Identify an accurate statement about the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB).
A.Annual testing for reading, math, and science was not required for grades 3″8.
B.Underperforming schools were granted additional financial support.
C.A high-stakes testing culture was created.
D.States created uniform standardized testing standards.
Ethnocentrism is the _____.
A.belief that sensory experience is the source of knowledge
B.idea that ethnic diversity is essential for cultural growth
C.tendency to view one’s own culture as superior to others
D.tendency to include cultural discussions in education
Which statement would most likely be made by a critic of schools’ efforts to transmit
culture?
A.”It is not the schools’ responsibility to transmit culture; this is the responsibility of the
students’ parents and family members.”
B.”When schools transmit culture, they tend to transmit a narrow perspective about
other cultures and chauvinistic feeling of cultural superiority.”
C.”Taxpayers cannot pay to have schools transmit culture. Schools need to stick to the
basics.”
D.”Teachers are not trained to transmit culture, so it is not fair to task them with such a
responsibility.”
In 1949, _____ caused Congress to reverse more than a century of immigration quotas
and naturalization and anti-miscegenation laws.
A.the rise of “Chinatowns” in major cities throughout the United States
B.the institution of a Communist government in mainland China
C.the realization that Chinese immigrants were a boon to the U.S. economy
D.the demand raised by U.S. citizens to grant refugee status to Chinese immigrants
Which constitutional amendment is at the heart of the controversies surrounding
intelligent design, creationism, and evolution?
A.The First Amendment
B.The Tenth Amendment
C.The Fourth Amendment
D.The Fifth Amendment
In colonial America, female teachers were particularly attractive to school districts
because:
A.they were perceived to be more intelligent and effective than male teachers.
B.they were typically paid one-third to one-half of the salary paid to male teachers.
C.they would always work for longer hours than male teachers.
D.they were way more educated and knowledgeable than male teachers.
In the context of the report from the consulting firm McKinsey & Company, titled The
Economic Impact of the Achievement Gap in America’s Schools, identify an accurate
statement.
A.The slow pace of educational reform has in many ways saved taxpayers’ dollars and
prevented an early economic recession.
B.According to one author of the report: “We save 3 to 5 billion dollars a day by not
closing these achievement gaps.”
C.Interestingly, the report concluded that no identifiable gaps exist between white
students and Latino students.
D.The nation’s gross domestic product would be $1.3 to $2.3 trillion higher if
achievement gaps did not exist.
States have used different programs to try to equalize funding. In the _____ program,
the state provides funds to ensure that each student receives a minimal level of
educational services.
A.foundation
B.tax base
C.motivation
D.resource base
Differentiated instruction:
A.ensures that all students fit into a particular teaching style.
B.offers multiple options for instruction and assessment.
C.recommends separate classrooms for students of different cultural heritages.
D.tells us what curriculum should be taught in schools.
Which of the following is a true statement about students in low-ability tracks?
A.They get more learning opportunities than students in higher-ability tracks.
B.Their instruction places more emphasis on classroom management problems.
C.Their instruction covers more content and involves less repetition.
D.They get more encouragement and instruction from their teachers.
Jean is a student in the fifth grade. She is very aware of how she feels emotionally, and
has a clear idea of her strengths and her limitations. She has a natural ability to use this
knowledge to guide her behavior in the class. Considering this description, it can be
concluded that Jean has:
A.interpersonal intelligence.
B.intrapersonal intelligence.
C.existential intelligence.
D.naturalist intelligence.
According to Goodlad, which statement is true regarding the patterns of classroom
interactions?
A.While there is relatively little praise in classrooms, the feedback students receive
tends to be corrective in nature.
B.The teacher tends to be disengaged from students, preferring to let them work in
groups rather than engage in direct instruction.
C.Students are typically restrained in a relatively small space during a period in which
much of the activity is about maintaining order.
D.Students feel that they have an important role in influencing the activities that the
teacher chooses for instruction.
The idea for Teach for America (TFA) came from:
A.the report, A Nation Prepared.
B.the No Child Left Behind Act.
C.Wendy Kopp’s undergraduate thesis at Princeton.
D.the American Federation of Teachers.
Which of the following statements about stereotyping is true?
A.Stereotyping is a process that gives importance to individuality.
B.Stereotypes are impervious to contradictory information.
C.Stereotyping is used to broaden the thinking process.
D.Stereotypes are applied only to a few members of a group.
The study of the ‘saber-tooth curriculum” brings us to the conclusion that:
A.modern curricula are ineffective at handling changing conditions in comparison with
old-school curricula.
B.unless teachers have a key role in curriculum development, the curriculum cannot
meet contemporary needs.
C.slavish devotion to the content of past times can result in a curriculum obsolete in the
face of contemporary realities.
D.as long as the basal reader dominates the curriculum, a truly individualized
curriculum can never become a reality.
Which of the following represents a way in which a teacher might informally influence
curriculum?
A.Mindy is an elementary school teacher who is selected to be on a textbook adoption
committee for her school.
B.Millicent is a middle school teacher who has been selected as part of a writing team
for a nationally distributed math teaching and learning program.
C.Paula decides to include literature from the African continent in her high school
English class apart from the prescribed texts from American literature.
D.Stephen is selected to advise the school district in its efforts to change the local
requirements for middle grades science.
The student who is typically given the most wait time by a teacher is the:
A.low achieving female of color.
B.average male of color.
C.high achieving white female.
D.high achieving white male.
The use of a system of positive reinforcement to promote desired learning is based on
_____.
A.constructivism
B.behaviorism
C.existentialism
D.progressivism
Which of the following statements regarding zero-tolerance policies is true?
A.Zero-tolerance policies have been highly effective in reducing school violence.
B.Suspensions and expulsions reduce the risk of long-term social and academic
problems.
C.Students who are removed from school are at increased risk for low achievement and
of becoming permanently entangled in the ‘schools-to-prison” pipeline.
D.Suspensions and expulsions can bring an improvement in school climate and improve
discipline.
Which of the following pairs of states, besides Texas and California, have the most
influence on textbook creation and adoption?
A.New York and Florida
B.North Carolina and Florida
C.Colorado and New York
D.Virginia and New York
For students, the problem with an “okay classroom” is that the teacher:
A.accepts all answers when precision is required and remediation is not provided.
B.does not provide specific feedback, which is not the best way to enhance student
achievement.
C.criticizes students routinely causing demotivation and reduction in student
achievement.
D.tends to favor males over females and is “okay” with this favoritism.
Alexis is a teacher who feels strongly about the importance of preparing students to live
in a democracy. She tries her best to teach civic learning to students, at par with other
academic subjects. Alexis’s ideas conform with those of:
A.social democratic reconstructionists.
B.socio-economic reconstructionists.
C.economic reconstructionists.
D.liberal non-conformists.
Emma Hart Willard made an important contribution to education when she:
A.opened the first school for specially abled children in the U.S.
B.opened the first institution of learning for African American women.
C.became the first woman to attend an American university.
D.established one of the earliest teacher training programs in U.S. history.
The federal funds directed at specific categories and targeted educational needs of
schools are known as _____.
A.categorical grants
B.block grants
C.limited grants
D.conditional grants
Which of the following is true of minority groups in the student population?
A.Native Americans score higher on standardized tests than do Asian Americans.
B.The percentage of Hispanic students who graduate from high school is equal to those
of their white counterparts.
C.Blacks are more likely to be suspended from school, even when they violate the same
rules as white students.
D.The percentages of children living in poverty are highest among Hispanics.
Which of the following statements is true?
A.Most Arab Americans living in the U.S. are Christian.
B.All Arabs living in the Middle East follow Islam.
C.Most Americans perceive Arabs as pro-American.
D.Majority of America’s Muslims are Arabs.
When the Progressive Education Association released their Eight-Year Study, they
reported that students who graduated from progressive schools:
A.were judged to be more objective and more precise thinkers.
B.earned a slightly lower grade point average.
C.received slightly less academic honors.
D.were judged to possess lower intellectual curiosity and lower drive.
Regarding the influences that colleges and universities have on curriculum, A. Bartlett
Giamatti noted that schools were always trying to “catch up” with college and
university admissions requirements. Do you think that colleges and universities and
their admissions policies have too much influence over curriculum? Do you think that
colleges and universities need to change the way they admit students to reflect
curriculumparticularly at the high school level? Be sure to support your answer with
examples and analysis.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
Identify an advantage of being a textbook adoption state.
A.It provides for a common statewide curriculum.
B.It reduces the ability of states to influence publishers.
C.It ensures greater freedom for teachers to choose texts.
D.It saves time and work for teachers at the local level.
Student achievement will be increased when _____.
A.the teachers spend more time on providing essential supplies to students
B.the teachers spend more time on helping the students improve their behavior
C.the students spend more time on interacting with their classmates
D.the students spend more time on learning their subjects
Which of the following is a reason that influences individuals to choose teaching as a
profession?
A.Desire to work with young people
B.High prestige and status
C.Minimal amounts of paperwork
D.Higher salaries as compared to other professions
Horace Mann helped establish the first:
A.state-supported normal school.
B.undergraduate teaching program.
C.post-graduate teaching program.
D.classical secondary school.
Which of the following actions of teachers is most likely be supported by Gloria
Ladson-Billings, the proponent of culturally responsive teaching?
A.Making the students concentrate on personality development while ignoring
academic success
B.Encouraging the students to strictly follow textbooks even if they are outdated
C.Working to improve the quality of life of the students in the school and community
D.Using a single learning style in order to avoid confusing the students
Increasingly, teachers are using social media such as Facebook and Twitter as
instructional tools. To what extent is this a good or bad idea? As a teacher, would you
utilize social media as an instructional tool? Why or why not? Be sure to use specific
examples in your discussion.
How much academic freedom should teachers be allowed to have in teaching their
students? Should all teachers have the same amount of academic freedom, or should it
vary by factors such as grade level, subject taught, teacher effectiveness, etc.? Who, if
anyone, should have the ability to limit academic freedom? Be sure to provide specific
examples to support your analysis.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
Discuss the role that wealth has played in education from colonial times to the present.
In examining the educational environment today, what issues regarding the role of
wealth have changedfor better or for worse? What seems to have stayed the same? Be
sure to provide specific examples to support your analysis.
Many deficit theorists believe that social and economic deficits at home contribute to
poor academic performance of certain groups. What can schools and teachers do to
counteract such perceptions among their students? Be sure to provide specific examples
to support your arguments.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
Many teachers feel that what they do in the classroom is undermined by influences
outside of the classroom. What are these influences? How can teachers respond to these
pressures so that they can still provide effective instruction? Be sure to provide analysis
and examples where appropriate.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
What does author Peggy McIntosh mean when she talks about an “invisible knapsack”?
Why does she refer to this phenomenon of “invisible knapsack”? Discuss the ways in
which you have experienced this phenomenon. As a teacher, how can you help your
students become aware of the invisible knapsack? Be sure to provide specific examples
to support your discussion.
In Atlanta, approximately 180 principals, teachers, and staff were involved in test
tampering. What were the factors that might have contributed to such widespread
cheating on standardized tests? What does such an action say about the impact that
testing has on the curriculum? To what extent does cheating on standardized tests
undermine the image of educators as professionals?
Researchers who study children in poverty note that schools reflect middle-class values.
What are some of these values? How do teachers display these values to their students?
What sort of challenge do these values present to teachers who are working with
students in poverty? What can teachers do to help these students reach their educational
potential? Be sure to provide specific examples to support your positions.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
To the question, “Does money matter?” the authors respond, “Trick question: It depends
on how it is spent.” How do you think school districts should spend their money so that
it matters the most? Be sure to provide specific examples in your discussion.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
What are the components of progressive education? What is its philosophy? What kind
of acceptance has it received in the United States?
According to the author, “educators believe that fewer laws would reduce their legal
concerns and improve the quality of education.” Do you think that reducing the number
of laws would improve education? Why or why not? Are there any laws that you feel
should be repealed in order to improve education? Explain how eliminating such a law
or laws would make education better.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
During his efforts to establish public common schools, Horace Mann encountered
considerable opposition. Who were the groups who opposed Mann, and what was the
reason for their opposition? What do you think these groups would make of the current
educational system? Would they still be opposed? Be sure to explain your reasoning,
and provide specific examples in your discussion.
What are some of the misperceptions you had regarding Title IX? What is the reality of
the law compared to what you had previously perceived? How do people’s
misperceptions of Title IX manifest themselves in schools? Be sure to provide specific
examples to support your discussion.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
One of the criticisms of high stakes testing is that it results in a narrowing of the
curriculum where certain courses such as math and English/language arts are valued
more than others. Certain subjects such as the arts, physical education, history, and
foreign languages receive less attention and support. How would you make the case for
the importance of these subjects to policymakers concerned with scores on high stakes
tests? Be sure to support your answer with specific examples.
Answer:
Answers will vary.
As an educator, it is likely that you will encounter students from nontraditional families.
What sorts of families are considered to be nontraditional? What are some of the
challenges that these students might face? What can you do to help students from
nontraditional families overcome any challenges they may experience in your class?
If you had the opportunity to speak with the framers of the Constitution of the United
States, what would you suggest they include in terms of education? Why?
Answer:
Answers will vary.