E6: FTCE | How-to write the GK Essay

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Welcome to FTCE seminar, the Florida Teacher Certification Exam podcast, where we talk about testing tips, study strategies, and how to prep to pass the FTCE so you can launch from the campus to the classroom. I'm your host Mercedes Musto. For more FTCE study materials, videos, and resources, visit our website at FTCEseminar.com. In today's episode I'll be talking about the general knowledge test itself. Let's call this testing tip number one. Okay, testing tip number one is know thy test. Everything I'm sharing with you today is from the main FTCE website. If you have any questions or you'd like to go to the source yourself, you can visit the main site at fl.nesinc.com.

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It's important to begin at the beginning. So let's get started. Okay, pop quiz. Try to answer the following questions. Ready? Question number one. What are the four components of the general knowledge test. Question number two, how many questions are on the test?

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Question number three, how long do I have to answer those questions? And question number four, what score do I need to achieve to pass? Okay, if you knew the answer to any of these questions, then give yourself a selfie high five, because you're off to a great start. If you only knew the answer to a few of the questions, that's okay too. And it would

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be, you know, a good idea to keep listening because today we've got lots of splaining to do. All right, question number one. What are the four components of the general knowledge test? The general knowledge test is comprised of four subtests. The subtests are an essay, English language skills, reading, and mathematics. Remember, the testing blueprint is like a graph of percentages and a list of the concepts that you will be tested on. It's located on the FTCE main site and you can get all this information at ftceseminar.com plus study resources. Question number two, how many questions are on the test?

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Question number three, how long do I have to answer the questions? Here is the test design. Listen carefully. For the English language skills subtest, you have 40 minutes to answer approximately 30 multiple choice questions, and you need a minimum of 71% correct to pass. For the reading subtest, you have 55 minutes to answer approximately 30 multiple choice questions, and you need a minimum of 75% correct to pass.

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Now, for the math subtest, let's see, you have one hour and 40 minutes, that's 100 minutes, to answer approximately 35 multiple choice questions, and you need a minimum of 72% to pass. Lastly, the essay. For the essay, you'll be given a writing prompt to write one essay in 50 minutes. The essay is a performance-based assessment and you need to achieve 8 out of 12 points to pass. Question number 4, what score do I need to achieve to pass? Well, the answer to this one is 200. 200, that's right. 200. What? What does that a scaled score of 200 to pass the FTCE general knowledge. Anything below that is called a not pass. For more information about raw and scaled scores and what they mean and how they're calculated you can visit the main site and I'll make sure to get that PDF posted to ftceseminar.com or I'll put it in the

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so you can know thy test. In review, you heard me say you need a maximum percentage of correct answers to achieve a minimum passing score. Okay, let me translate. You need to answer correctly at least 71% of approximately 30 English language skills questions to achieve a 200 and PASS pass. For reading, it's 75% of 30-ish questions,

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and for math, it's 72% of approximately 35 questions. And you know what? You can do it. You're like, Mercedes, what's the point? Get to the point. The point is that unlike the exams we take in school or in our academic courses, we're aiming for PASS, not perfection. Let's reframe. Here, we're aiming for PASS

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with approximately 75% correct, or higher of course, of course, but this also means that there's some wiggle room for a few incorrect answers. I mean, we all get a little worked up on the day of the test, and it helps to know that you don't need to get a perfect 100. You need to get a singular pass, so you can launch from the campus to the classroom. Meaning, remember this when you're studying. Aim for pass, not perfection. Let's review. comprised of four subtests. The essay, English language skills, reading, and

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mathematics. You need to achieve a scaled score of 200 to pass. This means answering 71 to 75 percent of questions correct depending on which subtest you're taking. If you select to take the whole GK in a single session, that would be, let's see, that would be 245 minutes plus you get a 15 minute break. So that's four hours of testing and 15 minutes of breaking. You know, that's how I did it all in one shot. And how did I do it? I prepped. I prepped to pass. And you can too. If you're not sure where to start, how to study, or what to study, you can visit our website at ftceseminar.com for study strategies and resources. The important thing is to start studying and start studying today.

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Knowing what to expect when you take the general knowledge test helps you set realistic expectations so you can perform at your best and pass the Florida Teacher Certification Exam. Well, what are you waiting for? Log on to FTCESeminar.com and start studying today. I'd like to thank Kate and Samantha on tech. You two are magnificent IDT gurus and I love you both. This podcast was recorded in the Pickens Multimedia Studio in AXIS at the University of West Florida in Pensacola, Florida. This is your host Mercedes Musto.

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Join me again for another test-taking tip or study strategy on FTCE Seminar, a Florida teacher certification exam podcast. For more information or study resources, visit our website at ftceseminar.com so you can prep to pass the FTCE.

Transcribed with Cockatoo