TESOL Praxis Exam UPDATED Exam
Questions and CORRECT Answers
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - CORRECT ANSWER - Title VI prohibits
discrimination on the grounds of race, language ability, color, or national origin by recipients of
federal financial assistance.
Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1968 - CORRECT
ANSWER - The Bilingual Education Act recognizes the unique educational disadvantages
faced by non-English speaking students. Allows federal funding for LEPs and research activities.
ELLs are eligible for title I.
Supreme Court Lau v. Nichols (1974) - CORRECT ANSWER - The Supreme Court ruled
that equality of educational opportunity is not achieved by merely providing all students with the
same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum because students who do not understand
English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education. Schools must help ELLs
overcome barriers.
Castañeda v. Pickard (1981) - CORRECT ANSWER - The court established a three-part
test to evaluate the adequacy of a district's program for ELL students:
is the program based on an educational theory recognized as sound by some experts in the field
or is considered by experts as a legitimate experimental strategy;
are the programs and practices, including resources and personnel, reasonably calculated to
implement this theory effectively; and
does the school district evaluate its programs and make adjustments where needed to ensure
language barriers are actually being overcome?
Supreme Court Plyler v. Doe (1982) - CORRECT ANSWER - The Supreme Court ruled
that the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits states from denying a free public education to
undocumented immigrant children regardless of their immigrant status. The court emphatically
declared that school systems are not agents for enforcing immigration law.
,Interlanguage - CORRECT ANSWER - A developmental system based on first language,
second-language input, language universals, and communication strategies.
-ly - CORRECT ANSWER - a suffix at the end of an adjective that almost always makes
an adverb.
definite article - CORRECT ANSWER - The-refers to specific or particular nouns.
indefinite article - CORRECT ANSWER - A, an- refers to a non-specific or non-particular
member of the group.
Communicative Competence - CORRECT ANSWER - The ability to use the English
language correctly and appropriately to accomplish communication goals. Competent
communication not native fluency.
Linguistic competence - CORRECT ANSWER - knowing how to use the grammar and
vocabulary of a language.
Sociolinguistic competence - CORRECT ANSWER - knowing how to respond to
language appropriately depending on setting, topic, and relationships between the people
communicating.
Discourse competence - CORRECT ANSWER - Interpreting the larger context of
language and how to construct larger stretches of language such as emails, speeches, etc.
Strategic competence - CORRECT ANSWER - How to repair communication
breakdowns. How do I know if I'm misunderstood or if I don't understand something?
BICS (basic interpersonal communication skills) - CORRECT ANSWER - language skills
needed in social situations. It is the day-to-day language needed to interact socially with other
people. English language learners (ELLs) employ these skills when they are on the playground,
, in the lunch room,on the school bus, at parties, playing sports and talking on the telephone.
Social interactions are usually context embedded. They occur in a meaningful social context.
CALP (cognitive academic language proficiency) - CORRECT ANSWER - Formal
academic learning. This includes listening, speaking, reading, and writing about subject area
content material. This level of language learning is essential for students to succeed in school.
Students need time and support to become proficient in academic areas. This usually takes from
five to seven years. Includes skills: comparing, classifying, synthesizing, evaluating, and
inferring.
Code-Switching - CORRECT ANSWER - Bilinguals substitute a word or phrase from one
language with a phrase or word from another language. Example: I want a motorcyle verde.
Adjective follows L1 rules.
Preproduction - CORRECT ANSWER - Has minimal comprehension.
Does not verbalize.
Nods "Yes" and "No."
Draws and points.
0-6 months
Early production - CORRECT ANSWER - Has limited comprehension
Produces one- or two-word responses.
Uses key words and familiar phrases.
Uses present-tense verbs.
6 months-1 year
Speech emergence - CORRECT ANSWER - Has good comprehension.
Can produce simple sentences.
Makes grammar and pronunciation errors.
Frequently misunderstands jokes.
Questions and CORRECT Answers
Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - CORRECT ANSWER - Title VI prohibits
discrimination on the grounds of race, language ability, color, or national origin by recipients of
federal financial assistance.
Title VII of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1968 - CORRECT
ANSWER - The Bilingual Education Act recognizes the unique educational disadvantages
faced by non-English speaking students. Allows federal funding for LEPs and research activities.
ELLs are eligible for title I.
Supreme Court Lau v. Nichols (1974) - CORRECT ANSWER - The Supreme Court ruled
that equality of educational opportunity is not achieved by merely providing all students with the
same facilities, textbooks, teachers, and curriculum because students who do not understand
English are effectively foreclosed from any meaningful education. Schools must help ELLs
overcome barriers.
Castañeda v. Pickard (1981) - CORRECT ANSWER - The court established a three-part
test to evaluate the adequacy of a district's program for ELL students:
is the program based on an educational theory recognized as sound by some experts in the field
or is considered by experts as a legitimate experimental strategy;
are the programs and practices, including resources and personnel, reasonably calculated to
implement this theory effectively; and
does the school district evaluate its programs and make adjustments where needed to ensure
language barriers are actually being overcome?
Supreme Court Plyler v. Doe (1982) - CORRECT ANSWER - The Supreme Court ruled
that the Fourteenth Amendment prohibits states from denying a free public education to
undocumented immigrant children regardless of their immigrant status. The court emphatically
declared that school systems are not agents for enforcing immigration law.
,Interlanguage - CORRECT ANSWER - A developmental system based on first language,
second-language input, language universals, and communication strategies.
-ly - CORRECT ANSWER - a suffix at the end of an adjective that almost always makes
an adverb.
definite article - CORRECT ANSWER - The-refers to specific or particular nouns.
indefinite article - CORRECT ANSWER - A, an- refers to a non-specific or non-particular
member of the group.
Communicative Competence - CORRECT ANSWER - The ability to use the English
language correctly and appropriately to accomplish communication goals. Competent
communication not native fluency.
Linguistic competence - CORRECT ANSWER - knowing how to use the grammar and
vocabulary of a language.
Sociolinguistic competence - CORRECT ANSWER - knowing how to respond to
language appropriately depending on setting, topic, and relationships between the people
communicating.
Discourse competence - CORRECT ANSWER - Interpreting the larger context of
language and how to construct larger stretches of language such as emails, speeches, etc.
Strategic competence - CORRECT ANSWER - How to repair communication
breakdowns. How do I know if I'm misunderstood or if I don't understand something?
BICS (basic interpersonal communication skills) - CORRECT ANSWER - language skills
needed in social situations. It is the day-to-day language needed to interact socially with other
people. English language learners (ELLs) employ these skills when they are on the playground,
, in the lunch room,on the school bus, at parties, playing sports and talking on the telephone.
Social interactions are usually context embedded. They occur in a meaningful social context.
CALP (cognitive academic language proficiency) - CORRECT ANSWER - Formal
academic learning. This includes listening, speaking, reading, and writing about subject area
content material. This level of language learning is essential for students to succeed in school.
Students need time and support to become proficient in academic areas. This usually takes from
five to seven years. Includes skills: comparing, classifying, synthesizing, evaluating, and
inferring.
Code-Switching - CORRECT ANSWER - Bilinguals substitute a word or phrase from one
language with a phrase or word from another language. Example: I want a motorcyle verde.
Adjective follows L1 rules.
Preproduction - CORRECT ANSWER - Has minimal comprehension.
Does not verbalize.
Nods "Yes" and "No."
Draws and points.
0-6 months
Early production - CORRECT ANSWER - Has limited comprehension
Produces one- or two-word responses.
Uses key words and familiar phrases.
Uses present-tense verbs.
6 months-1 year
Speech emergence - CORRECT ANSWER - Has good comprehension.
Can produce simple sentences.
Makes grammar and pronunciation errors.
Frequently misunderstands jokes.
