As my time in my masters program comes to an end, it is time for all of the exciting parts: the Praxis and national examinations! I took the School Counseling Praxis roughly a week ago and am happy to report I passed!! I am excited for this chapter but honestly a little terrified too!
To prepare for the Praxis I reviewed the practice test provided by ETS, as well as reviewed the ASCA National Model Book. As I worked through practice problems I am thankful for all of the foundational knowledge provided to me in my program, and the intentional integration of concepts across courses. I felt prepared and increasingly more confident. Testing in general is a nerve-wrecking activity; however giving my self a good amount of time to prepare in addition to taking numerous practice tests really helped increase my confidence.
Moving forward from the Praxis, I will be taking the CPCE and NCE in April. A good piece of having all of this testing this semester is that I will constantly be in study/test-prep mode and will knock them all out around the same time. While I review old notes, PowerPoints, books, and complete practice questions I feel more and more prepared for these examinations. I am utilizing the following books: "CPCE Practice Questions", "Mastering the National Counselor Examination and Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination" as well as "The Purple Book". I utilize each for different reasons
The CPCE Practice Questions: I find is best utilized as the title would suggest: for practice questions. It does offer brief explanations however it does not go into as much detail as some of the other resources.
Mastering the National Counselor Examination and Counselor Preparation Comprehensive Examination: This book has a great deal of review and helpful material within each section that I find helpful in summarizing and review key concepts for each area (e.g. human growth and development). There are practice questions throughout each section, but if you buy the hard copy you don't have the answers to them. You do, however, get a few practice examinations and answers in the back of the book.
The Purple Book: This one has been my favorite so far. The author walks through sample questions broken down by section and provides very detailed explanations as to why the correct answer is the one that is it. This is a very thick book so there are multiple practice questions it goes through and I find the layout pleasant.
Once I take the tests I will be able to speak more to how each book helped in reference to my outcome of taking the CPCE and NCE. The good part of taking practice tests at the beginning and throughout studying for the test is that it helps you identify which areas are your weakest so that you can create your study plan accordingly.
I will post an update soon!
All my love,
LeAnn
Comentários