Skip to page content
Return to Top

Texas Examinations of Educator Standards

The State of Texas is charged with ensuring that beginning teachers possess adequate knowledge so students learn what they are expected to learn. Accordingly, Texas certification requires passing scores in both:

  1. a content exam to test your knowledge in your teaching field, and
  2. the Pedagogy and Professional Responsibility (PPR) exam to test your knowledge of how to teach.

These tests measure your knowledge based on established standards instead of compared to other candidates' performance. All the tests contain multiple choice questions. Some tests also use open-ended written questions, audio (music) or visual (art) samples, or spoken recordings (foreign languages).

Content TExES

TMATE interns must prove "Highly Qualified" status for the internship by passing the content area TExES.  State law limits the initial certification to one content area. Applicants must register as a Pre-Admission Content Test, PACT candidate. Please complete the exam at the earliest possible date.

What happens if you don't pass the content test?  You are not automatically eliminated from TMATE. If time allows, you will be able to retest. You must present passing scores before enrolling in the summer classes.

Pedagogy (PPR) Exam

To help you learn how to teach, TMATE offers classroom-based, graduate-level course work taught by Tarleton faculty. You must pass this exam to receive your standard teacher certification. Interns usually take the PPR exam during the fall semester of the internship year.

Additional TExES

Participants planning to certify in content areas that include the English as a Second Language (ESL) designation will need to pass the ESL Supplemental TExES in addition to the Content TExES and the PPR. This test will be taken during the internship year.

Links

Each kid has a certain something that lights the fire inside of them and to be a good teacher you have to figure out what that is and exploit it.
--Colt Carmichael, 2006-2007

When I began the TMATE program, I knew that teaching was probably an easy job and I couldn't wait to get started with my new class. I promptly changed my opinion the first day of class. I did more in the first 15 minutes of the school day than I did all day at any other job. I became a nurse, a janitor, a parent and friend, a teacher, and, most importantly, a more caring, understanding person. I finally had the fulfillment I had been searching for with occupations along the way.
--Lynn Carroll, 2006-2007

The torrid pace that was set in the summer during TMATE classes was good because it made the torrid pace of teaching and coaching at the same time easier to get used to.
--Greg Belleau, 2006-2007