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Chapter 1: Overview of Today’s Special Education
Multiple Choice
1. What percent of students are identified as gifted?
A. About 10%
B. About 20%
C. About 7%
D. About 5%
2. What two disability categories constitute about two-thirds of all students who are classified
as disabled?
A. Learning disabilities and speech or language impairments
B. Learning disabilities and Intellectual disabilities
C. Learning disabilities and emotional disturbance
D. Learning disabilities and attention deficit disorder
3. Which of the following is a benefit of a disability label (such as “learning disabilities”)?
A. Labels tell teachers what teaching methods to use
B. The process used to determine labels qualifies students for special services
C. Labels promote collaboration among team members
D. The process used to determine labels emphasizes students’ instructional needs
4. In a recent study about biased decision-making, it was shown that:
A. Students’ labels really did not make much difference.
B. Teachers were more likely to rate behavior of students labeled “gifted” as off-task
C. Students’ labels only mattered if they were labeled as “oppositional defiant”
D. Teachers were less likely to rate behavior of students labeled “gifted” as off-task
5. Of 14 fields in education identified as having considerable shortages by the Department of
Education, how many relate to special education?
A. 9 fields
B. All 14 fields
C. Only 2 of the fields
D. 5 fields
6. What does IDEA stand for?
A. Individuals with Disabilities Endorsement Act
B. Individuals with Disabilities Education Act
C. Individuals with Disabilities Education Association
D. Individuals with Disabilities Endorsement Association
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7. Which of the following was a critical outcome of the Brown v. Board of Education case in
1954?
A. Schools must provide funds for special education
B. Schools may not segregate by race
C. Schools must mainstream students with disabilities
D. Students must use nondiscriminatory assessments
8. What is the current age span for services under IDEA?
A. IDEA covers individuals ages three to 21
B. IDEA covers individuals ages six to 21
C. IDEA covers individuals ages birth through 21
D. IDEA covers individuals ages six through 18
9. When IDEA was enacted in 1975, the group of students who had a right to special education
consisted of:
A. Only students ages six to 18
B. Only infants and toddlers from birth through age two
C. Only young children ages three to five
D. Only older students ages 14 to 21
10. Infants and toddlers who need early intervention services due to developmental delays
physical or mental conditions that have a high probability of resulting in developmental delay
are provided with services through:
A. IDEA, Part B
B. Americans with Disabilities Act
C. Elementary and Secondary Education Act
D. IDEA, Part C
11. Which related service in IDEA assists a visually impaired student to get around within
various environments?
A. Physical therapy
B. Orientation and mobility
C. Occupational therapy
D. Assistive technology
12. The principles of IDEA include each of the following EXCEPT:
A. All children must be full included in general education, all the time
B. All children are educable
C. Students with disabilities must have an individualized plan
D. There must be nondiscriminatory evaluation
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13. A formal, written plan for children from birth through age two is an:
A. ITP—Individualized Transition Plan
B. IEP—Individualized Education Plan
C. IECP—Individualized Early Childhood Plan
D. IFSP—Individualized Family Service Plan
14. Which of the following is required in an IEP?
A. Strict adherence to a specific process to be followed during conferences
B. Statements of present levels of performance and long-term goals
C. Implementation of services within 20 days of development of the plan
D. Monthly evaluation of the plan
15. Which principle of IDEA states that a student with a disability must be educated with
students without disabilities to the maximum extent appropriate for the student?
A. The Education for All Handicapped Children Act
B. Full Inclusion Mandate
C. Least Restrictive Environment
D. Continuum of Services
16. Which of the following is a range of services from less to more restrictive that schools must
offer to students with disabilities?
A. General Education
B. Special Education
C. Continuum of services
D. Least restrictive environment
17. The IDEA principle that seeks to make schools and parents accountable to each other for
carrying out the student’s IDEA rights is:
A. Appropriate education
B. Procedural due process
C. Least restrictive environment
D. Zero reject
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18. To ensure that all students with a disability receive an appropriate education and that schools
are safe places for teaching and learning, IDEA regulates how schools do which of the
following?
A. Discipline students who qualify for IDEA services
B. Communicate with parents
C. Report grades and progress for students who qualify for IDEA services
D. Choose the special education curriculum
19. The provision of IDEA which allows fair and specific procedures related to assessment,
identification, and placement of children in special education is called:
A. Appropriate education
B. Procedural due process
C. Nondiscriminatory evaluation
D. Zero reject
20. The process of determining whether a student’s behavior is a direct result of the student’s
disability is:
A. Equal treatment
B. No cessation
C. Interim alternative placement
D. Manifestation determination
21. Grants of federal funds to the states to help create statewide systems for delivering assistive
technology devices and services to people with disabilities falls under:
A. The ESEA
B. ADA
C. Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act
D. The Tech Act
22. Which of the following is a federal employment-related law for students with disabilities that
provides vocational rehabilitation services and supported employment programs?
A. ESEA
B. ADA
C. Rehabilitation Act
D. The Tech Act
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23. Which of the following prohibits discrimination in any activity receiving federal financial
assistance solely on the basis of disability?
A. ESEA and IDEA
B. Section 504
C. ESEA and ADA
D. Section 504 and ESEA
24. Which law extends civil rights and anti-discriminatory protection for individuals with
disabilities into transportation, employment, and state and local government activities?
A. IDEA
B. Section 504
C. ADA
D. ESEA
25. Ensuring equality of opportunity, full participation, independent living, and economic self–
sufficiency are all education outcomes for students with disabilities considered to be a a(n):
A. Admirable goal of our nation’s policy
B. Essential element of our nation’s policy
C. Important component of our nation’s policy
D. Long-term goal of our nation’s policy
26. Which of the following goals ensures that people with disabilities have the same chances and
opportunities in life as people without disabilities?
A. Equality of opportunity
B. Full participation
C. Independent living
D. Economic self-sufficiency
27. Ensuring that people with disabilities have the opportunity to be involved in all aspects of
their community, and to be protected from any attempts at segregation on the basis of their
disability is which of the following goals?
A. Equality of opportunity
B. Full participation
C. Independent living
D. Economic self-sufficiency
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28. Which of the following goals ensures that people with disabilities will have the opportunity
to fully participate in decision making and to experience autonomy in making choices about
how to live their lives?
A. Equality of opportunity
B. Full participation
C. Independent living
D. Economic self-sufficiency
29. Ensuring that people with disabilities will be provided with opportunities to engage fully in
income-producing work or unpaid work that contributes to a household or community is
which of the following goals?
A. Equality of opportunity
B. Full participation
C. Independent living
D. Economic self-sufficiency
30. Each of the following is an indicator used to gauge the success of outcomes related to
students with disabilities EXCEPT:
A. Their overall satisfaction with their jobs
B. Their overall satisfaction with life
C. The numbers receiving post-secondary education or employment
D. Their household circumstances and community involvement
Praxis style questions
1. Joey, a second-grade student in a general education classroom, has been having difficulty in
school since kindergarten. He was identified as having learning disabilities and Attention
Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder. His biggest challenges are his lack of progress in learning how
to read and staying on-task in the classroom. His teacher has consulted with a special
education teacher to try to accommodate Joey in her classroom, but he continues to fall behind
his classmates. The teacher, the special education teacher, and Joey’s parents have been
considering having him spend more time in a resource classroom to receive specialized
instruction. This is consistent with which aspect of the principle of least restrictive
environment?
A. Full inclusion, all the time
B. Parent’s involvement in due process
C. Availability of a continuum of services
D. The zero-reject policy
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2. Roberto, who speaks English as a second language, has been having difficulty with reading
and writing tasks in his third-grade class. After he is referred for testing, his scores on the
WISC-III are significantly subaverage. His family contests the results of the testing. Which of
the following principles from IDEA might they cite as inconsistent with the test?
A. Zero reject
B. Nondiscriminatory assessment
C. Parent participation
D. Individualized education
3. Mary is a student with cerebral palsy who has difficulty with fine and gross motor skills.
Mary’s resource room teacher would most likely contact an occupational therapist for help
with which of the following?
A. Counseling Mary about applying to college
B. Helping Mary to walk with a cane
C. Finding a job coach for Mary’s after school work
D. Teaching Mary how to paint with a brush
Short Answer
1. Explain what is meant by the Least Restrictive Environment (LRE).
2. Describe the unique issues when suspending or expelling students with special needs.
3. Explain two types of discrimination against students with disabilities.
4. List the six components of IDEA
5. Explain the positive and potentially negative effects of labeling students with special needs.
Essay
1. Refer to Box 1.1 Stel Achieves His Great Expectations and to the section Labels and
Language to describe the effect others’ expectations and biases can have on a student with
disabilities. Why do you think special education teachers might sometimes have lower
expectations for their students than do general education teachers and parents?
2. Explain how the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA) is related to IDEA, and
why it was amended by the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) Act.
3. Why does IDEA have three parts, and who benefits from each?
4. How do ADA and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act benefit people with disabilities, and
how are these acts different from IDEA and the Rehabilitation Act itself.
5. Why must educators conduct nondiscriminatory evaluations of students with disabilities and
what requirements for evaluation must they follow?
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Chapter 1
Multiple Choice
Praxis
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Short Answer
Essay
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