Exams Required for Certification:

The specific exams that are required for an individual to become certified to teach a particular subject area in the state of Texas depends on the specific subject area that the individual is pursuing. For most subjects, the individual will be required to take a content certification exam and a Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities (PPR) Exam in order to obtain an entry-level teaching certification in a specific subject or group of subjects. The content certification exam must be for the subject or group of subjects that the individual wishes to teach at the grade level that the individual wishes to teach and the PPR Exam must be for the appropriate grade level as well. For example, an individual pursuing certification to teach chemistry at the high school level will have to take and pass the TExES Chemistry 8 - 12 Exam and the TExES Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities 8 - 12 Exam. The individual could also use the TExES Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities EC - 12 Exam to fulfill the PPR Exam requirement as this exam certifies the individual to teach at any grade level.

Individuals that are seeking certification to teach at the elementary school level do not need to take specific content certification exams as they instead are required to take the Generalist EC - 4 Exam that covers information related to a variety of different subjects. This is because teachers at the elementary school level provide instruction on a variety of subjects instead of each teacher focusing on one specific subject area. Individuals pursuing careers as elementary school teachers must still fulfill the PPR Exam requirement and are required to take either the TExES Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities EC - 4 Exam or the Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities EC - 12 Exam. Individuals that are seeking certification to teach at the middle school level will have to take a specific content certification exam and/or the Generalist 4 - 8 Exam in addition to the appropriate Pedagogy and Professional Responsibilities Exam. Certain subjects may also require more than one content certification test or other exams or requirements in addition to the content certification exam and the PPR Exam in order for an individual to become certified to teach that particular subject within the state of Texas.