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Exam Overview
What is the Praxis Special Education: Severe to Profound (5547) Exam?
The Praxis Special Education: Severe to Profound (5547) Exam is a standardized test designed to assess the knowledge and skills of aspiring and current special education teachers who work with students with severe to profound disabilities. This exam evaluates a candidate’s ability to develop instructional strategies, assess student needs, manage classroom behavior, and comply with special education laws and ethical practices.
Passing the Praxis 5547 is a crucial step for educators seeking certification in special education and demonstrates competency in providing specialized support for students with severe disabilities.
Exam Pattern and Key Details
| Exam Component | Details |
|---|---|
| Test Name | Special Education: Severe to Profound (5547) |
| Administered By | Educational Testing Service (ETS), Praxis program |
| Purpose | Licensure of special education teachers who serve students with severe to profound and multiple disabilities (required by some states) |
| Format | Selected-response questions, including some interactive types (choosing more than one answer, selecting part of a graphic, drag-and-drop) |
| Number of Questions | 120 (some may be unscored pilot questions) |
| Time | 2 hours |
| Score Scale | Scaled scores from 100 to 200 |
| Passing Score | Set by each state; check the ETS Passing Scores by State page |
| Delivery | Computer delivered at a test center or at home with online proctoring |
| Test Fee | $130 |
| Retakes | You may retake the test after 28 days |
Exam Content Breakdown
The Praxis 5547 exam is organized into four content categories. The share of questions in each category comes from the ETS Study Companion for test 5547:
The two practice tests in this guide follow the same weighting: 29, 32, 19 and 20 questions per category in each 100-question test.
| Content Category | What It Covers | Approx. Questions | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| I. Human Development and Individualized Learning Needs | Milestones, adaptive behavior, environmental and biological factors, processing, impact on family and community | 35 | 29% |
| II. Planning and Instruction and the Learning Environment | Systematic instruction, IEP/IFSP goals, transition, community-based instruction, functional academics, AT, health and physical supports | 38 | 32% |
| III. Assessment | Purposes and terminology, eligibility under IDEA, adapted assessment, data collection, progress monitoring, FBA | 23 | 19% |
| IV. Ethical and Legal Practice, Professionalism, and Collaboration | IDEA, ESSA, ADA, procedural safeguards, LRE, equity, professional growth, families, paraprofessionals, co-teaching | 24 | 20% |
Importance of the Praxis Special Education: Severe to Profound (5547) Exam
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