How To Pass The Technology Applications EC-12(242) Exam.

First, let’s review what’s out there, as far as preparation.

TEA Preparation Manual

Pros:

• It’s created by the people who created the 242 exam.
• From pages 7 – 16, you will see most of those terms in some sort of manner.
• Also, it’s free.

Cons:

• The questions are misleading.
• There’s no focused path of what to study.

Over all, this should be a big part of what you use to study for this exam. A lot of what is on the exam can be found from pages 7-16.

Certify Teacher

Cons:

• They want $80 for it!!!! Ours is half the price, with a whole lot less studying required. No thank you.

Moving on.

Technology Applications in 30 days

Pros:

• His site motivated me to actually create a guide built by teachers, for teachers/future teachers.

Cons:

• It’s not for the 242 exam.
• I saw “VHS” in his material, and I ran.

Pass the Texes

Pros:

• Might be helpful supplemental study material, but I’d still be weary.

Cons:

• Too much info.

I don’t have a lot of time to take in a lot of unnecessary information.

Insider Study Guide

Pros:

• Created by teachers who have taken the actual exam and passed.
• Has over 50+ practice questions, that aren’t misleading.
• Offers different approaches for taking the exam.
• Cuts down your study time significantly, giving you more time to focus on the real necessities in life(GoT maybe?).
• Calculated processes to tackle each question, even if you don’t know the correct answer. Giving you a higher probability of marking the correct answer.
• What to expect the day of the test.
• Focused terms that you will see on the 242 exam, with definitions and links to videos, explaining those concepts.
• It’s available now.

See for yourself: Insider Study Guide

Takeaway:

This exam is hard, depending on who you ask. I have heard from teachers that were able to pass it on their first try. But one of them informed me that they had just graduated with a degree in design and technology, so some of the competencies were still fresh in their minds. But for those that are coming from industry, or getting certified alternatively, or just getting a different certification from what they have, having additional study materials would be beneficial.

It’s been a consensus here, with the teachers that have passed this exam, that overall it was a hard exam. We collectively would say, that over all the times we’ve taken it combined, the 242 exam does seem to change each time that it was taken. A lot of questions do overlap, but it’s never the same exact exam. This exam also does require experience or at least detailed exposure of the competencies that is tested over.

Also, don’t give up. There have been a few teachers who have reached out to our team and I, that are on their third or fourth try. You have 5 attempts to pass the exam, and even after that, you can always talk to the TEA for an extra one. (If you are one of these test takers(on third try or higher), please email our customer support team with at least 3 of your testing results attached and we’ll try to get you a discount code for the Insider Study Guide. I want to help in any way we can.) It’s a rewarding subject to teach, as well as very beneficial.

I wish you the best of luck!

-E