1.1 Praxis 5624 Test Facts, Scoring & Qualifying Scores

Who the Test Is For

ETS describes the purpose of Praxis 5624 as assessing a new teacher's knowledge of educational practices that are foundational to beginning a career as a professional educator. The content spans human development, learning processes, instructional processes, diverse learners, educational psychology, and professional issues. Test takers have typically completed, or nearly completed, an undergraduate education program. Each form includes some questions written specifically for grades 7–12 and some that apply to every grade level, and ETS notes that a test may contain questions that do not count toward your score.

Many states and licensing agencies use a Principles of Learning and Teaching (PLT) test as their pedagogy requirement. ETS offers four PLT versions: Early Childhood (5621), Grades K-6 (5622), Grades 5-9 (5623), and Grades 7-12 (5624). They share the same five-category design, but 5624 frames its scenarios around adolescent learners and secondary classrooms. Take the version your state and certification area require.

Test at a Glance

The Five Content Categories

Category V is not a separate body of content. Its four constructed-response questions draw on the other four categories: ETS lists 1–2 questions on Students as Learners, 1–2 on Instructional Process, 0–1 on Assessment, and 0–1 on Professional Development, Leadership, and Community. In practice, the written responses reward the same knowledge the selected-response questions test, applied to a specific classroom.

How the Test Is Scored

• Selected-response questions are scored by computer. On most Praxis tests each correct answer is worth one raw point, and there is no penalty for a wrong answer, so never leave a question blank.
• Constructed-response questions are scored by trained education professionals using ETS's General Scoring Guide, which awards 0, 1, or 2 points per response. Two scorers rate each response independently; if their ratings disagree by more than a specified amount, a third scorer rates it.
• ETS combines the raw points and converts them to a scaled score from 100 to 200 so that scores mean the same thing on every edition of the test.
• ETS does not set passing scores. Each state or agency sets its own qualifying score.

Because Praxis 5624 includes constructed-response questions, you will not see an unofficial score at the end of the session. ETS posts official scores on Tuesdays and Fridays according to its score-reporting calendar, and tests with written responses take longer to score than selected-response-only tests.

Qualifying Scores and National Performance

The ETS state-requirements tool (checked September 29, 2026) lists these qualifying scores for 5624:

Requirements change, and a state may accept a different PLT version for a given certificate, so confirm your own state's rule before registering.

ETS's Understanding Your Praxis Scores 2025–2026 reports these statistics for 5624, based on 18,156 test takers from August 2022 through July 2025:

• Median score: 175
• Average performance range (middle 50 percent): 167–183
• Standard error of measurement (SEM): 5.4 points
• Standard error of scoring (constructed-response rating consistency): 2.3 points

The SEM matters when you interpret your own result. About two-thirds of test takers score within one SEM of their "true" score, so a 159 on a test with a 157 cut is a pass, but it is not strong evidence that you would pass again. Aim for a comfortable margin.

Retakes

• You must wait at least 28 days after a test date before retaking the same test. The rule applies even if you canceled your scores.
• ETS's Free After 3 policy gives candidates who have taken the same Praxis test three times (attempts on or after October 1, 2025) free retake vouchers. Each voucher is valid for six months, and the benefit runs for five years from the date the third score is reported.

A Practical Time Plan

ETS does not prescribe how to divide the 120 minutes, and the test is a single timed session. Many candidates budget about 50 to 55 minutes for the 70 selected-response questions (roughly 45 seconds each) and 60 minutes for the two case histories, which leaves a few minutes to review. Whatever split you choose, practice it on timed sets before test day so that the fourth written response is not rushed.

How This Guide Is Organized

• Sections 1.2–1.3 and Chapters 2–5 cover Category I: learning theory, development, diverse learners, English learners, motivation, and the learning environment.
• Chapters 6–12 cover Category II: planning, instructional models and strategies, thinking skills, grouping, questioning, discussion, and communication.
• Chapters 13–14 cover Category III: classroom assessment, scoring tools, standardized tests, and score interpretation.
• Chapters 15–17 cover Category IV: professional growth, collaboration, families and community, and school law.
• Chapter 18 covers Category V: the constructed-response format and full case-history practice.

Chapter 1 continues with how students construct knowledge and the core vocabulary the rest of the guide assumes.