Deck 7: Science Education for Students With Learning Differences

Question 1

What is an argument in support of inclusive classrooms?

A) Students with special needs may have difficulties in one subject but not in other subjects.
B) Students with special needs should have the social interactions available in the regular classroom.
C) Students can learn from each other.
D) All students in a classroom have special needs.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Answer 1

E

Question 2

W When teaching science to English language learners, teachers should do which of the following?

A) Use the guided inquiry methodology.
B) Focus on the basic processes of science.
C) Include the English language learner in cooperative groups.
D) Ensure that the English language learner understands the basic vocabulary of the lesson.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Answer 2

E

Question 3

teaching strategies are most useful in teaching science to girls?

A) Involve girls fully in inquiry activities.
B) Talk about the contributions of women scientists.
C) Ensure that girls participate fully in group work.
D) Ensure that girls participate fully in class discussions.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Answer 3

E

Question 4

is an argument opposing inclusive classrooms?

A) The regular teacher is better equipped to teach certain subjects such as science than a special teacher.
B) Students with special needs who are in an inclusionary classroom may be labeled inappropriately.
C) Teachers may get the idea that students with special needs who are in an inclusionary classroom are less capable than students not identified as having special needs.
D) Students with special needs who are in an inclusionary classroom may tend to be ignored.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 5

Which of the following is likely to hinder girls from learning how to do science?

A) Placing them in all-girl groups for inquiry activities
B) Honoring the suggestions and conclusions girls make in inquiry activities
C) Holding a science fair in which each individual student in the class prepares an exhibit portraying their research and the results of their inquiries
D) Assigning each student in the class to prepare a short activity or experiment they can share with parents on parent night.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 6

According to the text, what generalization can be made about how well girls can learn science?

A) Girls can learn science as well as boys.
B) Girls dislike science and so probably they will not be able to learn it as well as boys.
C) Girls have an easier time than boys in reading about science, but have a more difficult time than boys in doing inquiry activities and so probably will not learn science as well as boys.
D) Girls need a special teaching methodology if they are to learn science as well as boys.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 7

Which of the following strategies would be most appropriate for teaching science to students with special needs?

A) Use the guided inquiry method.
B) Engage students with special needs in hands-on activities.
C) Include topics in the curriculum that are meaningful and interesting to the students with special needs.
D) Make adjustments in pace, reading level, and assignments to accommodate the needs of the students with special needs.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 8

of the following activities would be most suitable for girls in a middle grades science class?

A) Use models to investigate how an internal combustion automobile engine works.
B) Use a WebQuest to investigate how the local terrain was formed.
C) Use a microscope to investigate the characteristics of plankton on a prepared slide.
D) Use iodine and a brown paper bag to investigate the starch and fat content of various foods.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 9

Difficulties involved in teaching science to English language learners include which of the following?

A) English language learners have cognitive difficulties that prevent them from thinking at higher levels.
B) English language learners are low achievers.
C) English language learners are not familiar with the science background information that speakers of English have.
D) English language learners have difficulty in understanding English.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 10

One difficulty in planning for students who are gifted and talented is that

A) The students are probably gifted and talented in all areas.
B) The students may not be gifted and talented in all areas.
C) If the students have extraordinary abilities in the area of science, special plans have to be made for their studies in other subjects as well.
D) Students who are gifted and talented do not honor subject-matter boundaries.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 11

W What would be the most challenging teaching methodology to employ when teaching science to students who are gifted and talented?

A) Expository
B) Guided inquiry
C) Inquiry
D) Discovery

Question 12

W An elementary science teacher has a new student who was assigned just today; the student speaks no English at all. The teacher has planned to engage the students in an activity in which groups of students will investigate the relationship between the number of batteries connected to each other and the brightness of a flashlight bulb that is connected to the batteries. What should the teacher do with the new student?

A) Send the student to an English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) class.
B) Signal to the student to watch the others do the activity.
C) Assign the student to a group and instruct the group to include the new student fully in the activity.
D) Ignore the new student.

Question 13

How are students who are gifted and talented in science best identified?

A) Through tests
B) By watching them at work
C) By assessing their work in challenging activities
D) By engaging them in discussions about science
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 14

How can science teachers gain a reasonable understanding of the achievement of English language learners in science?

A) Have the English language learners take the same written test that everyone else takes, but help them with the vocabulary.
B) Have the English language learners represent their understandings in graphic form using concept maps or other graphic devices.
C) Prepare special written tests with simplified language for the English language learners.
D) Have the English language learners explain their understandings to the teacher in individual conferences.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 15

According to the text, students with special needs include which of the following categories?

A) Students with cognitive and physical disabilities
B) Students who are gifted and talented
C) English language learners
D) Students with behavior disorders
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 16

W According to the text, which is the most productive way of grouping students who are gifted and talented in science?

A) Groups of students who are gifted and talented in science
B) Regular classroom groups
C) Single-gender groups
D) Individuals

Question 17

W What federal law governs the education of students who are gifted and talented?

A) No Child Left Behind Act
B) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
C) Eisenhower Science and Mathematics Act
D) Elementary and Secondary Education Act
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 18

Instructional devices that help English language learners achieve in science include which of the following?

A) Concept maps
B) Drawings and diagrams
C) Word boards with key words in English translated into the languages of the English language learners in the class
D) Well articulated directions
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 19

What of the following science activities would be most suitable for elementary students with learning disabilities?

A) Developing an experiment to find the relationship between the diameter of a blown-up balloon and the temperature of the air inside the balloon
B) Researching the requirements for a balanced terrarium
C) Using reference material and the Internet to find out how colored televisions work
D) Making a model that shows how a reflecting telescope works
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 20

What federal law governs the education of students with special needs in schools that accept federal funds for that purpose?

A) No Child Left Behind Act
B) Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
C) Eisenhower Science and Mathematics act
D) Elementary and Secondary Education Act

Question 21

W When teachers use the term "multicultural," they are referring to

A) The many cultural backgrounds of the students in their class.
B) African American students.
C) Asian American students.
D) Hispanic students.

Question 22

W A science teacher is engaging the students in an investigation of space travel. How might the teacher ensure that this topic is relevant to the students of each cultural background represented in the class?

A) Engage the class in a discussion of what they already know about space travel and how it originated.
B) Tell the class about the contributions of the early Oriental experimenters in rocketry.
C) Provide a biographical sketch of an African American astronaut.
D) Describe the teamwork that goes into a space travel mission.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 23

A science teacher has 15 Caucasian students, 5 African American students, 3 Asian American students, one Hispanic student, and one Native American student in the class. The teacher is planning to engage the students in individual inquiries into the effects of throwing trash into a stream on the water quality of the stream by studying a stream behind the school. What cultural factors should the teacher consider?

A) Some of the students may not have an intuitive understanding of the inquiry process they are supposed to engage in.
B) Some of the students may ask questions of the teacher but be reluctant to question the teacher's responses.
C) Some of the students may prefer to do the inquiry activity in groups rather than individually.
D) Some of the students may construct their understandings differently from the way the teacher expected.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above ______________

Question 24

W Teaching strategies that are most appropriate to use in teaching science to a class with diverse cultural backgrounds include

A) Ensure that the curriculum is meaningful to all the students by helping students see how the topic is relevant to their lives.
B) Focus on the European perspective of science inquiry since this is the perspective from which today's science evolved.
C) Focus on the attributes of the topic that are associated with the cultural background of the teacher.
D) Have the students take notes so they will understand what the teacher is saying.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above

Question 25

The most appropriate science curriculum to use in a class of students with several different cultural backgrounds would be based on

A) Topics that are extracted from the contributions of African Americans.
B) Topics that are extracted from the contributions of Asian scientists.
C) Topics that have handed down through the generations in Native American families.
D) Topics that are listed in the curriculum guide or the basic textbook.
E) All of the above
F) None of the above