GACE Special Education General Curriculum

The Special Education General Curriculum assessment, offered as part of the Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators, is divided into two tests.

The first test consists of 60 selected-response questions (80% of the test score) and 2 constructed-response assignments (20% of the test score). The content areas covered by the first test are understanding students with disabilities, assessing students, and developing programs. The topics covered by the understanding disabled students subarea are: human development; characteristics and needs of students with disabilities; and the factors affecting learning and development of disabled students. The topics covered by the assessing students and developing programs subarea are: the characteristics of the various assessments; procedures for conducting assessments for disabled students; interpretation of assessment results; use of individualized education programs, individualized family service plans, and transition plans; and use of instructional and assistive technologies to support communication and learning of students.

The second test consists of 60 selected-response questions (80% of the test score) and 2 constructed-response questions (20% of the test score). The content areas covered by the second test are: promoting student development and learning; and working in a professional environment. The topics covered by the promoting student development and learning subarea are: strategies for creating a safe, supportive, and inclusive classroom climate; effective behavior management and intervention strategies for disabled students; instruction methods appropriate to disabled students; and strategies for promoting social, communication, and life skills. The topics covered by the working in a professional environment subarea are: communicating and collaborating with students, their families, colleagues, administrators, service providers, and community agencies; the historical, social, and legal foundations of special education; and the professional, ethical, and legal issues pertaining to special educators.

The examination must be completed within four hours. The total test score is placed on a scale of 100 to 300, with 220 as the lowest passing score. Scores are based on the number of selected-response questions answered correctly and the scores assigned by judges to the constructed responses. Test-takers will also receive performance indices indicating their success in each subarea of the examination. Scores will be available approximately a month after the date of the examination; unofficial results are posted on the internet, and an official score report is mailed to the test-taker, the Professional Standards Commission, and the institution specified by the test-taker during registration.

GACE Special Education General Curriculum Practice Questions

1. Ms. Jackson is teaching her class how to fill out a job application. She starts by reminding them of other forms they have completed. She then helps the members of the class enter their information into the application, gradually reducing her intervention until the members of the class can accomplish the task independently. What instructional strategy has Ms. Jackson been using?

A: experiential learning
B: peer tutoring
C: collaborative learning
D: scaffolding

2. Which of the following is NOT characteristic of curriculum-based measurement (CBM)?

A: assessments can be scored by teachers
B: assessment content is drawn from outside the curriculum
C: assessments occur frequently
D: assessment data can be organized graphically

3. Which is the most appropriate instructional strategy for nonalphabetic readers?

A: activities that increase phonological awareness
B: instruction on using context clues to determine meaning
C: exercises in reading comprehension
D: independent reading

4. During an oral reading fluency assessment, how are self-corrections treated?

A: they are subtracted from the number of words read correctly
B: they are not subtracted from the number of words read correctly
C: they are partially subtracted from the number of words read correctly
D: they are ignored

5. For mentally retarded students, which is the most appropriate curriculum?

A: life-skills curriculum
B: vocational curriculum
C: academic curriculum
D: collaborative curriculum

Answer Key

1. D. This strategy is so named because the teacher establishes a skeletal structure of knowledge and encourages the student to elaborate.
2. B. One of the fundamental principles of CBM is that students will be evaluated only on the knowledge and skills they are taught in class.
3. A. Nonalphabetic readers need to have the connections between written and spoken word forms reinforced.
4. B. During an oral reading fluency assessment, students should receive credit for self-corrections.
5. A. For students with mental retardation, the priority of education is to provide the skills necessary to live independently.