Running head: PRAXIS CORE EXAM ANALYSIS 1

Praxis Core Exam Analysis

Arleesia Herrera

College of Southern Nevada

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Praxis Core Exam Analysis

The Praxis Core exam is required of all future Nevada Teachers. It tests basic skills in

reading, writing, and math. Before any teaching student can be accepted into a Bachelor program

at UNLV, NSC, or UNR they are required to pass the PRAXIS Core Exam. The passing scores

for the exam are one hundred and fifty-six in reading, one hundred and sixty-two in writing and

one hundred and fifty in math. These test sections can be taken individually or all together.

Exam Preparation

To prepare for the PRAXIS Core practice exam, I started by reading the information

provided by ETS. They provided an extensive Q & A section with questions like “What Are the

Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators Tests?” and “How Can I Prepare for the Tests?”

(2019). Within these sections, there were links that directed you to additional helpful information

for studying. After I was comfortable with what the test actually was, I looked into the type of

content that was on the test. Again, I used the ETS website for help. Along with PDF’s flyers of

information on each section were samples of questions you might see on the exam. This helped

me not only prepare for the type of content on the test but, how it would be organized. I worked

through the sample questions on the PDF flyer and reviewed my answers. I was pleasantly

surprised by how much math I had remembered but, disappointed with how poorly I did in the

writing section.

Afterward, I went on several different websites that offered practice PRAXIS exams.

Each one was similar; it had questions and explanations of each answer. During this preparation,

I became more confident in the math section of the test then I had been previously. Reading was

my strongest area and writing was inconsistent. On some practice tests I had passed, on others I

had not.
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Exam Results

On the PRAXIS practice Math test, I scored a 68%, which means my score “needs

improvement” in order to pass. When I reviewed the test results, I found that in most cases I did

not read the questions carefully enough or did not fully understand what the question was asking

for. The Praxis practice reading I scored a 64% and is considered to be an area for improvement.

Upon reviewing the answers, I noticed I did well in the beginning portion of the test and begun

doing poorly near the end of it. I am unsure of why this is but based on the test score I will

definitely need to work on this section. Next was the writing test where I scored a 75%. This

score is considered borderline but, I was pleasantly surprised considering I was unsure how I

would do at all based on the previous online practice tests I took. All in all, I felt I scored poorly

on the exam. I was expecting to do much better because I did well on other practice tests, and I

was feeling confident about the material.

Future Exam Preparation

I will need to prepare quite a bit before taking the Praxis Core Exam. My results were not

at all what I expected. Soon after taking the PRAXIS practice exam I reached out to a co-worker

who had just passed herself. I asked her how she prepared for the test and what helped her the

most. She made several suggestions; one was to purchase the “PRAXIS Core for Dummies”

study book, which I plan to do. I will also seek out a tutor. In addition to tutoring, I will use the

resources available on the site, such as the test questions and review videos. I do not believe this

exam is particularly hard so much as I believe that I haven’t really used this information for

nearly ten years. I also believe I can do much better by simply reading the questions fully and

identifying exactly which each question is asking for.

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References

Praxis® Core Academic Skills for Educators Tests Overview. (2019). Retrieved from

https://www.ets.org/praxis/about/core