Guiding Candidate Test Preparation

An academic advisor might suggest to a candidate that he or she take the following steps in preparing to take the FTCE or FELE:

  1. Begin by completing the Test Preparation Worksheet, where candidates record their academic background, reason for testing, certification requirements, and testing history, and complete a checklist of preparation steps for testing.
  2. Complete the mapping the test competencies and skills to courses taken activity for the test the candidate will be taking. This activity involves having candidates review the test competencies and skills and their coursework to date, and record on a worksheet whether their studies have covered the skills described by each test competency.
  3. Meet with his or her academic advisor to review the completed worksheets and test preparation steps taken to date, and to obtain assistance in evaluating his or her readiness to test.

When meeting with a candidate to review the completed materials listed above, an academic advisor may wish to take the following steps:

  1. Review pages 1 and 2 of the completed Test Preparation Worksheet to learn the candidate's academic background, reason for testing, certification requirements, and testing history.
  2. Review the completed worksheet for mapping the test competencies and skills to the courses the candidate has taken to determine if he or she has completed sufficient course work to take the examination. For examinations comprising subtests, the advisor may find that the candidate is prepared to take one subtest, but not all. In this case, if there are competencies for which the candidate has not studied the skills being assessed, the advisor may wish to recommend that the candidate take additional courses before testing.
  3. Review page 3 of the completed Test Preparation Worksheet to guide the candidate in gathering and using FTCE/FELE test preparation materials and, if needed, learning or reviewing test content and test-taking strategies.