MEGA Cross Categorical Special Education Practice Test

In which activity is a sixth-grade student with a reading disability likely to struggle the most?

1. copying vocabulary words from the board

2. participating in a choral reading of a poem

3. locating a particular word in an index

4. summarizing a passage from a chapter book

The correct answer is: summarizing a passage from a chapter book

A sixth-grade student with a reading disability is likely to struggle the most with summarizing a passage from a chapter book due to several factors associated with reading disabilities. Summarizing requires not only the ability to read and comprehend text but also the capacity to extract key ideas and articulate them concisely. This process involves a higher level of cognitive processing, including analysis and synthesis of information, which can be particularly challenging for students who struggle with reading fluency and comprehension. Transforming the details of a passage into a summary demands that the student understands the main points, differentiates between essential and non-essential information, and organizes their thoughts clearly in writing. A student with a reading disability may experience difficulties in recognizing the main ideas amidst supporting details or may find the writing process itself daunting, further compounding the challenge of summarization. On the other hand, activities like copying vocabulary words, participating in choral reading, and locating a word in an index, while they may still pose challenges, typically require less complex reading and cognitive skills. Copying vocabulary involves exact replication rather than comprehension, choral reading can provide support through group participation and auditory reinforcement, and locating a word in an index relies mainly on scanning skills rather than deep understanding. Therefore, summarizing a