FTCE Madness

If you are looking at the next step towards becoming a certified teacher in the state of Florida, you are probably familiar with the madness and stress that comes with the preparation for the FTCE exam. Without the help of study guides, practice tests, and general information, the certification exam can seem scary and overwhelming.

Becoming adequately prepared will provide the greatest chance for success. Use this website, and a combination of others for helpful advice, FTCE study tips, and prep information. After all, there is no shortage of helpful information.

For those unfamiliar with the FTCE (Florida Teacher’s Certification Examination), it is an examination conducted as a requirement for all those seeking teaching certification in the state of Florida. A passing grade is the key to moving forward in obtaining a teaching license. The vast content of the FTCE can appear very overwhelming, but can be broken into 3 different tests that make studying more manageable. The FTCE tests are: Professional Education, General Knowledge, and Subject Area Exams. How many of the tests to be taken depends from person to person. For this reason, this blog will focus primarily on the General Knowledge (GK) test.

The FTCE General Knowledge Test is broken down into the following parts:

• Essay (50 minutes)

In this section, exam graders will look for the following critical elements in your writing: purpose, statement of main idea, organization of ideas and details, providing of supporting material, use of transitions, command of language, avoidance of cliches and slang, variety of sentence patterns, consistent point of view, and conventions of standard American English.

Although the amount of desired elements appears overwhelming, with adequate preparation and practice essays, these should start to become second nature in your writing.

• English Language Skills (40 minutes)

This sections of the test will involve conceptual and organizational skills, word choice, sentence structure, grammar, spelling, capitalization, and punctuation. Exercises provided in an FTCE study guide are a great source of practice.

• Reading (40 minutes)

The reading segment will test your literal and inferential comprehension. Simply put, it tests your understanding of the words used in the questions, as well as your ability to draw a larger picture understanding of the text. Practicing can be done by reading books, newspapers, and various other forms of articles, and of course study aid materials.

• Mathematics (100 minutes)

Although it isn’t calculus, basic mathematics is always a bit of a challenge for most people. Make sure to be familiar with: number sense, concepts, and operations, measurement, geometry, spatial sense, algebraic thinking, data analysis, and probability. Before you completely panic, remember a reference sheet will be included!

Here is the information that will be provided:

• Area of a rectangle, parallelogram, trapezoid, and triangle
• Area and circumference of a circle
• Volume and surface area of a pyramid, prism, cone, cylinder, and sphere
• The Pythagorean Theorem
• Distance, midpoint, and slope formulas
• A simple interest formula
• Conversions between metric and standard units
• a decimal (3.14) and fractional (22/7) approximation of pi

With adequate studying and time dedicated to practicing, a passing grade is within reaching distance! The key to success is preparedness, so make sure to familiarize yourself with the many resources available.

Here are few online ones:

FTCE Program Overview

Florida Department of Education

TeachRite FTCE Study Guide