Mia, a fourth grader with a documented history of trauma, startles and sometimes strikes out when classmates approach her from behind. Which teacher response is most consistent with trauma-informed practice?

Provide predictable routines and seat her where she can see the door

Remove her from group activities until the aggressive behavior stops

Encourage peers to approach her quietly from behind to desensitize her

Increase consequences each time she strikes out to deter aggression

Week Words correct per minute Aimline 1 38 38 2 39 39.5 3 42 41 4 41 42.5 5 45 44 6 48 45.5 7 50 47 8 51 48.5 9 54 50 Owen, a third grader, receives Tier 3 reading intervention. His team computes rate of improvement (ROI) as the final score minus the first score, divided by the number of weeks between them, and adjusts the plan when four consecutive points fall above or below the aimline. Based on the data, which conclusion is correct?

ROI is 2.0 words per week, and four or more consecutive points are above the aimline, so raise the goal.

ROI is 1.8 words per week, and the data are too variable, so collect four more weeks before deciding.

ROI is 1.5 words per week, matching the aimline slope, so continue the current intervention unchanged.

ROI is 2.0 words per week, but week 4 fell below the aimline, so change the intervention immediately.

In a structured literacy program, Mr. Okafor has taught his first-grade intervention group the consonants m, s, t, p, and n and the short vowel a. Which text is most appropriate for the group's connected-text practice?

A decodable passage composed mostly of words with the taught letter-sound patterns

A leveled reader at the group's instructional level based on a recent running record

A high-interest picture book that the teacher reads aloud while students follow along

A predictable pattern book in which picture cues support a repeated sentence frame

Student group Enrollment Identified with emotional disturbance Risk Group X 400 20 5.0% All other students 3,600 36 1.0% A district reviews its identification data shown below. The risk ratio for Group X students being identified with emotional disturbance is 5.0. If the state determines that this constitutes significant disproportionality, IDEA requires the district to:

reserve 15 percent of its IDEA Part B funds for comprehensive coordinated early intervening services

reevaluate every Group X student identified with emotional disturbance and exit any found ineligible

stop accepting emotional disturbance referrals for Group X until the risk ratio falls below 2.0

obtain state approval before finding any additional Group X student eligible for special education

Tomas, a kindergartner from a family with limited income, did not attend preschool and has had few experiences with books. On a fall screening, his letter-sound and vocabulary scores fall well below benchmark. Which conclusion is MOST appropriate at this point?

Provide high-quality, intensive instruction and monitor his response before considering a disability

Postpone literacy instruction until his family can supply more enrichment experiences at home

Refer him at once for a specific learning disability evaluation, since the gap shows a processing deficit

Group him with the lowest readers for the whole year based on the fall screening results

The week before state testing, Grace's IEP team adds a speech-to-text accommodation that she has never used in class. Which principle of accommodation selection does this decision most directly violate?

Testing accommodations should be ones the student uses routinely in instruction and classroom tests.

Testing accommodations for state tests must be approved by the general education teacher alone.

Testing accommodations may appear only in a Section 504 plan and not in a student's IEP.

Testing accommodations must be identical for all students who share the same IEP disability category.

Students using the POSSE reading comprehension strategy have just generated predictions about a chapter on volcanoes. During the next step, Organize, what do students do?

Arrange their predicted ideas into a semantic map grouped by categories

Identify the main idea of each section and state it in their own words

Compare the semantic map with the text and check their understanding

Search the text for cues to its structure, such as headings and signal words

Parents file a due process complaint alleging that their son's IEP denies him a free appropriate public education, and the district maintains that the IEP is appropriate. Under Schaffer v. Weast, which party bears the burden of proof at the hearing?

The parents, because they are the party seeking relief

Both parties equally, with the hearing officer weighing the evidence

The district, because it is responsible for providing FAPE

The district, because it holds the evaluation data and records

WEST-E Special Education (070)

Free WEST-E Special Edu 070 Practice Questions

10 sample questions for the WEST-E Special Education (070), with the correct answer and an explanation for each. No account needed. Try each one before you open the answer.

Sections covered on the exam: Understanding Students with Disabilities, Assessment and Program Development, Promoting Development and Learning, Foundations and Professional Practice.

Question 1 · Understanding Students with Disabilities

Skill	Typical age of emergence	Marcus (30 months)
Walks independently	9–15 months	Achieved at 13 months
Points to show an object of interest	12–14 months	Achieved
Stacks a tower of 4–6 blocks	18–24 months	Achieved
Feeds self with a spoon	15–18 months	Achieved
Combines two words ("more juice")	18–24 months	Not observed; uses about 15 single words

An early childhood special education teacher reviews the developmental checklist below for Marcus, who is 30 months old. These data most strongly suggest a delay in which developmental domain?

A.Social-emotional development
B.Gross-motor development
C.Fine-motor development
D.Expressive language

Show answer and explanation

Answer: D. Expressive language

Marcus has met or exceeded the typical age for walking, block stacking, spoon use, and pointing to share interest, but he is not yet combining words, a skill that typically emerges by about 24 months. Pointing to show interest is an early joint-attention behavior, so the social-emotional domain is not the area of concern here; walking and block stacking indicate typical gross- and fine-motor progress.

Question 2 · Understanding Students with Disabilities
Mia, a fourth grader with a documented history of trauma, startles and sometimes strikes out when classmates approach her from behind. Which teacher response is most consistent with trauma-informed practice?
- A.Remove her from group activities until the aggressive behavior stops
- B.Encourage peers to approach her quietly from behind to desensitize her
- C.Increase consequences each time she strikes out to deter aggression
- D.Provide predictable routines and seat her where she can see the door
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. Provide predictable routines and seat her where she can see the door
Trauma can leave a student's stress-response system hypervigilant, so trauma-informed practice emphasizes safety, predictability, and reducing triggers, such as giving her a seat with a view of the room and the door. Escalating punishment or exposing her to the trigger without support is likely to heighten her sense of threat rather than build regulation.
Question 3 · Assessment and Program Development
Week Words correct per minute Aimline
1 38 38
2 39 39.5
3 42 41
4 41 42.5
5 45 44
6 48 45.5
7 50 47
8 51 48.5
9 54 50
Owen, a third grader, receives Tier 3 reading intervention. His team computes rate of improvement (ROI) as the final score minus the first score, divided by the number of weeks between them, and adjusts the plan when four consecutive points fall above or below the aimline. Based on the data, which conclusion is correct?
- A.ROI is 1.8 words per week, and the data are too variable, so collect four more weeks before deciding.
- B.ROI is 1.5 words per week, matching the aimline slope, so continue the current intervention unchanged.
- C.ROI is 2.0 words per week, but week 4 fell below the aimline, so change the intervention immediately.
- D.ROI is 2.0 words per week, and four or more consecutive points are above the aimline, so raise the goal.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. ROI is 2.0 words per week, and four or more consecutive points are above the aimline, so raise the goal.
ROI is (54 - 38) divided by the 8 weeks between week 1 and week 9, or 2.0 words per week, which is steeper than the aimline slope of 1.5; weeks 5 through 9 are all above the aimline, so the decision rule calls for raising the goal. The 1.8 figure comes from dividing by the 9 data points instead of the 8 intervening weeks, and a single earlier point below the aimline does not trigger a change.
Question 4 · Promoting Development and Learning
In a structured literacy program, Mr. Okafor has taught his first-grade intervention group the consonants m, s, t, p, and n and the short vowel a. Which text is most appropriate for the group's connected-text practice?
- A.A leveled reader at the group's instructional level based on a recent running record
- B.A decodable passage composed mostly of words with the taught letter-sound patterns
- C.A high-interest picture book that the teacher reads aloud while students follow along
- D.A predictable pattern book in which picture cues support a repeated sentence frame
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. A decodable passage composed mostly of words with the taught letter-sound patterns
Structured literacy uses systematic, cumulative phonics instruction in which students immediately apply newly taught patterns by decoding connected text that contains those patterns. Predictable and leveled texts encourage reliance on picture and context cues rather than decoding, and a teacher read-aloud builds vocabulary and comprehension but provides no decoding practice.
Question 5 · Foundations and Professional Practice
Student group Enrollment Identified with emotional disturbance Risk
Group X 400 20 5.0%
All other students 3,600 36 1.0%
A district reviews its identification data shown below. The risk ratio for Group X students being identified with emotional disturbance is 5.0. If the state determines that this constitutes significant disproportionality, IDEA requires the district to:
- A.reserve 15 percent of its IDEA Part B funds for comprehensive coordinated early intervening services
- B.reevaluate every Group X student identified with emotional disturbance and exit any found ineligible
- C.stop accepting emotional disturbance referrals for Group X until the risk ratio falls below 2.0
- D.obtain state approval before finding any additional Group X student eligible for special education
Show answer and explanation
Answer: A. reserve 15 percent of its IDEA Part B funds for comprehensive coordinated early intervening services
Group X's risk is 20 / 400 = 5.0 percent versus 36 / 3,600 = 1.0 percent for all other students, a risk ratio of 5.0. When a state finds significant disproportionality, the district must review and, if appropriate, revise its policies, practices, and procedures and must reserve 15 percent of its Part B funds for comprehensive coordinated early intervening services. IDEA does not require mass reevaluation, a halt to referrals (which would violate child find), or state preapproval of individual eligibility decisions.

Week	Words correct per minute	Aimline
1	38	38
2	39	39.5
3	42	41
4	41	42.5
5	45	44
6	48	45.5
7	50	47
8	51	48.5
9	54	50

Student group	Enrollment	Identified with emotional disturbance	Risk
Group X	400	20	5.0%
All other students	3,600	36	1.0%

Question 6 · Understanding Students with Disabilities

Skill	Typical age of emergence	Ana (48 months)
Copies a circle	About 3 years	Achieved
Speaks in sentences of 4 or more words	3–4 years	Achieved
Hops on one foot	About 4 years	Emerging (1–2 hops)
Engages in pretend play with others	2½–3½ years	Not observed; lines up toys
Plays cooperatively, taking turns with peers	3–4 years	Not observed; plays alone
Responds consistently to own name	9–12 months	Inconsistent

A preschool teacher reviews the developmental screening summary below for Ana, who is 4 years 0 months old. Which developmental domain MOST warrants further evaluation?

A.Social-emotional
B.Expressive language
C.Gross-motor
D.Fine-motor

Show answer and explanation

Answer: A. Social-emotional

Cooperative and pretend play typically emerge between 3 and 4 years, and Ana engages in neither while also responding to her name inconsistently, which points to the social-emotional/social-communication domain. Hopping on one foot is still emerging for many 4-year-olds, and her circle copying and four-word sentences are age-appropriate.

Question 7 · Understanding Students with Disabilities
Tomas, a kindergartner from a family with limited income, did not attend preschool and has had few experiences with books. On a fall screening, his letter-sound and vocabulary scores fall well below benchmark. Which conclusion is MOST appropriate at this point?
- A.Postpone literacy instruction until his family can supply more enrichment experiences at home
- B.Provide high-quality, intensive instruction and monitor his response before considering a disability
- C.Refer him at once for a specific learning disability evaluation, since the gap shows a processing deficit
- D.Group him with the lowest readers for the whole year based on the fall screening results
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Provide high-quality, intensive instruction and monitor his response before considering a disability
Low scores that may reflect limited prior opportunity to learn do not by themselves indicate a disability; IDEA requires ruling out lack of appropriate instruction, and economic disadvantage is an exclusionary consideration for a learning disability. Strong instruction with progress monitoring shows whether the gap closes with opportunity. An immediate referral assumes a deficit the data cannot yet show, and fixed year-long grouping or postponing instruction would widen the gap.
Question 8 · Assessment and Program Development
The week before state testing, Grace's IEP team adds a speech-to-text accommodation that she has never used in class. Which principle of accommodation selection does this decision most directly violate?
- A.Testing accommodations for state tests must be approved by the general education teacher alone.
- B.Testing accommodations should be ones the student uses routinely in instruction and classroom tests.
- C.Testing accommodations may appear only in a Section 504 plan and not in a student's IEP.
- D.Testing accommodations must be identical for all students who share the same IEP disability category.
Show answer and explanation
Answer: B. Testing accommodations should be ones the student uses routinely in instruction and classroom tests.
Accommodations should be selected individually and be familiar to the student from regular instruction and classroom assessments; an untried tool introduced days before the test can hinder rather than help performance. Accommodations are not assigned by category, the IEP team rather than one teacher decides them, and IEPs must list accommodations for state and district assessments.
Question 9 · Promoting Development and Learning
Students using the POSSE reading comprehension strategy have just generated predictions about a chapter on volcanoes. During the next step, Organize, what do students do?
- A.Identify the main idea of each section and state it in their own words
- B.Compare the semantic map with the text and check their understanding
- C.Arrange their predicted ideas into a semantic map grouped by categories
- D.Search the text for cues to its structure, such as headings and signal words
Show answer and explanation
Answer: C. Arrange their predicted ideas into a semantic map grouped by categories
POSSE stands for Predict, Organize, Search, Summarize, and Evaluate; in the Organize step, students sort their predictions and background knowledge into a semantic map reflecting likely text structure. Searching for text-structure cues, summarizing main ideas, and comparing the map with the text to monitor comprehension occur in the later Search, Summarize, and Evaluate steps.
Question 10 · Foundations and Professional Practice
Parents file a due process complaint alleging that their son's IEP denies him a free appropriate public education, and the district maintains that the IEP is appropriate. Under Schaffer v. Weast, which party bears the burden of proof at the hearing?
- A.Both parties equally, with the hearing officer weighing the evidence
- B.The district, because it is responsible for providing FAPE
- C.The district, because it holds the evaluation data and records
- D.The parents, because they are the party seeking relief
Show answer and explanation
Answer: D. The parents, because they are the party seeking relief
In Schaffer v. Weast, the Supreme Court held that the burden of persuasion in an IDEA due process hearing lies with the party seeking relief, which here is the parents challenging the IEP. The Court rejected the argument that the district should bear the burden because it has the FAPE obligation and greater access to information, noting that IDEA's procedural safeguards, such as records access and the right to an IEE, address that imbalance.

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