Running head: Praxis 1

Praxis Core Exam Analysis

Khadeejah Griffin

Education 299

Professor Wyckoff

September 15, 2019

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The Praxis Core Exam is extremely important for individuals who are planning to

become teachers because it gives them the certification to teach throughout America. As an

upcoming teacher, I find that the Praxis exams can strengthen one’s studying habits. I am

currently enrolled at the College of Southern Nevada, and it is a requirement that I take the

Praxis core exam to further my education at the University of Nevada Las Vegas. I believe that

the criteria set for the praxis core exams are diligent and necessary for teachers to evaluate and

understand before interacting with students of the next generation. In Nevada, each individual

has to pass with the required scores to become certified. Three sections must be taken by each

individual who is planning on transferring from CSN to UNLV. These sections include; reading,

writing, and math. The qualifying score for reading is 156, the qualifying score for writing is

162, and the qualifying score for math is 150. To pass each required test, you should study each

area thoroughly.

To accomplish anything in life, always make sure that you have prepared yourself and

have examined all of the criteria completely. When the Praxis core exam was first introduced to

me in my first year of college, I was extremely nervous and overwhelmed because I always knew

that I was never a great test taker. Before taking the praxis core exam, I looked up the criteria of

the exam and resources that could help me pass. Growing up, I always knew that I wanted to

become a teacher which had only been due to me idolizing my grandmother. My grandmother

has been a special education teacher for over 20 years which has always been an inspiration to

me. When I explained to her that I needed to take the praxis exam this semester, she eagerly

wanted to help. My grandmother decided to reach out to one of her coworkers who had just taken
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the praxis exam. Her coworker decided to give me her old Praxis study book to study from and

prepare me for the exam. My eldest brother who had previously been a teacher for 2 years

wanted to help as well. He told me that Khan Academy is a really good resource for me to study

from and that I should look into it. This summer I also had the privilege of taking EDU-280 and

was also given other resources to prepare myself for the praxis exam. These resources included

practice questions that could help prepare me for the exam. In all honesty, I did not take full

advantage of the practice questions over the summer, which is why I do believe that I could have

performed better on these exams. I should have made sure that I took full advantage of all of the

resources that were given to me.

After taking the practice praxis core exams, I feel disappointed in myself that I didn’t

take the time to prepare for the practice exams. In math, I scored 55% which means that I need

significant improvement. In truth, math has never been one of my strongest subjects which is

why I do believe I must study more of the criteria in that area. In the reading portion of the

practice exam, I scored 27% which also means that I need significant improvement. In the

writing portion of the exam, I scored 58% which also means that I need significant improvement.

In the future to prepare myself for the exam, I plan on making sure I prepare myself

better and am confident that I will pass. I found that I struggled more in the mathematics area

which is why I should take more practice exams that cover mathematics thoroughly. Eventually,

I also plan on finding a tutor through my grandmother that can help me accomplish a better score

on future exams. I believe that I need to start improving my study habits when it comes to

preparing for exams because I do feel that they are not as strong as they need to be. Sometimes

we often find ourselves thinking that we don’t need help when in reality we do. If help is given,
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we should always make sure we take advantage of it. Becoming a teacher is extremely important

because we are key elements in making sure our future generation of students is educated to

become successful.