Review the specific timing for your test and then the general strategies that follow.
- 5017: There are 120 questions on the test, and you will have 130 minutes to answer them. If you were to simply answer all the questions and submit your answers without checking any of them, you would have just over one minute to answer each question.
- 5018: There are 140 questions on the test, and you will have 150 minutes to answer them. If you were simply to answer all the questions and submit your answers without checking any of them, you would have just over one minute to answer each question.
You may look at those numbers and think, "There's no way I can answer questions that quickly!" But fear not. Here are some tips that can help you shave seconds off the amount of time it takes you to answer many of the questions:
- Monitor the clock on the computer screen. With just one minute per question, you need to use that time wisely. You may want to check the clock to be sure you are on track after you finish each major section of the exam. This means if a section has 40 questions, it should take you 40 minutes to complete. Too much over that time could mean you won't have time to get to all the questions in another section, even if you know the answers.
- Read all possible answers. Sift through each answer choice to ensure that you aren't overlooking a better answer. Don't select Choice (A) before looking at the alternative answer choices.
- Use the process of elimination. If you don't know the answer immediately after reading the answer choices, try to eliminate as many answers as possible. Then guess at the answer. Your chances of guessing correctly increase as you eliminate more answer choices.
- Mark questions you want to revisit later. Occasionally, you'll come to an item that you aren't sure about. Don't spend a lot of time puzzling over it. If you can't figure out the answer (or answers) quickly, use the "Mark" button at the top of your screen to mark the question as one you will look at again during your review time. Then move on. You can mark questions that you have answered, too, if you think you may want to change the answer later.
- Save time for review. Praxis Elementary Education offers you the opportunity to review the status of all of your questions. Clicking the Review button at the top of your screen brings you a chart that shows you at a glance which test questions you've seen, which ones you've answered, and which ones you've marked to revisit. You can also navigate from the Review screen directly back to any question you want to look at again.