PRAXIS II Teaching Foundations: Science Exam

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The exam is aimed to test your knowledge of teaching foundations of science for grade 7 through 12, in the State of California. Individuals appearing for this exam are expected to be familiar with the California public schools teaching performance expectations. Four hours will be provided to complete 50 multiple choice questions and 2 written response questions that comprising the exam. 1 written response question will focus on Science teaching methodology at the high school level. The other written response question will focus on Science teaching methodology at the junior high school level. There will be 9 questions pertaining to each of the topics: Classroom management, student assessment, reading instruction, English learners, special needs, learning differences and human development.

  • Science Teaching Methodology at the High School and Junior High School Level: These are the written response questions and will focus on monitoring student progress before, during and after instruction, development of reading skills when teaching mathematics and strategies for teaching English learners a particular subject. Question pertaining to adaptation of instruction for special needs students, resources, activities and instructional strategies to facilitate student learning and the ability to sequence and prioritize content and skills for instruction will be covered in this section.
  • Classroom Management: This section will focus on maximizing instructional time, establishment of procedures for routine tasks, writing student discipline plans and developing expectations for students social and academic behavior. Questions pertaining to the establishment of rapport with students and their families, utilizing social environments to maximize academic accomplishments and strategies for obtaining participation from all students will be covered in this section.
  • Student Assessment: This section will focus on basic types of informal as well as formal student assessments, communication of student behavioral and academic strengths and interpretation of student assessments. Questions pertaining to modification of instruction and the purposes of various types of student assessments will be covered in this section.
  • Reading Instruction: This section will focus on instructional strategies to enhance reading appreciation, reading comprehension, written and oral English language skills and, organizational patterns. Questions pertaining to literary response and analysis of various written texts and media, vocabulary development, fluency and word analysis will be covered in this section. Your knowledge of student mastery of foundational skills for use of language forms will be tested in this section.
  • Teaching English Learners: This section will focus on evaluation of student writing, comprehension and development of academic language, English-language development and cultural, cognitive and individual influences on student language acquisition.
  • Special Needs and Learning Differences: This section will focus on the instructional strategies for special needs students, the impact of student՚s health on learning and behavior, learning styles, cultural expectations, and gender differences. Questions pertaining to learning disabilities, behavioral and emotional disabilities and mental retardation will be covered in this section. Your knowledge of talented and gifted students, sensory, medical and physical challenges, visual and perceptual challenges of the exceptional student will be tested in this section.
  • Human Development: This section will focus on social, emotional, physical, moral, cognitive and physical development of adolescents. Questions pertaining to academic challenges, development of abstract thinking skills and instructional activities that relate to life after high school graduation will be covered in this section.