Examination Requirements

for State Certification

Why am I taking all these Exams?

Teaching is a serious profession, and there are certain minimum standards and competencies you need to demonstrate before you begin to shape the minds of future generations.  There is no exam you need to pass before you enter corporate middle-management, but no matter what program you are in here, the TCP (graduate) or the Undergraduate major in English/Secondary Education, if your goal is to become a teacher in Illinois Secondary Schools you are required to pass certain State Certification exams to show you are at least minimally competent to stand in front of a class and teach them English language and literature.

While the state cannot seem to make up its mind year to year on the particular content of the exams, there are three basic areas/exams you need to pass to become state certified:

1. Basic Skills
2. Content
   • Literary Knowledge (which one of the following Beat poets wrote “Howl?”,
   • Grammar (which sentence requires a semi-colon?)
   • and usage (who or whom?  Which or that?)
3. Pedagogy (Assessment of Professional Teaching or APT exam)

Your high-school background, and courses you take in the English and Linguistics Departments here at NEIU should supply you with what you need to pass Basic Skills and the Content exam.  Your courses in Educational Foundations (EDFN 305, 306 and 307) in particular should help you pass the APT exam.

When do I take the Exams?

Take the Basic Skills exam as soon as you can.  You’ve been to high school.  If you don’t pass the Basic Skills exam, you should seriously consider another major.  Take the Content and APT Exams as soon as you have completed the Surveys of English and American Literature (ENGL 218, 219, 221, and 222), Linguistics 201, and EDFN 305, 306 and 307.

For more information on the exams, see the Illinois State Board of Education site.  Follow THIS LINK to the Illinois Certification Testing System Site, where you will find information on registering for exams along with the State Examination schedule for 2005-2006.  Please note you must register early in order to avoid paying higher fees for the exams.  You should also consult with your advisor (see contacts) as you prepare for the exam.