practice questions 2 Flashcards
Children who are nonnative English speakers may exhibit difficulty during a formal cognitive assessment if they are having trouble understanding directions or understanding items presented
in English. Which is the BEST accommodation that could be made to obtain the most accurate representation of the student’s cognitive abilities?
a. allow the student to use an English to native language dictionary during testing
b. request that the student’s parent or sibling be present to translate the assessment.
c. use an interpreter who is familiar with the student’s native language to translate the assessment
d. Request a school psychologist who is fluent in the child’s native language administer the
assessment
e. only perform informal measures of assessment, such as observation, teacher interview, student interview, and review of records to avoid making the child feel uncomfortable with the language barrier.
Request a school psychologist who is fluent in the child’s native language administer the
assessment
Which of the following components is NOT included when conducting an ecological assessment?
a. Observation of classroom teaching strategies
b. Interviewing the student’s attitudes toward school
c. Interviewing parents about parenting styles/strategies
d. Assessing the student’s performance on class work
e. Assessing student’s socioeconomic status
d. Assessing the student’s performance on class work
Which of the following is an example of a social skill training method used to enhance acquisition deficits for preschoolers? a. Behavioral rehearsal b. Stimulus control training c. Peer initiation strategies d. Cognitive‐behavior therapy e. Reinforcement strategies
Behavioral rehearsal
A School Psychologist must employ the use of effective communication skills during an interview
with a student.The following are all techniques used by an effective interviewer except:
a. Active listening responses
b. Paying attention to verbal cues and non‐verbal cues
c. Using humor to dismiss feelings of inadequacy
d. Self disclosing in order to strengthen a point
e. Use of open‐ended and close‐ended questions to explore the presenting problem
c. Using humor to dismiss feelings of inadequacy
While the aim for journals is to accept only high quality research, there are still some research articles of lower quality that do get accepted.Which of the following statements does NOT represent good quality research?
I. That the sample is large and representative of the population, and the sample was randomly
assigned.
II. That the researcher has made a conclusion based on results that the study did not test.
III. That the study tests the given hypothesis pertaining to the specific purpose of the study, but also tests other related hypotheses.
IV. That the researcher conducts a correlation study and concludes that the manipulation of the independent variable is the cause of the change in the dependent variable.
a. I and III
b. II only
c. II, III, and IV
d. II and IV
e. I only
d. II and IV
Which of the following is included in the definition for diagnosing mental retardation by IDEA in addition to cognitive impairments? a. Functional Behavior Problems b. Curriculum‐Based Problems c. Adaptive Behavior Deficits d. Personality Problems e. Ecological Problems
c. Adaptive Behavior Deficits
Interview formats can vary from highly structured to semi‐structured and unstructured
approaches.Which of the following is NOT a component of a structured interview approach?
a. Parallel forms for parents, children and sometimes teachers
b. Strict adherence to standard procedures for asking questions
c. Tailored questions to specific concerns raised by the interviewee
d. Time consuming process of data collection
e. Rigid pattern on questioning that may seem unnatural and tedious for both the interviewer
and interviewee
c. Tailored questions to specific concerns raised by the interviewee
Collin D. Elliot developed an individually administered test battery intended to measure cognitive
and achievement levels for classification and diagnostic purposes.The instrument is intended to
provide the examiner with a wider range of measurement that allows a profile of the child’s
strengths and weaknesses.Which assessment instrument did Elliot develop?
a. Diagnostic Achievement Battery – 2nd Edition
b. Informal Assessment of Multiple Intelligence
c. Cognitive Assessment System (CAS)
d. Wide Range Achievement Test, Third Edition (WRAT‐3)
e. Differential Abilities Scale‐II (DAS‐II)
e. Differential Abilities Scale‐II (DAS‐II)
Mrs. English, a 6th grade teacher, is having a difficult time understanding why over 60% of her class
is not demonstrating understanding of the class material as indicated by failing grades on the tests.
The school psychologist suggests analyzing the Academic Learning Time (ALT) in order to increase
the students’ engagement in class.Which of the following examples is NOT considered best
practice when looking to analyze Academic Learning Time (ALT)?
a. Mrs. English conducts a self‐analysis to determine things, such as managing transitions,
relating class material to student interests, etc.
b. The school psychologist observes the classroom to better understand the classroom
environmental factors
c. The school psychologist conducts a Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA) to determine the
relationship between the students’ performance and the environmental factors of the
instructional setting
d. Mrs. English’s assistant observes and records the number of students and amount of time
students are actively participating within the classroom
e. The teacher discusses the homework regimen and after‐school routine with parents at
parent‐teacher conferences
e. The teacher discusses the homework regimen and after‐school routine with parents at
parent‐teacher conferences
. What are three violence prevention methods a school psychologist can implement in his/her school
district?
a. Implementing programs that teach students better social skills, improving environmental
factors, increasingamount of socializing
b. Implementing programs that teach students better social skills, intervening with at‐risk
students, involving students, staff and parents
c. Intervening with at‐risk students, providing in‐services for teachers, improving
environmental factors
d. Intervening with at‐risk students, improving environmental factors, providing parent
training classes
e. Installing metal detectors and conducting criminal history checks on students
b. Implementing programs that teach students better social skills, intervening with at‐risk
students, involving students, staff and parents
Internal validity is best defined as:
a. The extent to which rival hypotheses can explain the findings of an experiment
b. The extent to which an experiment rules out alternative explanation of the findings
c. The extent to which the findings are thought to be true of the current experiment
d. The extent to which the findings can be applied to similar groups of people
b. The extent to which an experiment rules out alternative explanation of the findings
What is typically done to reduce the possibility of selection biases?
a. Choose the sample from a population that is believed to be very similar
b. Control for the similarity of experimental participants
c. Use random assignment to place participants into different experimental conditions
d. Add a control group to the experiment
c. Use random assignment to place participants into different experimental conditions
External validity is mostly concerned with:
a. The accuracy of experimental hypotheses
b. The importance of applying the findings of experiments to different samples
c. The generalizability of the findings beyond the setting and sample of the experiment
d. The validity and appropriateness of using lab research in natural settings
c. The generalizability of the findings beyond the setting and sample of the experiment
What is treatment integrity or fidelity?
a. The level or intensity of treatment
b. The extent of which the treatment was conducted as intended
c. The extent to which the treatment is ethical
d. The extent to which the treatment is well specified
b. The extent of which the treatment was conducted as intended
Which of the following is required in justifying the use of deception?
a. The actual purpose is difficult to understand
b. The nature of the research is controversial
c. Less deceptive techniques will not produce the desired effect
d. The deception will be easier for the participant to accept
c. Less deceptive techniques will not produce the desired effect
Which of the following is not a necessary component of informed consent?
a. Competence
b. Structure
c. Knowledge
d. Volition
b. Structure
Methodology can be thought of as:
a. A thought process
b. Unimportant if a study reports important findings
c. Problem solving
d. Both a and c
d. Both a and c
In inferential statistics the object is usually to generalize from a ______ to a ______.
a. data; variable
b. sample; population
c. population; sample
d. constant; variability
b. sample; population
. Y can be most accurately predicted from X if the correlation between X and Y is ________.
a. 0.80
b. 0.00
c. 0.45
d. ‐0.98
d. ‐0.98
Which of the following is not a correlation coefficient?
a. Pearson r
b. eta
c. rho
d. chi square
c. rho
At the school where you work, a teacher who has recently gotten fired storms into the building witha loaded gun and begins screaming and yelling.He fires off several shots and wounds two teachers.The police are quickly able to get in the building and arrest the man.The crisis plan goes
into effect immediately. As the principal handles things with the administration and works directly with the police and medical assistance, your primary job as the school psychologist should be to do
which of the following?
a. Handle the communication with the parents and reassure them that their children are safe
b. Stay with the teachers who have been wounded
c. Call the administration and inform them of any updates
d. Stay beside the principal and help her speak to the police
a. Handle the communication with the parents and reassure them that their children are safe
School psychologists are trained in all of the following areas pertaining to crisis response in school
except which of the following?
a. Implement prevention and intervention programs that reduce aggressive behaviors among
youths
b. Participate in and facilitate evidence‐based procedures to respond to targeted threats of
violence
c. Help communities prepare for responses to crises spawned by violence
d. Act as the leader and make all of the primary decisions in a crisis situation
e. Help schools prepare for responses to crises
d. Act as the leader and make all of the primary decisions in a crisis situation
Cindy is struggling with math.Her teacher, Mrs. Apple, is implementing an intervention utilizing
practice and reinforcement making memorization of facts and rules a fundamental way of learning.
Which approach to learning is being used by Mrs. Apple?
a. Behavioral Approach
b. Humanistic Approach
c. Cognitive Education Approach
d. Cognitive Behavioral Therapeutic Approach
e. Existential Approach
a. Behavioral Approach
Which instrument is more of a theory based measure of basic psychological processing than a statistically derived approach to measuring cognitive abilities?
a. CAS
b. WISC‐IV
c. Stanford Binet – 5th Ed.
d. WJ‐III
e. WIAT‐III
a. CAS
Simon is a school psychologist who is mentoring school psychology students about how to reduce the likelihood of stress overload by fostering an atmosphere of cooperation in the school.Which of the following would Simon NOT name as a protective component of effective training programs?
a. Curriculum that promotes intrapersonal and interpersonal development
b. Provision of remedial interventions for students having difficulties
c. Program philosophy emphasizing personal growth
d. Faculty modeling self‐care, well functioning, and stress management
e. Program designed to experiment with outside recreations and vocations
e. Program designed to experiment with outside recreations and vocations
Which of the following classifications of medications is NOT a common treatment for ADHD symptoms? a. Stimulants b. Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists c. Antidepressants d. SSRI’s(Mood stabilizers) e. Antipsychotics
b. Alpha‐2 adrenergic agonists
The district school psychologist is participating in a meeting to discuss Johnny’s maladaptive
behavior. These behaviors include teacher observed lethargy, poor work completion, and student complaints of depressed thoughts. Johnny’s mother inquires about services and treatment options for Johnny. Which of the following would NOT be a best practice for recommending treatment?
a. Asking the mother about background and family history
b. Asking Johnny about his thoughts and concerns
c. Offering school based group counseling services that are cognitive behavioral based
d. Recommending treatment options which may include seeing the family doctor and receiving medication
e. Offering consultation services to Johnny’s teacher in regards to increasing his productivity
and social interaction in the classroom
d. Recommending treatment options which may include seeing the family doctor and receiving medication
It has been brought to the school psychologist’s attention that Sally, a ninth grade general
education student, is suspected of using drugs.In consultation, the school psychologist would like
to gather information regarding risk factors. Which of the following statements would provide data
about risk factors for drug use?
a. Sally has been involved in the DARE program since the 5th grade
b. Recently, Sally has started sleeping in class and will occasionally leave school early with her
older boyfriend
c. Sally had been receiving community based services for an anxiety disorder, but has
discontinued treatment
d. Her father has a history of alcohol abuse, but has been in recovery for 9 years
e. Both C and D
e. Both C and D
A student, Brittney, is usually a happy‐go‐lucky child, but seems irritable in your counseling session
today.She is having trouble concentrating on your conversation and seems restless.You notice
her hands are trembling and she constantly fidgets with them. After your session, you talk to her teacher about her unusual behaviors. Her teacher informed you that she has a college entrance
exam today that she has been dreading. Brittney is showing symptoms of:
a. Generalized Anxiety Disorder
b. Panic Disorder
c. Obsessive‐Compulsive Disorder
d. Social Phobia Disorder
e. PTSD
b. Panic Disorder
If the distribution is symmetrical, which is the best measure of central tendency?
a. Mode
b. Median
c. Mean
d. Variance
c. Mean
When the relation between X and Y is imperfect, the prediction of Y given X is_______
a. Perfect
b. Always equal to Y
c. Impossible to determine
d. Approximate
d. Approximate
Damien has been diagnosed with a condition that shares certain unusual social
interactions and behaviors with autism, but includes no general language delay. What
is Damien’s diagnosis?
a. Cerebral Palsy
b. Pervasive Developmental Disorder‐Not Otherwise Specified
c. Asperger’s Syndrome
d. Down Syndrome
c. Asperger’s Syndrome
An alpha level of 0.05 indicates that _________
a. If HO is true, the probability of falsely rejecting it is limited to 0.05
b. 95% of the time, chance is operating
c. The probability of a Type II error is 0.05
d. The probability of a correct decision is 0.05
a. If HO is true, the probability of falsely rejecting it is limited to 0.05
If you reject the null hypothesis, you may be making___________
a. a Type II error
b. a Type I error
c. a correct decision
d. b and c
d. b and c
The advantage of a powerful experiment is that _________
a. The probability of a Type I Error is reduced
b. You are more likely to detect the real effects of the independent variable, if there are any
c. As power increase, alpha increases
d. As power increases, N increases
b. You are more likely to detect the real effects of the independent variable, if there are any
As the df increases, the t distribution___________
a. Gets more symmetrical
b. Approaches the normal distribution
c. Stays the same
d. Becomes more skewed
b. Approaches the normal distribution
Data analysis involving statistical inference basically involves _________________
a. Determining the standard deviation of the scores
b. Calculating the appropriate statistic
c. Evaluating the statistic based on the sampling distribution
d. b and c
d. b and c
One employs a correlated groups design___________
a. To eliminate random error
b. To simplify calculations
c. For prediction
d. To reduce the effects of individual differences among subjects
d. To reduce the effects of individual differences among subjects
If a test is a robust test;
a. It is sensitive to its underlying mathematical assumptions
b. It doesn’t estimate any population parameters
c. It is insensitive to its underlying mathematical assumptions
d. b and c
c. It is insensitive to its underlying mathematical assumptions
Most children with ADHD‐Combined Type experience all of the following except:
a. Academic underachievement
b. Positive peer relationships
c. Difficulties conforming to rules and expectations
d. Poor attention span
e. Impulsivity/Hyperactivity
b. Positive peer relationships
Ms. Jones, a 3rd grade teacher, has expressed concerns to the school psychologist about Lilly, a
student with a disability who is receiving special educational services.According to Ms. Jones, Lilly participates in class and successfully completes her class work and homework.
However, Lilly consistently performs poorly on quizzes and tests. Ms. Jones believes Lilly understands the material
during instruction, but does not show her understanding in testing situations.According to best practices, the school psychologist should recommend:
a. Conducting a curriculum‐based assessment to determine why Lilly is performing poorly on
quizzes and tests
b. Filling out a request for the building‐level problem‐solving team to consider Lilly for
additional services
c. Ms. Jones using alternative assignments and tasks in addition to tests and quizzes to better assesses Lilly’s understanding of the material
d. Lilly be seen by the guidance counselor to discuss her test‐taking anxiety
e. Ms. Jones provides Lilly with as many opportunities for retests as possible
c. Ms. Jones using alternative assignments and tasks in addition to tests and quizzes to better assesses Lilly’s understanding of the material
A school psychologist conducts a direct observation of a student with behavioral difficulties within the classroom and collects data using narrative recording techniques. To obtain narrative recordings, an observer writes a description of events that occurred within a given time frame. Which of the following is NOT a technique or method used for a narrative record?
a. Daily log
b. ABC analysis
c. Descriptive time sampling
d. Continuous recording
e. Behavior intervention plan
e. Behavior intervention plan
The Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence – III (WPPSI‐III) is an individually
administered test of cognitive ability with two core batteries based on the child’s age.The battery
intended for the younger population is used for children ranging in age of
a. 3 years, 0 months to 5 years, 0 months
b. 2 years, 6 months to 3 years, 11 months
c. 4 years, 0 months to 7 years, 6 months
d. 2 years, 0 months to 4 years, 6 months
e. 2 years, 6 months to 7 years 3 months
b. 2 years, 6 months to 3 years, 11 months
A teacher is implementing a new behavioral intervention for a particular student within her class at the school psychologist’s request.The intervention is started on the first day of the month and is designed to run for 30 days.The school psychologist periodically stops into the classroom to
observe the teacher’s implementation of the intervention.After 15 days, the teacher sits down with the school psychologist to discuss the organization of the program, procedures and her technique in order to improve her delivery of the program to the student.This is an example of:
a. Consumer‐oriented evaluation
b. Formative evaluation
c. Participant‐oriented evaluation
d. Survey evaluation
e. Summative evaluation
b. Formative evaluation
Preschool‐aged children often exhibit deficits in one or multiple areas that may be a precursor to a
possible learning disability. Which of the following deficits is NOT a possible precursor for a learning
disorder in preschool‐aged children?
a. Difficulty with balance and walking
b. Inability to follow or remember one‐step directions
c. Delayed physical growth
d. Difficulty focusing attention or sitting still
e. Inability to use words such as ‘yes’ or ‘no’ when appropriate
c. Delayed physical growth
Tyler, a 4th grader in Ms. Goodwin’s class, is struggling in all academic areas.Tyler is a general
education student in an inclusion setting and is receiving services in the general education
classroom along with students with disabilities.According to Ms. Goodwin, Tyler is currently
receiving small group instruction from the special education teacher in the classroom, 15 minutes of phonics instruction each week from a parent volunteer, individualized instruction from Ms. Goodwin, and modified tests and quizzes from the special education teacher.Ms. Goodwin has
assessed Tyler as being below grade level in reading and math.Which answer best describes what the school psychologist should do next?
a. Tell Ms. Goodwin to fill out a referral form for an IEP team evaluation
b. Suggest Ms. Goodwin conduct a curriculum‐based assessment to determine Tyler’s present
academic levels and help her design classroom interventions
c. Set up a meeting with Ms. Goodwin and Tyler’s mother to discuss the concerns and ask
Tyler’s mother to help him at home
d. Tell Ms. Goodwin to allow Tyler to stay after school a few days each week for extra help
e. Recommend Ms. Goodwin reduces the amount of work and level of difficulty to increase
Tyler’s success level and improve his self‐confidence
b. Suggest Ms. Goodwin conduct a curriculum‐based assessment to determine Tyler’s present
academic levels and help her design classroom interventions
After collecting data from several informants for a functional behavior assessment, the school psychologist determines that the information is insufficient for hypothesis generation. Which best describes what the School Psychologist should do next?
a. Conduct a student file review
b. Identify other informants to interview
c. Use another form of data collecting with the same informants
d. Conduct a direct observation
e. Interview the student
d. Conduct a direct observation
Which of the following statements about the Wechsler Abbreviated Scale of Intelligence (WASI) is most accurate?
a. It is an effective screening measure of verbal and nonverbal abilities
b. It is linked to the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children –4th Edition (WISC‐IV) and the
Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale – 3rd Edition (WAIS‐III)
c. It does not have satisfactory reliability and validity
d. It is able to be used with a broad range of individuals from age 2 years, 6 months to 89
years, 0 months
e. It is an acceptable substitute or replacement for a comprehensive measure of intellectual
abilities
a. It is an effective screening measure of verbal and nonverbal abilities