What is the Praxis Core Writing 5723?
The Praxis Core Writing, officially known as the Praxis I, is a subtest of the Praxis Core exam. Many individuals preparing to become certified as elementary and secondary educators take this exam. For this subtest of the Praxis Core, test takers must correct grammar and mechanics errors, rewrite sentences, and construct two essays.
The Praxis Core Writing 5723 exam is a standardized assessment to evaluate prospective teachers' writing and research skills. Administered by the Educational Testing Service (ETS), this test is often a requirement for individuals seeking admission into teacher preparation programs in many institutions across the United States.
It's designed to ensure teacher candidates possess the foundational writing skills necessary to teach and perform professional classroom responsibilities effectively.
Perhaps the most complicated part of the exam is the constructed response section. Test takers are required to write two essays (30 minutes each). One essay is an argumentative essay, and the other is a source-based informational/explanatory essay.
What does the Praxis Core Writing 5723 consist of?
This exam is similar to the ACT and SAT English exams. There are no teaching scenarios like you will see on a subject-area exam. Instead, you are just required to read sentences or paragraphs and identify and correct errors in grammar and mechanics.
You will also be required to answer rhetorical questions such as, "If the author wanted to add this sentence, where would it best be placed in the passage?"
The assessment is not aligned to a particular grade or course but to the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts.
The Praxis Core Writing is divided into the following two categories:
- Text Types, Purposes, and Production
- Language and Research Skills for Writing
Within these two main content categories are several other key components:
Text Production
Produce an argumentative essay that supports your claim based on the prompt given. You must use specific details from the prompt and support your position with evidence.
Produce an informational/explanatory text using the two sources given. You will have to read both sources and use them to explain an issue and summarize key elements. This also requires you to cite specific information that supports the information in your writing.
Finally, you will also have strengthen and correct passages given by revising an editing them. These are selected-response questions.
Language Skills
These are selected-response questions where you will have to identify and correct errors in grammatical relationships, structural relationships, and word choice. This section assesses specific grammar skills such as punctuation, subject-verb agreement, noun-noun agreement, parallel structure, misplaced modifiers, shifts in verb tense, and more.
Research Skills
In this section, you will be required to identify the credibility and relevance of sources, recognize elements of citations, and more.
What is the passing score for the Praxis Core Writing?
Most states require at least a 162 to pass this subtest. However, Nevada requires a 156 and Kentucky require a 158.
How many questions are on the Praxis Core Writing?
There are 40 selected-response questions and two constructed-response (essays) questions on the exam. You will have 100 minutes total to complete this subtest of the Praxis Core--40 minutes for the selected response and 30 minutes for each essay.
- Text Types, Purposes, and Production 6-12 selected-response questions and 2 essays
- Language and Research Skills for Writing 28- 34 selected-response questions
Please understand that you may have several additional questions on your test. ETS, the company that makes the exam, will often field test new items on the exams.
You will never know which test items count toward your score and which items are being field tested. You can learn more about this HERE.
Field testing items is common practice in the testing industry. Therefore, if you see a couple more questions on your exam, don’t panic. Just answer all the questions on your test.
What is the best way to pass the Praxis Core Writing exam?
Everyone is different in how they want to prepare for the exam. People have different strengths and weaknesses, and you must choose the right program for you.
The following are a few resources you can consider when preparing for this test.
The ETS Study Companion
The first and most important thing you can do to pass your Praxis Core Writing test is to examine the test structure and content of the exam by reviewing the test specifications in the Praxis Core Writing 5723 Study Companion.
ETS, the company that makes the exam, develops this document and shows you everything you are responsible for on the exam. It even has practice test questions similar to what you will see on test day.
Study Guides
Beyond that, most people prefer to use a study guide with practice tests to prepare for the exam.
Our Praxis Core Writing study guide fully aligns with the test specifications and blueprint outlined in the ETS Study Companion. It also has hundreds of practice test questions for each content category, so you are fully prepared for the exam.
Online Courses
Online courses with tutorial videos and practice are helpful for those needing additional support.
We have a comprehensive, self-paced online course with hours of videos that will help you pass the Praxis Core Writing test. Along with grammar and mechanics prep, the online course has comprehensive prep for the essay portion of the exam. If you need to pass more than one subtest, we recommend purchasing the complete Praxis Core Online Course.
How many questions do I need to get right to pass?
It is difficult to predict exactly how many questions you must get correct to pass the Praxis Core Writing because a scale score is used rather than a raw score. This means that your raw score—the number of questions you get correct—is put into a formula to calculate a scale score.
To keep things simple, we recommend scoring at least a 75% on the practice tests before you go in to take the exam. Getting 75% of the questions correct when practicing indicates you are ready to take the test.
Remember, for this subtest, you will also have to write two essays. These are scored by human graders. Therefore, it is essential that you prepare for this portion by practicing your writing.
If you would like some tips for passing the Praxis Core Writing exam, check out this blog.
Free resources for the Praxis Core Writing 5723 Exam
There are many free resources you can use to pass the exam. Our Praxis Core Writing Playlist on our YouTube Channel is packed full of videos to help you with all the skills tested on the exam.
You might also want to check out our free Praxis Core webinar, which includes prep for the writing subtest, specifically the essay section.
It comes with a free study guide, test strategy tips, and more. Just fill out this form and you will gain access to all of that.