Massachusetts Test Requirements

The Massachusetts Commissioner of Elementary and Secondary Education, on behalf of the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, has approved the Reading and Writing sections of the Praxis Core Academic Skills for Educators (Core), referred to as the Communication and Literacy test, as an alternative to the Communication and Literacy Skills (CLST) MTEL during a regulatory pilot period. Teacher candidates, or those wishing to become certified, may take the Communication and Literacy test as an alternative to the CLST MTEL. To see additional information about testing requirements in Massachusetts, please see the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education website.

Get information on sending your scores to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Find your certification area below to determine which test(s) you need to take. For test prep materials, click the test title. Once you know which tests you should take, schedule your test.

Unless it’s specifically stated that a calculator is permitted or required for a particular test, you can’t use a calculator on any Praxis tests (see Calculator Use).

To Be Certified in

All Areas

You may take the following as an alternative to the Communication and Literacy Skills MTEL	Test Code	Qualifying Score
Communication and Literacy: Reading	5714	156
and
Communication and Literacy: Writing	5724	162
If you wish to take both computer-delivered Communication and Literacy subtests (5714 and 5724) at the same time, select Communication and Literacy Combined Test (5753) when registering. Scores will be reported by individual and combined tests.
or
Core Academic Skills for Educators: Reading	5713	156
and
Core Academic Skills for Educators: Writing	5723	162
Scores taken on the previous versions of the Core Academic Skills for Educators: Reading (5712) and the Core Academic Skills for Educators: Writing (5722) will also be accepted.

Tests required for specific licensure areas

Academic PreK-12 Licenses

The Massachusetts Board of Elementary and Secondary Education has approved a regulatory pilot aimed to create and evaluate increased flexibility in assessments for educator licensure. This regulatory amendment is designed to identify and pilot alternative mechanisms for assessing knowledge and skills and be responsive to feedback from the field while continuing to maintain a high bar for all educators.

This entails the approval of two alternative assessments from ETS with specific eligibility requirements. The assessments will be accepted through a pilot period for educators who meet specific eligibility requirements. The approved assessments include:

English to Speakers of Other Languages (5362)
Physical Education: Content and Design (5095)

To register for the tests, log into your Praxis account.

Candidate Eligibility

To take the assessments, candidates must meet the following requirements:

Educators must have a bachelor’s degree, and
Educators must meet one of the following three qualifications:
- Taught for at least 1 school year in the field of the test they seek to take under a waiver, an emergency license, and/or a temporary license
- Taught for at least 1 school year in the field of the test they seek to take at a charter school, a collaborative, an approved special education school or a private school that uses the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks
- Served for at least 1 school year in a paraprofessional role or as a long-term substitute in a classroom in a Massachusetts public school, collaborative, an approved special education school, or a private school that uses the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks in the field of the test they seek to take.

Educators are required to submit proof of the above requirements to ETS during the test registration process. The registration process explains how to document proof of eligibility. As candidates register and take these alternative assessments, results are electronically and securely sent to the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.

Due to these eligibility requirements, the Department is not accepting scores for tests registered for or taken before October 26, 2022.

For questions about the alternative assessments to the MTEL, please email the Department:

Email:

testhelp@doe.mass.edu

For licensure questions, please contact the Licensure Office Call Center:

Phone:

1-781-338-6600

Monday–Friday 9 a.m.–1 p.m. and 2 p.m.–5 p.m.

To Be Certified in	You Need to Take	Test Code	Qualifying Score
English as a Second Language (PreK-6, 5-12)	English to Speakers of Other Languages	5362	155
Physical Education (PreK-8, 5-12)	Physical Education: Content and Design	5095	169

This page is a supplement to The Praxis^® Tests Information Bulletin (PDF).