Praxis Information
Teacher licensure rules in North Dakota (ND) and VCSU Teacher Education admission standards require teacher candidates to provide evidence of basic skills in reading, writing, and mathematics.
Options for providing evidence of basic skills:
1.Meet the Praxis I: Core Academic Skills for Educators (CORE) exam requirements set by the state.
2. Meet the ACT test requirements set by the state.
3. Meet the basic skills evidence through a menu approach initiated by the North Dakota Association of Colleges for Teacher Education (NDACTE) and accepted by VCSU and the state of ND.
1. Praxis I: CORE Requirements:
Praxis Core exams include objective response questions, such as single-selection multiple-choice questions, multiple-selection multiple-choice questions, and numeric entry questions. The Praxis Core Writing exam also includes two essay sections.
The Praxis Core exams are delivered on computer and may be taken either as three separate tests on separate days or as one combined test. Individual scores will be reported for reading (5713), mathematics (5733) and writing (5723) on both the individual and the combined exams (5752).
If you take the Praxis Core exams separately, each session lasts two hours. If you take the combined test, the entire session lasts five hours. Each session includes time for tutorials and the collection of background information.
The Praxis CORE exams cost $90 each. The Praxis CORE Combined exam (5752) costs $150.
The actual testing time and number of questions for each Praxis Core exam is shown below:
Praxis I Exam (Test Code)
Number of Questions
Testing Time
Qualifying Score
Minimum Score
Reading (5713)
56
85 minutes
156
149
Writing (5723) (2 sections)
40
2 essay
40 minutes
60 minutes
160
153
Mathematics (5733)
56
90 minutes
150
143
Combined CORE (5752) (Reading, Writing, Math)
300 Minutes
466*
466*
Teacher Candidates must meet state standards on North Dakota required tests to measure prospective teacher’s content knowledge in reading, writing, and mathematics.
See https://praxis.ets.org/state-requirements/northdakota-tests.html for test requirements.
**North Dakota licensure for all areas requires**
(1) meeting the passing score of 156 for Core Academic Skills for Educators: Reading (5713), meeting the passing score of 160 for Core Academic Skills for Educators: Writing (5723), and meeting the passing score of 150 for Core Academic Skills for Educators: Mathematics (5733)
or
(2) meeting a composite score of 466 with no score being below the minimum set for each test; test minimums: 149 for Core Academic Skills for Educators: Reading (5713), 153 for Core Academic Skills for Educators: Writing (5723), and 143 for Core Academic Skills for Educators: Mathematics (5733)
Teacher Candidates who take the Praxis I test MUST submit test scores or a confirmation of registration for the Praxis I tests to their Education 249/250 instructor and to Rachel Bopp.
2. ACT Test Requirements:
All applicants will need to submit their ACT test scores with the information below:
ACT Requirements:
Minimum Score
ACT Composite
22
ACT Math
21
ACT ELA (English, Reading, Writing)
21
See https://www.act.org/content/act/en.html for more information.
3. Basic Skills Requirements
This NDACTE model was approved by ESPB in April 2023 as an alternative to completing the Praxis CORE to measure basic skills. The VCSU Teacher Education Committee approved the basic skills menu on May 9th, 2023. MAT coursework options were approved by Teacher Education Committee on October 25th, 2023.
Teacher candidates must provide evidence of basic skills in reading, writing, and mathematics. Teacher candidates can demonstrate basic skills by meeting one of the following criteria in each basic skills area:
Reading
Writing
Mathematics
Earning a letter grade of A or B in one of the following courses
ENGL 241, ENGL 242, ENGL 261, ENGL 262, HUM 201
(*MAT alternative)
Comp I (ENGL 110), Comp II (ENGL 120/125), Comp III (ENGL 210)
(*MAT alternative)
MATH 103, MATH 104, MATH 107, MATH 110, MATH 210, EDUC 277, EDUC 278
Praxis CORE
(5713) Score of 156+
(5723) Score of 160+
(5733) Score of 150+
ACT
Reading Score of 20+
ELA Score of 20+ or Writing Score of 6.5+
Math Score of 21+
SAT
Score of 540+
Score of 5+
Score of 530+
(*Alternative for teacher candidates in the MAT program)
Reading- Earn a grade A or B in two of the four courses associated with the synthesis paper. (EDUC 611, 612, 613, or 614)
Writing- Score a 2 or 3 on the research portion of the capstone portfolio. The research artifact is required to be the 5 chapter synthesis paper.
Praxis II Tests
Teacher Candidates must submit Praxis II test scores or a confirmation of registration for the Praxis II tests (content and PLT) to Kim Knodle or Amber Olson by:
- Spring Student Teachers - January 20th
- Fall Student Teachers - September 1st
*Completion of the Praxis II and PLT are required for graduation. It is recommended to take the Praxis II and PLT, the semester prior to student teaching.*
To be certified in
You will need to take
Test Code
Qualifying Score
Elementary Education
Elementary Education: Curriculum, Instruction and Assessment
5017
153
Principles of Learning and Teaching: Grades K-6
5622
160
OR
Principles of Learning and Teaching: PreK-12
5625
157
To be certified in
You will need to take
Test Code
Qualifying Score
Secondary Education
Praxis II subject area assessment
*
*
Principles of Learning and Teaching: Grades 7-12
5624
157
OR
Principles of Learning and Teaching: PreK-12
5625
157
Register for Praxis Tests
ETS: The Praxis Series Website
ND Praxis Requirements
Praxis Registration Help Document
Praxis Support
Test preparation materials and support is available.
https://libguides.library.vcsu.edu/praxisprep/core
https://teachinglicense.study.com/praxis/
For more information, contact:
Learning Services Coordinator
academic.services@vcsu.edu