
C)Realizing that things that are cars can also be vehicles
D)Understanding that some behaviors that are perfectly acceptable at home are unacceptable at school

Question 34

Mary agrees with this logic: If all violins are musical instruments,and if all musical instruments make sounds,then all violins must make sounds. However,we then present this situation involving the same logical reasoning: If all Cheetos are eggplants,and if all eggplants are oysters,then all Cheetos are oysters. Mary vehemently denies that Cheetos can possibly be oysters. Taking Piaget's perspective of cognitive development,we would conclude that Mary is in the ________ stage.

A)concrete operational
B)formal operational
C)preoperational
D)sensorimotor

Question 35

Which one of the following statements best describes Vygotsky's concept of internalization?

A)As children grow older,they develop an increasing ability to think about events in abstract rather than concrete terms.
B)With age,children acquire more sophisticated problem-solving skills,largely because their parents and teachers give them increasingly challenging problems to solve.
C)Over time,children acquire more self-confidence about their ability to deal with the world.
D)Through their social interactions with other people,children acquire new ways of mentally approaching and thinking about a task.

Question 36

Which one of the following teachers is definitely keeping in mind Piaget's idea that assimilation and accommodation are both necessary for learning and cognitive development to occur?

A)Mr. Ames presents brand new topics every day,expecting the continual novelty to keep students interested and motivated.
B)Ms. Baretta makes sure that students have learned one topic very,very well before moving on to another.
C)Mr. Chang shows students how a new topic is similar to the things they already know,but also different in certain ways.
D)Ms. Doherty uses a lot of drill-and-practice exercises,encouraging students to work faster every time.

Question 37

Vygotsky's concept of zone of proximal development can best be described as:

A)The degree of maturation necessary to accomplish a particular physical task.
B)Children's ability to estimate how much they know.
C)The range of tasks children can perform by themselves.
D)The range of tasks children can accomplish only with support.

Question 38

Seven-year-old Emma thinks that the expression "Too many cooks spoil the broth" is only about cooking soup. Her inability to recognize the more general meaning of the expression:

A)Suggests a possible intellectual disability.
B)Is typical for her age-group.
C)Reveals preoperational reasoning.
D)Indicates that instruction in such expressions would definitely be in her zone of proximal development.

Question 39

Which one of the following statements most accurately describes Lev Vygotsky's view of how cognitive development occurs?

A)Children's cognitive growth is a process of adults modeling and then reinforcing increasingly complex behaviors.
B)Cognitive development progresses through four distinct stages; each stage is characterized by increasingly complex thought and language.
C)Children develop by working on challenging tasks with the assistance of more competent individuals.
D)Language and thought,although closely intertwined in the first few years of life,become increasingly distinct entities over time.

Question 40

Piaget's sensorimotor stage is characterized by:

A)Schemes related to perceptions and active responses.
B)Inaccurate mental representations of the world around them.
C)The beginnings of deductive logic.
D)Rudimentary schemes for dealing with abstract ideas.

Question 41

Three of the following statements about the roles of heredity and/or environment in intelligence are accurate. Which one is not accurate?

A)Poor nutrition in the first few years of life can adversely affect intelligence over the long run.
B)People who are genetically similar to one another tend to have more similar IQ scores than people who are unrelated.
C)Biologists working in the Human Genome Project have recently identified the chromosome that carries the "intelligence" gene.
D)On average,children's performance on intelligence tests has risen around the world,suggesting that improvements in environmental conditions enhance IQ.

Question 42

Randy knows more as a tenth grader than he did as a first grader. One result of this increased knowledge base is that Randy:

A)Can use rehearsal more effectively.
B)Is more easily distracted.
C)Can think more logically when dealing with familiar topics.
D)Is more likely to get the various things he knows confused with one another.

Question 43

Which one of the following is a true statement about IQ scores?

A)Most adults have IQ scores higher than 120.
B)Most adults have IQ scores lower than 80.
C)They reflect the percentage of typical "adult-level" intelligence that a person has acquired.
D)They are derived from comparisons with the test performance of same-age peers.

Question 44

Marissa seems to be a "born leader." As president of the school service club,she can often persuade her classmates to get involved in school and community service activities. Given this information,we could conclude that Marissa has a strength in which one of Gardner's multiple intelligences?

A)Interpersonal
B)Spatial
C)Naturalistic
D)Bodily-kinesthetic

Question 45

Sam is a very talented dancer; he also shows considerable creativity in his artwork. He finds math and science classes very difficult,but he loves to tell stories and jokes to his many friends. Which view of intelligence is best reflected in Sam's abilities?

A)The concept of g
B)Gardner's multiple intelligences
C)Piaget's theory of cognitive development
D)Distributed intelligence

Question 46

Robert is a 15-year-old boy who has attended U.S. schools since he began kindergarten at age 5. With this fact in mind,identify the task that is most likely to require Robert's fluid intelligence rather than his crystallized intelligence.

A)Finding Egypt on a map
B)Solving a new kind of puzzle
C)Applying algebra to a mathematical word problem
D)Writing a persuasive essay on a current issue in the news

Question 47

The original purpose of intelligence tests was to:

A)Assess students' ability to solve abstract problems.
B)Measure students' innate ability to adapt to a complex environment.
C)Identify students who may require special educational services.
D)Predict how well students are likely to perform in various professional careers.

Question 48

A sixth-grade teacher is concerned about the poor academic performance of one of his students,a 12-year-old girl named Nancy. The teacher looks through Nancy's school records and discovers that she got an IQ score of 80 when she took an intelligence test in preschool. Considering the textbook's discussion of IQ scores,the teacher should conclude that:

A)Nancy's IQ is mostly an inherited characteristic,so there is little the teacher can do to improve her learning potential.
B)Nancy's IQ is mostly due to environmental conditions; given proper stimulation,instruction,and curricular materials,it can probably be raised as much as 30 points over the next school year.
C)Nancy's IQ score in preschool is not necessarily a good reflection of her capability in sixth grade.
D)Nancy may still be at Piaget's preoperational stage of cognitive development.

Question 49

A fourth-grade teacher says,"All of my students have strengths in certain areas. For example,some of them are really good at solving math problems. Others are really fast readers. Still others have a marvelous ability to make connections among seemingly very different ideas. And a couple of them are 'walking encyclopedias' of facts about the world." With which one of the following theoretical perspectives is the teacher's statement most consistent?

A)Cattell's concept of fluid intelligence
B)Spearman's general factor in intelligence
C)The Cattell-Horn-Carroll theory of cognitive abilities
D)Distributed intelligence

Question 50

Four high school teachers have just learned that Ralph,one of their students,has scored extremely well on an intelligence test. Which teacher reveals a belief in the concept of g in intelligence?

A)Mr. Hudson says,"No wonder Ralph performs consistently well in all of his classes!"
B)Ms. Crawford says,"Ralph is an exceptional writer,but from what I've observed,his math skills are only average."
C)Ms. Wyman says,"I agree that Ralph writes very well,but his spelling is atrocious."
D)Mr. Grant says,"Ralph has trouble remembering basic math facts,but he's very good when it comes to solving challenging math problems."

Question 51

Three of the following alternatives illustrate dispositions that theorists have described. Which one would not be considered a disposition as psychologists typically use the term?

A)Anne has been afraid of snakes since she was a toddler.
B)Barry enjoys logic puzzles,mathematical brainteasers,and other logically challenging tasks.
C)Calvin refuses to take another person's word for something; he always insists that the person back up an idea or opinion with convincing evidence.
D)Drew likes to hear several perspectives on an issue before reaching a conclusion about it.

Question 52

Judging from what you have learned about how intelligence is typically measured,which one of the following would you be least likely to find on an intelligence test?

A)What do people mean when they say,"Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness"?
B)How many friends do you have?
C)What does the word candid mean?
D)In what way are a tree and a flower alike?

Question 53

Which one of the following statements best characterizes the development of expertise in a particular subject area?

A)The development of expertise is characterized by the acquisition of more and better-integrated knowledge about a topic.
B)The development of expertise is characterized by a series of five stages of increasingly abstract problem-solving strategies.
C)Children develop expertise primarily by learning certain skills and then practicing them over and over until they can perform the skills almost without thinking.
D)Children develop expertise primarily by changing verbal information into complex visual images.

Question 54

Psychologists believe that intelligence is culture-specific-that "intelligent" behavior in one culture is not necessarily intelligent behavior in a different culture. Three of the following are aspects of intelligence regardless of the culture in which it is found. Which one is probably related to intelligence in some cultures but not in others?

A)Applying prior knowledge to new situations
B)Doing well in academic subject matter
C)Learning how to perform a new task quickly
D)Adapting readily to new situations

Question 55

Which one of the following statements most accurately describes the relationship between IQ scores and classroom performance?

A)IQ scores obtained in the early elementary years are excellent predictors of high school success.
B)On average,students with higher IQ scores do better in school than students with lower IQ scores.
C)Students with IQ scores above 110 perform better when they are placed one or two grade levels ahead of where their age-mates are.
D)Because intelligence tests measure inherited potential,IQ scores are unrelated to school achievement,which is influenced primarily by environmental factors.

Question 56

Which one of the following is a correct interpretation of a high school student's IQ score of 115?

A)It will remain constant for that student for a period of at least five to six years.
B)The student has acquired 85% of the average adult's intellectual capabilities.
C)The student has performed better on an intelligence test than the majority of students of the same age.
D)The student will have a harder time getting accepted to college than most students.

Question 57

Lily is 10 years old. She gets a score of 97 on an IQ test. What does this tell us about her intellectual ability?

A)Lily must be a very smart girl because 100 is a perfect score.
B)Lily is brighter than two-thirds of her age-mates,as IQ scores go up to about 150.
C)Lily's score is in the bottom 20% of her age-group.
D)Lily's score is about average for her age-group.

Question 58

A student at an Inuit school in northern Canada is quite a chatterbox in the classroom; in fact,she is often found talking to a classmate when she should be working quietly. Based on their cultural beliefs,her Inuit teachers are likely to think that this student:

A)Has low intelligence.
B)Has strong leadership skills.
C)Has little respect for authority figures.
D)Might benefit from special educational services for the gifted.

Question 59

Researchers have found cultural differences in three of the following aspects of cognitive development. In which area are there least likely to be cultural differences?

A)The extent to which adolescents show abilities associated with Piaget's formal operations stage
B)The importance adolescents attach to components of the scientific method
C)The age at which children achieve conservation of substance
D)The importance of challenge in promoting cognitive growth

Question 60

In which pair of students do we see a distinct difference in cognitive style?

A)Abby does her assigned readings only if she knows she will be tested on them. In contrast,Adam reads every assignment because he finds the subject matter fascinating.
B)Bill tries hard to do his best at everything. In contrast,Beth works only at tasks that come easily to her.
C)Cara enjoys every minute she's at school and approaches each new classroom activity with enthusiasm. In contrast,Connor sits at the back of the classroom uninvolved and mumbling under his breath that every activity is "stupid."
D)During a lecture,David learns more from what the teacher says,whereas Donna can more easily remember the pictures and diagrams the teacher presents.

Question 61

In addition to low general intelligence and poor academic performance,what other characteristic must be present to classify a student as having an intellectual disability?

A)A genetic condition such as Down syndrome
B)A discrepancy between measured intelligence and level of academic achievement
C)Distractibility and an inability to focus on the details of a particular task
D)Difficulty functioning in age-appropriate ways in the social environment

Question 62

Which one of the following conditions is recommended for effective learning in a discovery learning session?

A)Students have freedom to explore their environment without any structure or restraint.
B)Students have some prior knowledge related to the material they're exploring.
C)Students have a lesson that has been broken down into small,discrete pieces.
D)Students are given an abstract overview of the discovery session ahead of time.

Question 63

As a teacher,you want to improve your students' ability to understand and remember material in their textbooks. Considering research results described in the textbook,which technique should you use?

A)Reciprocal teaching
B)Authentic activities
C)Discovery learning
D)Clinical method

Question 64

Three of the following are accurate statements about the limitations of intelligence tests. Which one is not an accurate statement?

A)Some students may have little motivation to perform at their best.
B)The tests may yield somewhat different scores for the same student on different occasions.
C)The tests focus more on the kinds of things females are likely to know and so are biased against males.
D)The tests focus on skills important in mainstream Western culture and ignore some skills more important in other cultures.

Question 65

Mr. Wilson will have a student with an intellectual disability included in his class this year. Her name is Tiffany,and Mr. Wilson is considering what changes he should make to his style of teaching to promote her success. Which one of the following strategies is least likely to be helpful?

A)Mr. Wilson will structure his lesson plans so that all of the children can work at their own pace as much as possible. This will allow Tiffany to go as slowly as she needs to in order to succeed.
B)Mr. Wilson will use the Golden Rule ("Do unto others as you would have them do unto you")to define acceptable behavior in the classroom. He reasons that it will be easier for Tiffany to remember this rule than a more specific list,and it should apply to any unexpected problems that might arise.
C)Mr. Wilson will have Tiffany work with a parent volunteer three times a week to learn simple addition facts. He gives the volunteer specific guidance about how to help Tiffany remember the facts: "Have her say each fact four times in a row and then write the fact four times as well. Review previously learned facts in every session."
D)Mr. Wilson will make an effort to give Tiffany concrete instructions for new tasks so that she knows exactly what she needs to do.

Question 66

Scaffolding serves what purpose in instruction?

A)It gives students an idea of what they need to do to get good grades.
B)It keeps school tasks within students' present developmental levels.
C)It lets students learn by watching one another.
D)It supports students in their efforts to master difficult tasks.

Question 67

Within the context of Vygotsky's perspective of cognitive development,why do students who are gifted often not benefit from regular classroom instruction?

A)Because they're too preoccupied by their own self-talk
B)Because they're too busy thinking about things they learned from their outside reading to want to learn material presented in the classroom
C)Because they are typically more distractible than their nongifted peers
D)Because they aren't working within their zone of proximal development

Question 68

The textbook recommends three of the following strategies for adapting instruction for students who are gifted. Which one does it not recommend?

A)Ask students to be patient while their classmates master instructional objectives.
B)Form study groups of students who have similar strengths.
C)Encourage students to aim high in their aspirations.
D)Find outside resources through which students can pursue specialized interests.

Question 69

Which one of the following statements most accurately reflects the concept of distributed intelligence?

A)How "intelligent" children become is,to some extent,a function of the number of siblings they have; children from larger families tend to have slightly lower IQ scores.
B)How "intelligent" students are is,to some extent,a function of class size; students achieve at lower levels when they are in larger classes.
C)Students almost invariably perform at higher levels in some academic subject areas than they do in others.
D)On average,students can act more intelligently when they can use outside resources as well as their minds.

Question 70

From the perspective of Vygotsky and the textbook,opportunities to engage in pretend play (e.g.,playing "house" or "doctor")have which one of the following effects?

A)They allow children to practice adult behaviors.
B)They can promote equilibration.
C)They are highly enjoyable but have little impact on cognitive development.
D)They foster traditional gender stereotypes.

Question 71

Three of the following teaching strategies should help students benefit from a discovery learning situation. Which strategy is least likely to be helpful?

A)Mr. Azama makes sure students have some knowledge about triangles,including the concepts of base and height,and then provides an exercise through which they discover for themselves the formula for calculating a triangle's area.
B)Ms. Berkowitz asks students to write down their discoveries about what happens to a chemical solution when they heat it.
C)Ms. Clift gives students several guidelines to follow as they conduct a physics experiment.
D)Mr. DiCicco takes his students to the site of a Civil War battle and says,"Okay,look around and see what you can find that might be of interest to your peers."

Question 72

Mr. Phillips wants his students to develop the ability to separate and control variables in scientific experimentation. Which one of the following instructional methods is most likely to help his students achieve this goal?

A)Scaffolded inquiry-learning activities
B)Small-group reciprocal-teaching activities
C)Individualized assignments using computer spreadsheets
D)Unstructured discovery-learning activities

Question 73

You have referred the following four students to the school psychologist for evaluation. Which student is the psychologist most likely to identify as having an intellectual disability?

A)Matthew has difficulty in math but performs at grade level in reading,spelling,and writing skills.
B)Lacy shows low achievement in all areas and prefers to play with younger children.
C)Wanda is hyperactive and frequently expresses her boredom with class material.
D)Mark is a low achiever in all areas; he is a leader of a local neighborhood gang.

Question 74

Mr. Remignanti asks 9-year-old Anne to divide a pitcher of lemonade equally between two glasses,one each for her and her friend Kate. The two glasses are different shapes,with Anne's being tall and thin and Kate's being short and wide. After Anne pours the lemonade,Mr. Remignanti says to her,"Look,the lemonade in your glass is higher than the lemonade in Kate's glass. Did you give yourself more than you gave Kate?" "No," Anne replies,"my glass is skinnier." Mr. Remignanti continues to ask Anne questions to determine how well she understands that height compensates for width in this situation. Mr. Remignanti's strategy can best be described as illustrating:

A)The clinical method.
B)Reciprocal teaching.
C)Distributed intelligence.
D)Plasticity.

Question 75

Which one of the following teachers is using reciprocal teaching?

A)Mr. Armando has students work in pairs,testing each other's knowledge about a topic.
B)Working with a small group,Mr. Bromley gives each student a chance to ask questions of his or her classmates regarding a section of text they are all reading.
C)When a few students ask questions about things they don't understand,Ms. Cromwell asks if other students can answer the questions before answering them herself.
D)A few days before a test,Ms. Dievers has each student describe the strategies he or she plans to use while studying.

Question 76

Which one of the following would Piaget be least likely to advocate for elementary school children?

A)Picture illustrations of number concepts
B)Laboratory-type experiences with concrete objects
C)Field trips to hands-on science museums
D)Lectures that describe faraway places

Question 77

The following four junior high school science teachers are teaching the concept atom to their students. From Piaget's perspective,some of the students in each classroom are in the formal operations stage and others are at the concrete operations stage. In which classroom are the concrete operational students most likely to have difficulty understanding what an atom is like?

A)Mr. Armani lets students touch and manipulate concrete models of various atoms.
B)Mr. Bendetti lets students look at the same concrete models that Mr. Armani has used.
C)Mr. Carmen verbally describes how different elements are made up of different numbers of neutrons,protons,and electrons.
D)Mr. Davidson has students role-play being neutrons,protons,and electrons. The "neutron" and "proton" students huddle together in the middle of the room,and the "electrons" move around them.

Question 78

Which one of the following teachers is using a strategy that reflects the concept of distributed intelligence?

A)Mr. Arvis asks students to exchange and grade one another's homework assignments.
B)Mr. Baker encourages his students to use their calculators when solving algebraic word problems.
C)Mr. Chinn gives easy writing assignments at the beginning of the year and raises his expectations as the school year progresses.
D)Mr. Devlin encourages his students to relate what they are learning in social studies to their own personal experiences.

Question 79

Which one of the following is a legitimate reason for not relying solely on intelligence tests when identifying students who are gifted?

A)Because intelligence test results are so difficult to interpret,we are likely to identify many nongifted students as being gifted.
B)Because intelligence tests measure innate intelligence,we may overlook students whose giftedness is due to an enriched environment.
C)Because of the culture-dependent nature of intelligence,we may overlook students from ethnic minority groups.
D)Because high achievement is a better indicator of giftedness than IQ scores,we should focus on achievement test results instead.

Question 80

Which one of the following is the best example of instruction that is consistent with discovery and inquiry learning?

A)Ms. Markowitz instructs her students to take notes during her lecture and then goes over the notes with them to make sure they understand the material.
B)Mr. Tseng gives his students a free day to spend in the library reading about whatever subjects they like.
C)Mr. Vicker takes his science students to a tide pool and asks them to describe and categorize the various life-forms they find there.
D)Ms. Haxten instructs her drama students to think about what their characters are like as they memorize their lines for a play.