Educator Candidate / Test-Taker Information

Testing vendors administer tests. You must have the approval to test unless you are a Pre-Admission Content Test (PACT) candidate.

TEA does not review or endorse test preparation material beyond what the testing company may have on its website. For assistance with test preparation, contact an Educator Preparation Program, school district, or a regional service center.

There are currently three testing vendors for obtaining Texas certification.

Pearson

Pearson (outside source) administers the Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES), the American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS), the TX PACT (Pre- Admission content test), the edTPA pilot exams, and the Texas Assessment of Sign Communications (TASC and TASC-ASL).

Program policies (outside source) provide rules and procedures related to testing, registration, and score reporting.
Preparation materials (outside source) provide test information, sample questions, and general test-taking strategies.
Alternative Testing Arrangements (outside source) are available for those needing special testing accommodations.

Phone, email, and chat support are available through the Pearson Customer Contact Center using the information found on the Contact Us page on the program website.

The American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages

American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (outside source), through its testing division Language Testing International (LTI) (outside source), administers tests in a number of languages for Texas teachers, for use with Bilingual Education and Languages Other Than English (LOTE) certificates. Each language certificate requires an Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) and a Writing Proficiency Test (WPT). LTI cannot send scores to TEA for exams that are older than five years.

The Oral Proficiency Interview by Computer (OPIc) will not be accepted in place of the OPI.
Call LTI at 1-800-486-8444 for registration assistance.
American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL)

Foreign Language and Bilingual Exams

Arabic - LOTE and Bilingual
Chinese (Mandarin) - LOTE and Bilingual
Hindi - LOTE only
Italian - LOTE only
Japanese - LOTE and Bilingual
Korean - LOTE only
Portuguese - LOTE only
Russian - LOTE only
Turkish - LOTE only
Vietnamese - LOTE and Bilingual

Texas passing standards on ACTFL tests

Applicants needing to take a PACT exam in Arabic, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Turkish, or Vietnamese must have an EPP submit their request to TEA through the Help Desk.

ETS

ETS administers the Performance Assessment for School Leaders (PASL).

Frequently Asked Questions about the PASL are available.
Preparation materials include a PASL candidate and educator handbook, submission system user guide, assessment overview, virtual or hybrid environment guidance, plan template, observation form walk-through, and more that are valuable resources for completing the assessment.
Alternative Testing Arrangements are available for test takers with disabilities or health-related needs.
Out of State candidates will be asked to select an Educator Preparation Program during registration. Select “Texas” from the Select State drop-down list and then select the “Prepared Out of State (TX) (6918)” listing from the Educator Preparation Program drop-down list.

Call ETS at 1-855-628-5088 for assistance. You can also email ETS at pasl@ets.org.

Test Scores and Reports

You may locate test scores in your Texas Education Agency online account and by contacting the testing companies.

Official Scores and Reports

View and print tests taken Sept. 1, 2006, or later, through your account on the Texas Educator Certification Examination Program website (outside source).
Call 1-800-486-8444 for tests taken through the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL).
Call 1-800-424-8080 for tests taken through the American Association for Family and Consumer Sciences (AAFCS).
View all examination results in your online educator account. Log in to your educator account and select View Examinations.

Test Verification Letter and Form Completion Requests

You may request a verification letter for tests taken before Sept. 1, 2006. TEA will issue an educator or educator candidate a state-sealed letter verifying their testing record. Please allow approximately three weeks for processing. To get started, use our online request submission system. If a form needs to be filled out, ensure it is included with your online request.

NOTE: As of June 2024, TEA will only provide electronic copies of the Test Verification Letter and forms from other states. Physical copies will no longer be sent by mail.

Sample Test Verification Letter

Test Center Comments/Complaints

If you have comments or complaints about the test center or the conditions under which you took a test, please submit them in writing to Pearson as specified below:

Test center comments/complaints must be submitted directly to Pearson in writing by email, or mail.
Comments/complaints must be submitted or postmarked no later than seven days after your test session.
Comments/complaints filed with the test administrator will not be acted upon.

Texas Educator Certification Examination Program
Pearson
P.O. Box 660
Amherst, MA 01004-9001

Email: Send Pearson a message using their online contact form found by clicking on the " General Questions and Submitting Comments" link. Please allow 2-3 business days for a response.

Test Limit Waiver Information

Test takers are limited to 5 attempts on any certification test under Texas Education Code §21.048(a-1). The State Board for Educator Certification has defined the waiver application process in Chapter 230, Subchapter C of the Texas Administrative Code and authorized TEA staff to administer the waiver process. Learn more.