The School Psychologist's Guide for the Praxis Exam 3rd Edition

So, you have to take the school psych PRAXIS... Truly, my sympathies! Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly. The good new is, if you are coming straight out of a school psych graduate program (APA approved; NASP accredited), my sense is you will be fine! If, however, you have been out of school for, say, twenty or more years, this is going to be rough- and ugly!I earned my degree before there was such a thing as the School Psych PRAXIS. During that time, I've continued to teach at a major university, worked for a variety of school systems, provided training for students, worked at a private practices, helped school districts set up new policies and procedures, provided district-wide trainings, etc. You get the drift- I've stayed current and I always thought I had good skills. And, then I took the PRAXIS practice test when, in order to change jobs and states, I found out, with under two weeks notice, that I would have to take the PRAXIS to be certified in another state. The PRAXIS practice test was pretty humbling- a very shaky 82% and I knew I guessed on multiple items. This was BAD! I was in serious panic mode, especially since no one seems to be able to tell you how many questions you need to get correct to pass the PRAXIS.So, I grabbed this book. I purchased the kindle edition because I had so little time to prepare- I wouldn't recommend that if you have more time- I'd buy the hard copy. One of the best benefits of this book for me was the practice tests, but you can't print them from the kindle edition. I found I had to keep going back and forth between the answer pages and the questions on the kindle edition. I think I'd rather have copied the practice tests and taken them over and over and been able to review them with the answer pages side-by-side. The kindle edition just made this a little cumbersome, as I was constantly scrolling back and forth between pages to find the question and compare it to the rational for the correct answer.That being said, this book breaks the PRAXIS areas down into manageable parts. The info is easily accessible, provides hints/tips, and highlights the most critical areas to study. For me, it provided a focused plan of study. Additionally, at the end of each chapter, Dr. Thompson also provides a summary of the most important information for each section.Perhaps the most important part for someone like me, who has been out of school for a considerable amount of time (!), was the practice tests. They are, as someone noted in a previous review, HARD, and nerve-wracking, and anxiety producing! But, fair warning, the practice tests in this book were quite similar in style (not necessarily content) to the actual PRAXIS questions. At several points, I really doubted the practice exams in this book, as I found myself screaming more than once "all of these answers are correct- there is NO right answer!", but I read and re-read Dr. Thompson's reasoning for the correct answer. It helped me to get into the mind-set for the PRAXIS, which was probably the thing I most needed to do. I needed to think in the way NASP wanted me to, rather than as someone who has really seen it all in the field- it sounds crazy, and counter-intuitive, but that is what I needed to do. The practice tests in this book- doing them over and over- and reading the rational for the answers in each was invaluable for me.Now, I primarily used this book, but I also recommend the PRAXIS practice test. At first, it doesn't seem worth it, as there is only one, so each time you take it, it is the same exam, but again, when you look at the rational for the incorrect/correct answers, it helps you to understand the types of questions and the necessary responses. I took that same test over and over as well. I created flashcards from this book, from the practice tests in this book, from the official PRAXIS practice test, and used flashcards from CRAM.Despite this, I will tell you that when I took the PRAXIS, on my first go through of the test, I marked 49 questions (yes, 49 out of 140!) to go back and review. In most instances, it was a situation very similar to the practice tests in this book, where I could narrow it down to a few choices, or I felt that all were good, and then I had to sort through them looking for the best choice. This is where Dr. Thompson's book helps as well- he provided tips for how to select the best choices, how to think like the NASP, how to narrow my choices, etc.And still, when I finally finished the PRAXIS, nearly down to the wire as far as the allocated time, there were still a number of questions for which I had no clue as to whether or not I had responded correctly. It was a humbling experience for someone who had been in the field as long as I had been, who had trained many students, who had taught at a university for many years, etc. I had really resigned myself to re-taking the PRAXIS- I was truly that discouraged.And, then, I got my score - 183. Yes, I killed the PRAXIS!

I recently moved to a state that does not recognize NCSP or out-of-state certification/licensure. So, found myself having to re-take the PRAXIS 25 years after taking it for the first time. The field has changed a lot during those years and, even though I try to remain current, I knew I would probably have to study if I wanted to pass. This book was extremely helpful in guiding my studying. The author clearly suggests that you use several study sources and I did that. He also recommended several helpful resources and the practice tests were very helpful. The most useful aspect of the book was the focus on the way questions might be worded and what TYPES of answers they might be looking for. This was very helpful when I had to choose an answer to, what I considered to be, an unclearly worded question. I just got my official results and I passed with a score of 183 (147 is required in my state and for NCSP). Without this book, I'm not confident that I would have passed.

Recently bought this book to prepare for my Praxis examination. I was pleased with the easy-to-read format of the book and the succinct descriptions and information presented. I read through this entire book and took both practice tests before taking the Praxis exam, and I passed the Praxis with a score of 184. I found the information in this book to be helpful in supplementing what I've learned from my graduate program. The practice tests in this book were more challenging than the Praxis, in my opinion, but they helped me get into the habit of really analyzing each question and the answer choices. I would definitely recommend this book to others to prepare for the School Psychology Praxis, and there were questions on the Praxis that I would not have been able to answer without going through this book.

I recently started back in the field and was informed that I needed to retake the Praxis to get my license because it had been too long since I took it last. I remembered that I used a small study guide from this author when I took it 10 years ago and did really well. I had 2 weeks to relearn the field and 10 years worth of changes. This one has a comprehensive amount of information and is enough when reviewing this, the NASP website, and Praxis website to pass the test. I was glad to order the paper guide because it came with the app, where if you ordered the digital, you did not get free access to the app material. The app material cost as much or more than the book. The reason I gave it 4 stars instead of 5 is that the ebook part of the app is hard to navigate. It is split into sections and it's hard to tell which information you already read. It doesn't flow easy in the app. As far as reading the book itself, it is easy to follow and get a lot of information. The practice questions are the same as the practice test, so it too easy just memorize the answers. Granted I passed the PRAXIS and I am thankful. This book and app were lifesavers.

Once I got into the study groove, this book turned into a great study tool. It was all that I used for the most part, along with online practice tests, and I managed to pass with a great score! I am currently 3 months into my internship, and felt that my experience so far has also been helpful. I definitely should have started studying earlier, but it was all great info. I really studied and practiced the practice tests (in this book and online) several times over. For someone who is not a procrastinator like me, buy the book and start studying about 3 months beforehand as there is so much that you can dive into. I recommend this!

Passed with 40 points of wiggle room and I only used this book to study for a few weeks in advance. Worth every penny in my opinion. The practice questions are actually more challenging than the actual exam, which made me feel confident and decreased a lot of anxiety while taking the real thing.

The main thing you'll need is the practice test in the back. Whatever you miss a lot of questions in, is the section you should go back to read. You could pass the test without this, but I'd but it just to be sure.