# Are you smart enough to be a Florida High School Science or Math teacher? Here's some exam questions

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-smart-enough-to-be-a-florida-high-school-science-or-math-teacher-heres-some-exam-questions/629785>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [July 29, 2012, 6:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-smart-enough-to-be-a-florida-high-school-science-or-math-teacher-heres-some-exam-questions/629785 "2012-07-29T18:05:15Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![drewtwo99](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/d07c76/32.png) [@drewtwo99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drewtwo99)\
**Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-smart-enough-to-be-a-florida-high-school-science-or-math-teacher-heres-some-exam-questions/629785/21 "2012-08-01T02:06:05Z")

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The tests I had to take (PRAXIS) to become a teacher in oregon for general science and physics were pretty difficult.

The texas tests were quite a bit easier, but still weren’t super easy.

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**Author:** ![Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/left_hand_of_dorkness/32/7156_2.png) [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Left_Hand_of_Dorkness)\
**Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-smart-enough-to-be-a-florida-high-school-science-or-math-teacher-heres-some-exam-questions/629785/22 "2012-08-01T02:16:02Z")

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> [@SandyHook](#):
>
> I ran through the test and got a 96.

Got 27/30 on this one, too. Missed the FLorida-specific one, guessed poorly on the first one (didn’t read it very well), and made a boneheaded misreading mistake on #10 about interest. This one seemed significantly easier to me than the science one I looked at–but then, I did the poli-sci thing in college :).

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**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\
**Post date:** [August 1, 2012, 3:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-you-smart-enough-to-be-a-florida-high-school-science-or-math-teacher-heres-some-exam-questions/629785/23 "2012-08-01T03:20:34Z")

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> [@astro](#):
>
> As a side note while the math and earth science exams I looked at are fairly straightforward I pulled up the grade 6-12 social science exam and it’s kind of odd. I was expecting to see some stuff on group behavior, basic statistics, bell curves, theories about social groups, basic theories in economics, but there’s almost none of that.
> 
> The areas of knowledge expected are OK, but the actual questions themselves are this weird grab bag of generally pretty easy questions. T_his_ is the intellectual bar to hurdle for Social Science teachers in Florida after years of study? A reasonably well educated person off the street would have decent shot at a passing this thing cold.
> 
> [Social Science Exam 6-12](http://www.fl.nesinc.com/PDFs/SS6-12_TIG_4th%20Edition_DOE042310.pdf)

Since this is testing the knowledge of teachers at grade 6-12 level, shouldn’t a reasonably well educated person be able to pass that test? Unless it deals with specific areas dealing with education or child development, the teachers technical abilities only need to match the top level of the students. I realize that’s overly simplified, teachers should not have just the knowledge level of a high school senior, but the qualification to teach at that level doesn’t have to include a depth of knowledge that greatly exceeds it either.

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