OSAT OK121 flashcards

33 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Zone of Proximal Development

Vygotsky's term for the range between what a learner can do independently and what the learner can do with adult or more capable peer support; instruction is most effective in this range.

Conservation (Piaget)

The understanding that quantity, mass, and volume stay the same despite changes in appearance or arrangement. It typically emerges in the concrete operational stage, around age seven.

Scaffolding

Temporary, graduated support that lets a learner complete a task beyond independent reach; supports are faded as competence grows. It operationalizes Vygotsky's zone of proximal development.

Negative Reinforcement

Removing an aversive stimulus after a behavior, which increases that behavior. The word negative refers to removal, not to punishment or to a bad outcome.

Maslow's Hierarchy

A five-level ordering of needs: physiological, safety, belonging, esteem, and self-actualization. Lower needs generally take priority until reasonably satisfied, which affects readiness to learn.

Phonemic Awareness

The ability to hear, isolate, blend, and segment individual sounds within spoken words. It is the most specific level of phonological awareness and a strong predictor of early reading success.

Simple View of Reading

A model stating that reading comprehension equals decoding skill multiplied by language comprehension. A weakness in either factor alone limits overall comprehension.

Alphabetic Principle

The understanding that letters and letter patterns represent the sounds of spoken language. It underpins phonics and requires knowing that English has about 44 phonemes.

Fluency

Reading with accuracy, appropriate rate, and expression so attention goes to meaning. It is usually measured as correct words per minute plus a prosody rating.

Vocabulary Tiers

Tier 1 is everyday oral vocabulary, Tier 2 is high-frequency academic vocabulary across subjects, and Tier 3 is domain-specific terminology. Tier 2 words give the highest instructional return.

BICS and CALP

BICS is conversational language proficiency, usually reached in one to three years. CALP is academic language proficiency, usually taking five to seven years. Both matter for classroom performance.

Distributive Property

For all numbers, a(b + c) = ab + ac. It connects multiplication and addition and justifies expanding expressions and computing partial products in multidigit multiplication.

Place Value

A base-ten positional system in which each place is ten times the value of the place to its right. Ten ones make one ten; ten tens make one hundred.

Median Versus Mean

The median is the middle value of ordered data and resists outliers. The mean is the sum divided by the count and shifts toward extreme values.

Area of a Triangle

Area equals one-half times base times height, A = ½bh. The height must be perpendicular to the chosen base, not necessarily a side of the triangle.

Dividing Fractions

To divide by a fraction, multiply by its reciprocal: a ÷ b/c = a × c/b. This follows from the definition of division as multiplying by the multiplicative inverse.

Controlled Variable

A factor held constant across all trials of an experiment so that changes in the outcome can be attributed to the manipulated independent variable rather than to other influences.

Photosynthesis

The process in chloroplasts that uses light energy to convert carbon dioxide and water into glucose and oxygen. It stores chemical energy and is the base of most food chains.

Earth's Seasons

Seasons result from Earth's axial tilt, roughly 23.5 degrees, which changes the angle and duration of sunlight during the yearly orbit. Distance from the Sun is not the cause.

Physical Versus Chemical Change

A physical change alters form or state without creating a new substance, such as melting ice. A chemical change produces new substances with different properties, such as rusting.

Energy Transfer in Food Chains

Energy flows from producers to consumers to decomposers, and only about ten percent passes to each next trophic level. Most energy is lost as heat.

Checks and Balances

Constitutional provisions letting each branch limit the others: the President vetoes laws, Congress overrides vetoes and confirms appointments, and courts review laws for constitutionality.

Primary Versus Secondary Source

A primary source was created during the period studied, such as a letter or artifact. A secondary source interprets such evidence later, such as a textbook or documentary.

Five Themes of Geography

Location, place, human-environment interaction, movement, and region. They organize geographic inquiry and give students a consistent framework for comparing places.

Opportunity Cost

The value of the best alternative given up when a choice is made. Because resources are scarce, every economic decision carries an opportunity cost.

FITT Principle

A framework for exercise prescription: frequency, intensity, time, and type. Adjusting these variables changes which fitness components a program develops.

Elements of Art

The basic visual components: line, shape, form, color, value, texture, and space. Design principles such as balance and contrast organize these elements into compositions.

Locomotor Skills

Movement patterns that travel through space, including walking, running, hopping, skipping, jumping, and galloping. They form the foundation for later games and dance instruction.

Backward Design

Planning that starts with desired results and standards, then identifies acceptable evidence of learning, and only then designs instruction and learning experiences.

Formative Assessment

Assessment conducted during learning to reveal current understanding and adjust instruction. Examples include exit tickets, questioning, and observation, and results usually are not graded.

Validity and Reliability

Validity is whether an assessment measures what it claims to measure. Reliability is consistency over time and forms. A test can be reliable without being valid.

Epstein's Six Types of Involvement

Parenting, communicating, volunteering, learning at home, decision making, and collaborating with the community. The framework describes how schools can build partnerships with families.

Mandated Reporting

A legal duty to report reasonable suspicion of child abuse or neglect to the designated agency. The teacher reports promptly and does not investigate or verify the claim first.