TEXES SPECIAL ED 161 Practice Exam Questions
and Answers Latest 2025 A+
A special education teacher is creating a developmental
history for a high school student. She wants to know when
the teen reached certain behavioral, academic and
developmental milestones. She should consult:
a. The student's previous teachers. This information should
be in the file.
b. The student. Involving him in the process will make him
more interested in his progress.
c. The student's doctor and therapist. These professionals
know how to elicit and document this information.
d. The parent or guardian because he or she has known the
student from the beginning.
D: The student's parent or guardian, who has known the student
throughout his life, is the correct answer. When compiling a
developmental history it's best to consult people who have had a
close personal relationship with the student over his lifetime. They
are the most likely to possess the greatest amount of information
regarding the student's development over time.
When transitioning from one subject to another and when
she becomes anxious, a student always taps her front tooth
5 times then opens and closes her eyes 11 times before
leaving her desk. The child most likely has:
a. Repetitive Disorder
b. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
c. Anxiety Disorder
d. Depression
B: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Children and adults
with OCD typically engage in a series of highly ritualized
behaviors that are rigidly performed when they feel stressed.
Behaviors include tapping, snapping fingers, blinking, counting
and so forth.
,By law, a child with a disability is defined as one with:
a. Intellectual disabilities, hearing, speech, language, visual,
orthopedic or other health impairments, emotional
disturbance, autism, brain injury caused by trauma or
specific learning disabilities and needs special education
and related services.
b. Intellectual disabilities, emotional disturbance, autism,
brain injury caused by trauma or specific learning disabilities
who needs special education and related services.
c. A child who is unable to reach the same academic goals as
his peers, regardless of cause, and needs special education
and related services.
d. The term "disability" is no longer used. The correct term is
"other ability".
A: Intellectual disabilities, hearing, speech, language, visual,
orthopedic or other health impairments, emotional disturbance,
autism, brain injury caused by trauma, or specific learning
disabilities who needs special education and related services.
Children with one or more of these conditions are legally entitled
to services and programs designed to help them achieve at the
highest level of their ability.
Which classroom environment is most likely to support a
student with ADHD?
a. Students with ADHD become bored easily so a classroom
with distinct areas for a multitude of activities will stimulate
her. When she loses interest in one area, she can move to
the next and continue learning.
b. Students with ADHD are highly aggressive and easily fall
into depression. The teacher needs to provide a learning
environment in which sharp objects such as scissors, tacks
or sharpened pencils are eliminated. This ensures greater
safety for both student and teacher.
c. Students with ADHD are highly creative. A room with
brightly colored mobiles, a multitude of visual and physical
textures (such as striped rugs and fuzzy pillows) and plenty
,of art-based games will stimulate and encourage learning.
d. Students with ADHD are extremely sensitive to
distractions. A learning environment in which visual and
audio distractions have been eliminated is best. Low lighting,
few posters and a clean whiteboard help the student focus.
D: Students with ADHD are extremely sensitive to distractions. A
learning environment in which visual and audio distractions have
been eliminated is best. Low lighting, few posters and a clean
whiteboard will help minimize distractions.
A resource teacher notices one of her students has made the
same reading error numerous times the past few days. She
decides the student wrongly believes that 'ou' is always
pronounced as it is in the word through.She corrects this
misunderstanding by showing the student word families
containing words like though, ought, ground. This strategy is
called:
a. Corrective feedback
b. Positive reinforcement
c. Consistent repetition
d. Corrective support
A: Corrective feedback. Corrective feedback is offered to a
student in order to explain why a particular error is, in fact, an
error. Corrective feedback is specific; it locates where and how
the student went astray so that similar errors can be avoided in
the future.
A kindergarten teacher has a new student who will not make
eye contact with anyone so she doesn't appear to be
listening. She often rocks back and forth and does not stop
when asked or give any indication she has heard. She avoids
physical contact. Sometimes the teacher must take her arm
to guide her from one place to another. Occasionally the
student erupts, howling in terror and fury. The most likely
diagnosis is:
a. Asperger's Syndrome
b. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
, c. Autism
d. Antisocial Psychosis
C: Autism. Autistic children are typically very withdrawn, avoid eye
contact and are not responsive to verbal or physical attempts to
connect. Some autistic children fall into repetitive behaviors that
are very difficult to arrest or prevent. These behaviors include
rocking, spinning and handshaking.
A special education teacher shows parents of a dyslexic
child a study that examined brain scans of dyslexic and non-
dyslexic readers. The study demonstrated that dyslexics use
(the) __________ side(s) of their brains while non-dyslexics
use (the) _______ side.
a. Both, the left.
b. Both, the right.
c. Left, right.
d. Right, left.
A: Both, the left. Research using MRIs show dyslexics use both
sides of their brains for activities such as reading, while non-
dyslexics use only the left side.
A student with ______________ has a great deal of difficulty
with the mechanical act of writing. She drops her pencil,
cannot form legible letters and cannot decode what she has
written.
a. A nonverbal learning disorder
b. Dyslexia
c. Dyspraxia
d. Dysgraphia
D: Dysgraphia. Dysgraphic individuals cannot manage the
physical act of writing. While many dysgraphics are highly
intelligent and able to express themselves cogently, they have
extreme difficulty holding a writing implement and shaping letters.
A resource room teacher has a middle school student
recently diagnosed with depression. The student has been
put on an antidepressant. The teacher knows the student
may develop certain transitory reactions to the medication.
and Answers Latest 2025 A+
A special education teacher is creating a developmental
history for a high school student. She wants to know when
the teen reached certain behavioral, academic and
developmental milestones. She should consult:
a. The student's previous teachers. This information should
be in the file.
b. The student. Involving him in the process will make him
more interested in his progress.
c. The student's doctor and therapist. These professionals
know how to elicit and document this information.
d. The parent or guardian because he or she has known the
student from the beginning.
D: The student's parent or guardian, who has known the student
throughout his life, is the correct answer. When compiling a
developmental history it's best to consult people who have had a
close personal relationship with the student over his lifetime. They
are the most likely to possess the greatest amount of information
regarding the student's development over time.
When transitioning from one subject to another and when
she becomes anxious, a student always taps her front tooth
5 times then opens and closes her eyes 11 times before
leaving her desk. The child most likely has:
a. Repetitive Disorder
b. Obsessive Compulsive Disorder
c. Anxiety Disorder
d. Depression
B: Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). Children and adults
with OCD typically engage in a series of highly ritualized
behaviors that are rigidly performed when they feel stressed.
Behaviors include tapping, snapping fingers, blinking, counting
and so forth.
,By law, a child with a disability is defined as one with:
a. Intellectual disabilities, hearing, speech, language, visual,
orthopedic or other health impairments, emotional
disturbance, autism, brain injury caused by trauma or
specific learning disabilities and needs special education
and related services.
b. Intellectual disabilities, emotional disturbance, autism,
brain injury caused by trauma or specific learning disabilities
who needs special education and related services.
c. A child who is unable to reach the same academic goals as
his peers, regardless of cause, and needs special education
and related services.
d. The term "disability" is no longer used. The correct term is
"other ability".
A: Intellectual disabilities, hearing, speech, language, visual,
orthopedic or other health impairments, emotional disturbance,
autism, brain injury caused by trauma, or specific learning
disabilities who needs special education and related services.
Children with one or more of these conditions are legally entitled
to services and programs designed to help them achieve at the
highest level of their ability.
Which classroom environment is most likely to support a
student with ADHD?
a. Students with ADHD become bored easily so a classroom
with distinct areas for a multitude of activities will stimulate
her. When she loses interest in one area, she can move to
the next and continue learning.
b. Students with ADHD are highly aggressive and easily fall
into depression. The teacher needs to provide a learning
environment in which sharp objects such as scissors, tacks
or sharpened pencils are eliminated. This ensures greater
safety for both student and teacher.
c. Students with ADHD are highly creative. A room with
brightly colored mobiles, a multitude of visual and physical
textures (such as striped rugs and fuzzy pillows) and plenty
,of art-based games will stimulate and encourage learning.
d. Students with ADHD are extremely sensitive to
distractions. A learning environment in which visual and
audio distractions have been eliminated is best. Low lighting,
few posters and a clean whiteboard help the student focus.
D: Students with ADHD are extremely sensitive to distractions. A
learning environment in which visual and audio distractions have
been eliminated is best. Low lighting, few posters and a clean
whiteboard will help minimize distractions.
A resource teacher notices one of her students has made the
same reading error numerous times the past few days. She
decides the student wrongly believes that 'ou' is always
pronounced as it is in the word through.She corrects this
misunderstanding by showing the student word families
containing words like though, ought, ground. This strategy is
called:
a. Corrective feedback
b. Positive reinforcement
c. Consistent repetition
d. Corrective support
A: Corrective feedback. Corrective feedback is offered to a
student in order to explain why a particular error is, in fact, an
error. Corrective feedback is specific; it locates where and how
the student went astray so that similar errors can be avoided in
the future.
A kindergarten teacher has a new student who will not make
eye contact with anyone so she doesn't appear to be
listening. She often rocks back and forth and does not stop
when asked or give any indication she has heard. She avoids
physical contact. Sometimes the teacher must take her arm
to guide her from one place to another. Occasionally the
student erupts, howling in terror and fury. The most likely
diagnosis is:
a. Asperger's Syndrome
b. Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder
, c. Autism
d. Antisocial Psychosis
C: Autism. Autistic children are typically very withdrawn, avoid eye
contact and are not responsive to verbal or physical attempts to
connect. Some autistic children fall into repetitive behaviors that
are very difficult to arrest or prevent. These behaviors include
rocking, spinning and handshaking.
A special education teacher shows parents of a dyslexic
child a study that examined brain scans of dyslexic and non-
dyslexic readers. The study demonstrated that dyslexics use
(the) __________ side(s) of their brains while non-dyslexics
use (the) _______ side.
a. Both, the left.
b. Both, the right.
c. Left, right.
d. Right, left.
A: Both, the left. Research using MRIs show dyslexics use both
sides of their brains for activities such as reading, while non-
dyslexics use only the left side.
A student with ______________ has a great deal of difficulty
with the mechanical act of writing. She drops her pencil,
cannot form legible letters and cannot decode what she has
written.
a. A nonverbal learning disorder
b. Dyslexia
c. Dyspraxia
d. Dysgraphia
D: Dysgraphia. Dysgraphic individuals cannot manage the
physical act of writing. While many dysgraphics are highly
intelligent and able to express themselves cogently, they have
extreme difficulty holding a writing implement and shaping letters.
A resource room teacher has a middle school student
recently diagnosed with depression. The student has been
put on an antidepressant. The teacher knows the student
may develop certain transitory reactions to the medication.
