Preparation is the key to scoring well on the middle school science Praxis™. You’ll need to develop and stick to a study plan that focuses not only on the content area, but also on your weaknesses within that area. The Educational Testing Service® (ETS®), which provides all Praxis™ content area assessments, offers a number of free and low-cost study and preparation materials. Understand that preparation goes beyond only studying, and you’ll need to take certain steps just before the test to increase your chances of scoring well. Generally, the professors of your teacher training courses, as well as certain ETS® materials, will make you aware of these steps.
Before you begin developing your study plan to prepare for the middle school science Praxis™, evaluate your personal learning and study habits, as well as your science strengths and weaknesses. For example, you may study more effectively by yourself, or you may work better with a study group. If you have certain content area weaknesses, be sure to focus extra time on those. You might even ask your professors to help with those areas. If this isn’t your first time taking the middle school science Praxis™, then you probably already know your strengths and weaknesses based on previous scores.
Note that some colleges, universities, and other higher learning institutions host Praxis™ workshops. If your school offers such a workshop, consider enrolling. If it doesn’t, find out about the possibility of enrolling in a workshop offered by a nearby school. ETS® designs these workshops specifically for the Praxis™ tests. Any information provided will help you prepare for the test in terms of studying and knowing what to expect on test day.
Regardless of the study plan you organize, you must have study materials. Your college and university teacher training courses and textbooks will help some, but not all of those resources will include the kind of information you’ll need to refresh yourself on to score well on the middle school science Praxis™. For those kinds of study materials, you’ll need to visit The Praxis Series™ section of the ETS® website, which acts as a sort of one-stop shop for preparing for any Praxis™ test.
The Praxis Series™ section of the ETS® website provides a wealth of study materials for all tests, including the middle school science Praxis™. On that website, you can find free study materials including the Test at a Glance (TAAG) publication that gives you a description of the middle school science test, sample questions, and even information about how the test is scored. Also, there are tips for studying and reducing test-day stress. The website even offers pre-determined study plans for those who have trouble creating their own. You can also purchase from the ETS® website study guides and full-length practice tests that were once used as actual tests.
You might think the night before you take your middle school science Praxis™ is the time to cram in some last minute studying, but in fact you should use this time to make other test day preparations. After you’ve verified your test location, gather all the required materials for the test, such as your admissions ticket or authorization voucher, acceptable identification documents, non-mechanical pencils, erasers, and blue or black ink pens. Typically, you will be given a list of these kinds of items well in advance of the test. Also be sure to get plenty of sleep the night before, and allow yourself enough time before the actual test to wake up, dress comfortably, and eat. Seemingly simple preparations such as these can actually help reduce pressure and allow you to focus solely on the test, which can help increase your score.