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Exam Overview
The exam is part of the Texas Examinations of Educator Standards (TExES) program, administered for the Texas Education Agency (TEA) by its testing contractor, Pearson, through the Texas Educator Certification Examination Program. Passing it is one of the requirements for the Texas Physical Education: Early Childhood–Grade 12 certificate.
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Test code and name | 258 · Physical Education EC–12 |
| Format | Computer-administered test (CAT) delivered at a test center |
| Questions | 90 selected-response questions, each with four answer choices, and 1 constructed-response question |
| Appointment time | 5 hours total: 15 minutes for the tutorial and compliance agreement and 4 hours 45 minutes of testing time for both parts |
| Scoring | Scaled scores from 100 to 300; the passing score is 240 |
| Unscored items | Some selected-response questions may be tried out for future use and do not count toward the score; they are not identified |
| Guessing | No penalty for wrong answers; answer every question |
| Fee | $136 (additional fees may apply) |
| Where and when | By appointment year-round at test sites in Texas and nationwide; first come, first served |
The Five Domains and Thirteen Competencies
The framework divides the exam into five domains. Domains I through IV are tested with selected-response questions and contain three competencies each, numbered 001 through 012. Domain V is the constructed-response question, competency 013. Each competency is described by a list of statements that say what a beginning teacher must know and be able to do. The percentages are approximate shares of the total score.
| Domain | Weight | Competencies |
|---|---|---|
| I · Movement Knowledge and Skills | 22% | 001 Motor development and motor learning · 002 Movement concepts and biomechanics · 003 Movement activities and sports |
| II · Health-Related Fitness | 22% | 004 Principles of personal fitness and conditioning · 005 Development of health-related fitness · 006 Health and wellness |
| III · The Physical Education Program | 22% | 007 Instruction and assessment in physical education · 008 Learning environments · 009 Organization and management |
| IV · Educating All Learners and Professional Practice | 13% | 010 Differentiation strategies in planning and practice · 011 Strategies to support effective learning environments · 012 Data-driven practice and formal and informal assessment |
| V · Constructed Response | 20% | 013 Designing and implementing instruction to achieve a TEKS learning objective, in a written response |
- Domains I, II, and III are equal. No content area can be skipped, and none should take over your schedule.
- The single constructed-response question is worth about as much as an entire selected-response domain. Practice writing it under time.
- Domain IV is the smallest, but its ideas (differentiation, accommodations, assessment, emergent bilingual students) are also what a strong constructed response is made of.
Question Types You Will See
The Constructed-Response Question
The constructed-response question gives a class description and one or more TEKS student expectations. A typical assignment asks you to state and justify a learning objective, describe one instructional activity with its strategies, equipment, and progressions, explain why it is developmentally appropriate and effective, identify a likely student challenge and how you would differentiate, and describe an assessment of both understanding and skill. Responses are scored from 1 to 4 for completion, application of content, and support. Section 5 teaches the method, and four practice tasks follow the practice tests.
Scoring and Score Reports
Selected-response and constructed-response results are combined and converted to a scaled score from 100 to 300, and 240 is passing. The scaled score is not a percentage: the raw performance needed varies slightly from one test form to another so that every form is equally difficult to pass. Score reports are posted to your online account on the score-report date published for your test date and show your overall result and your performance by domain and competency. Exams that include a constructed-response question take longer to score than exams with selected-response questions only.
Registration and Retakes
Becoming a Certified Texas Physical Education Teacher
Passing the 258 content exam is one step. Candidates must also hold a bachelor's degree, complete an approved educator preparation program, pass the required pedagogy assessment for their certification route, and complete fingerprinting and a criminal history review. Confirm the current requirements with TEA and your preparation program, because certification rules are periodically revised.
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