Praxis 5355 Section I: Human Development and Individual Learning Differences

Comprehensive vocabulary flashcards covering Human Development and Individual Learning Differences for the Praxis 5355 Section I exam.

Praxis 5355 Section I

Focused on Human Development and Individual Learning Differences, this section accounts for approximately $26\%$ of the exam or about $32$ selected-response questions.

Exceptionality

A disability, developmental difference, health condition, sensory impairment, giftedness, or other learner characteristic that may require specially designed instruction or environmental changes.

Developmental Sequentiality

The concept that skills build in a specific order, such as children babbling before speaking or using concrete thinking before abstract reasoning.

Developmental Delay

When a child is significantly behind expected milestones in one or more domains, including communication, motor, cognitive, social-emotional, or adaptive skills.

Developmental Regression

The loss of previously acquired skills, such as language, toileting, or motor abilities, which is considered a red flag for referral.

Chronological Age

A student's actual age measured from birth, relevant for grade-level expectations and legal rights.

Developmental Age

The level at which a student functions in a specific domain, which may differ from their chronological age.

Strengths-Based Approach

An instructional mindset that identifies what a student can do and uses their motivations and strengths to address their needs.

Etiology

The cause or origin of a condition, categorized by factors such as genetic, prenatal, perinatal, postnatal, or traumatic.

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD)

Developmental, behavioral, and physical effects caused by prenatal alcohol exposure, often affecting attention, memory, and social judgment.

Comorbidity (Co-occurrence)

When a student has more than one condition or area of need at the same time, such as ASD with intellectual disability or ADHD with anxiety.

Acquired Disability

A disability that develops after birth due to injury, illness, infection, or accident, such as a brain injury or meningitis-related hearing loss.

Congenital Disability

A disability present at birth, resulting from genetic factors, prenatal development, or unknown causes.

Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)

An acquired brain injury caused by external physical force that adversely affects educational performance in areas like memory, processing speed, and behavior.

Receptive Language

The ability to understand language that is heard, read, signed, or otherwise communicated.

Expressive Language

The use of language to communicate thoughts, needs, and ideas through speech, writing, sign, or AAC.

Pragmatic Language

The social use of language, including turn-taking, conversational repair, and understanding social cues.

Phonological Awareness

The ability to notice and manipulate sounds in spoken language, which is strongly connected to reading skills like decoding.

Dyslexia

A specific learning disability involving word-level reading difficulties, typically related to phonological processing.

Dysgraphia

Significant difficulty with written expression or handwriting-related skills, including grammar, motor planning, and organization.

Dyscalculia

Significant difficulty with number sense, math facts, calculations, and understanding quantity and symbols.

Gross Motor Skills

Physical abilities involving large muscles used for sitting, standing, walking, balance, and posture.

Fine Motor Skills

Physical abilities involving smaller muscles in the hands and fingers used for writing, cutting, and using tools.

Other Health Impairment (OHI)

An IDEA category for limited strength, vitality, or alertness due to chronic or acute health problems like ADHD, epilepsy, or diabetes.

Working Memory

The cognitive ability to hold and use information briefly for tasks like following multi-step directions or mental math.

Executive Functioning

The brain's management system responsible for planning, organizing, inhibiting impulses, and regulating emotions.

Metacognition

The process of thinking about one's own thinking, involving planning, monitoring comprehension, and reflecting on learning.

Generalization

The ability to use a learned skill in new settings, with different people, materials, or tasks.

Intellectual Disability

Significant limitations in both intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior that begin during the developmental period.

Specific Learning Disability (SLD)

Difficulty in basic psychological processes related to understanding or using language, affecting skills like reading, writing, or reasoning.

Co-regulation

Adult support, such as calm tones and predictable routines, that helps a student manage their emotions and return to learning.

Theory of Mind

The understanding that other people have thoughts, feelings, and beliefs different from one's own.

Adaptive Behavior

Everyday life skills needed for independence, divided into conceptual, social, and practical domains.

Functional Communication

The ability to communicate basic needs, choices, and feelings effectively through any form such as speech, signs, or gestures.

AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication)

Tools and strategies, such as sign, picture boards, or speech-generating devices, used to support expressive communication.

Task Analysis

The process of breaking a complex skill into small, teachable steps to support systematic instruction.

Prompt Fading

The gradual reduction of assistance to transition a student from assisted performance to independence.

Self-Determination

The ability to make choices, set goals, self-advocate, and participate in personal life decisions.

Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

A developmental disability affecting social communication, interaction, and often involving restricted, repetitive behaviors or sensory needs.

Learned Helplessness

When a student stops trying because repeated failure has taught them that their efforts do not matter.

Stereotype Threat

Pressure caused by the fear of confirming a negative stereotype about one's group, which can reduce performance.

Auditory Processing

How the brain interprets sound; distinct from hearing loss, which involves access to sound.

Universal Design for Learning (UDL)

A framework for flexible learning design based on three principles: multiple means of engagement, representation, and action/expression.

Accommodation

A change in how a student accesses instruction or demonstrates learning without lowering the learning expectation.

Modification

A change in what the student is expected to learn or the overall complexity of the task.

Specially Designed Instruction (SDI)

Instruction adapted in content, methodology, or delivery to address a student's disability-related needs.

Least Restrictive Environment (LRE)

The principle that students with disabilities must be educated with nondisabled peers to the maximum extent appropriate.

Continuum of Placements

The range of placement options from general education with supports to resource rooms, separate classes, or hospital settings.

$$34 CFR 300.8$$

The section of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act regulations defining a child with a disability.