Study Guide
Overview and Test Objectives
Field 090: Language Arts (Elementary)
Test Overview
| Format | Computer-based test (CBT) |
|---|---|
| Number of Questions | 100 multiple-choice questions |
| Time | 2 hours 30 minutes* |
| Passing Score | 220 |
*Does not include 15-minute CBT tutorial
Test Objectives
| Subarea | Range of Objectives | Approximate Percentage of Questions on Test | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Meaning and Communication | 001–004 | 28% |
| 2 | Literature, Genre, and Craft | 005–009 | 36% |
| 3 | Skills and Processes | 010–014 | 36% |
Hover over each subarea for details of subtest content or see table above.
Sub area 1 28%, Sub area 2 36%, and Sub area 3 36%.
Subarea 1—MEANING AND COMMUNICATION
Objective 001—Demonstrate an understanding of the integrated nature of the English language arts.
Includes:
- demonstrating an understanding of the ways in which listening, speaking, reading, writing, viewing, and visually representing connect and mutually influence one another
- demonstrating an understanding of the integrated nature of the content, processes, strategies, and skills of the language arts at different developmental levels
- demonstrating knowledge of a variety of communication models and the interdependence of their various components
- recognizing ways in which oral, written, and visual texts can be used to explore important issues in other disciplines and communities
Objective 002—Demonstrate an understanding of the social, cultural, and dynamic nature of verbal and nonverbal language.
Includes:
- demonstrating familiarity with the diversity of language uses, patterns, and dialects in oral, written, and visual discourse
- recognizing how diction, dialect, and patterns of expression transmit culture and affect meaning in all modes of communication
- demonstrating an understanding of the reciprocal relationship between verbal and nonverbal language and concepts related to identity, customs, and daily life in various cultures
- demonstrating knowledge of how the use of language relates to issues of age, religion, gender, culture, ethnicity, social class, disability, and sexual orientation
- demonstrating an understanding of how language choices affect people's lives
Objective 003—Demonstrate familiarity with concepts relating to language development and acquisition of first and second languages.
Includes:
- demonstrating an understanding of emergent literacy
- recognizing the stages of literacy development (e.g., knowledge of letters, phonemic awareness, reading words, comprehension)
- recognizing factors (e.g., physical, perceptual, intellectual) that affect students' language development and reading acquisition
- demonstrating knowledge of the characteristics of fluent readers at different developmental levels
- recognizing the reciprocal relationship between language, culture, and individual identity
- demonstrating familiarity with the principles of oral and written language acquisition and use (e.g., language development in children, second language and dialect acquisition)
- recognizing the effects of the primary language on the development of English language skills
Objective 004—Demonstrate an understanding of the elements of effective communication in a variety of rhetorical situations.
Includes:
- demonstrating knowledge of appropriate communication modes and behaviors in a variety of rhetorical situations
- demonstrating familiarity with rhetorical techniques and devices used to respond to, create, and revise texts in a variety of genres
- demonstrating an understanding of expressive and receptive roles in the communication process
- demonstrating an understanding of the effects of style, voice, and language choices in oral, written, and visual texts
- recognizing the role of body language, gestures, and visual aids in communicating a point of view
- demonstrating an understanding of the role of feedback in the communication process
- demonstrating familiarity with strategies for constructing and conveying meaning for a variety of purposes and audiences through a variety of texts
Subarea 2—LITERATURE, GENRE, AND CRAFT
Objective 005—Demonstrate familiarity with concepts relating to the structure of language.
Includes:
- demonstrating knowledge of the grammar, conventions, and history of the English language (e.g., morphology, phonology, semantics, syntax)
- recognizing the grammatical, syntactical, and lexical features of the English language in a variety of contexts
- demonstrating an understanding of the differences between descriptive and prescriptive conventions of usage
- demonstrating familiarity with the ways in which conventions of usage are adapted to different communicative situations
Objective 006—Demonstrate an understanding of literature as oral, written, and visual texts.
Includes:
- recognizing the characteristics and forms of a variety of oral, written, and visual texts (e.g., narrative, dramatic, poetic, expository, persuasive)
- recognizing the distinct characteristics of different forms of oral, performance, and media literature (e.g., film, readers' theatre, personal narrative, television, audio technology)
Objective 007—Demonstrate familiarity with a wide variety of high-quality contemporary and classical literature for children and young adolescents.
Includes:
- demonstrating knowledge of literature for children and young adolescents
- demonstrating knowledge of major genres, works, and writers in children's and young adolescent literature
- identifying and analyzing key issues and recurring themes in literature written for children and young adolescents
- recognizing the significance of illustrations in literature written for children and young adolescents
- demonstrating familiarity with criteria for evaluating works written for children and young adolescents
- demonstrating familiarity with strategies for selecting developmentally appropriate literature
Objective 008—Demonstrate familiarity with techniques that authors use to convey meaning, enhance appreciation, and influence an audience.
Includes:
- demonstrating an understanding of how authors use various narrative and expository techniques to convey ideas and perspectives (e.g., characterization, setting, conflict, theme, point of view, bias, organization, validity, reliability) in various texts
- demonstrating an understanding of how an author's word selection and choice of grammatical structure, sentence variety, and organization enhance the appreciation of various texts
- demonstrating an understanding of how authors assist audience comprehension (e.g., appealing to reason, logic, and emotion, using figurative language and grammatical conventions) of various texts
Objective 009—Demonstrate familiarity with critical standards used to evaluate texts and mass media.
Includes:
- demonstrating familiarity with standards used to make judgments about the craft, aesthetics, and significance of texts
- demonstrating familiarity with standards for evaluating whether a communication is truthful, responsible, and/or ethical in diverse contexts
- analyzing oral, written, and visual texts to evaluate the appropriateness of style, voice, and language choices to context, purpose, and audience
- demonstrating an understanding of the influence of different purposes and contexts on individual, shared, and academic standards
Subarea 3—SKILLS AND PROCESSES
Objective 010—Demonstrate familiarity with multiple strategies for determining the meaning of unfamiliar words and concepts in text.
Includes:
- demonstrating knowledge of the purposes and characteristics of reading techniques and strategies (e.g., skimming, scanning, varying reading rate)
- demonstrating familiarity with word identification and fix-up strategies (e.g., phonemic awareness, phonics, picture and context clues, structural clues, sight words)
- demonstrating familiarity with strategies for learning vocabulary
- analyzing methods for enhancing reading comprehension (e.g., recalling prior knowledge related to a topic, making predictions, generating questions to be answered from reading, rereading, self-monitoring)
Objective 011—Demonstrate familiarity with inquiry processes and the resources appropriate for investigating particular questions or topics.
Includes:
- demonstrating an understanding of how to formulate questions for research purposes
- demonstrating knowledge of sources and techniques for identifying and locating relevant information
- demonstrating an understanding of how to compare, contrast, and evaluate different sources
- demonstrating familiarity with techniques for online research
- demonstrating familiarity with a variety of means for presenting conclusions (e.g., written reports, oral presentations, multimedia presentations, visual representations)
Objective 012—Demonstrate familiarity with the nature of the writing process.
Includes:
- demonstrating familiarity with strategies for generating ideas before writing (e.g., topic choice, brainstorming, clustering, researching, discussing, questioning, reading, listing, viewing, drawing)
- evaluating the appropriateness of different writing forms for various purposes and audiences
- recognizing details that interfere with or support the development of a main point
- demonstrating familiarity with the processes and purposes of editing, revising, and proofreading texts to determine overall quality (e.g., student-teacher and peer conferencing, self-editing)
- demonstrating familiarity with the publication process
Objective 013—Demonstrate familiarity with the special skills required in the production of mass media.
Includes:
- demonstrating familiarity with the characteristics and functions of various forms of mass media (e.g., radio and television broadcasting, the Internet, newspapers, magazines, film production, graphic design)
- demonstrating familiarity with the skills required to create a mass media product (e.g., teamwork skills, appropriate use of resources, appropriate use of technology, publishing or presenting)
Objective 014—Demonstrate familiarity with techniques for student goal setting, reflection, and self-assessment at different linguistic developmental levels.
Includes:
- demonstrating familiarity with techniques for student goal setting, metacognition, reflection, and self-assessment at different linguistic developmental levels
- demonstrating familiarity with the process of creating and evaluating a collection of personal texts
- demonstrating familiarity with strategies for identifying and overcoming difficulties when constructing and conveying meaning across a wide range of situations