Customer Reviews

CliffsTestPrep Praxis II: Social Studies Content Knowledge Test (0081)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(14)

 

 

I'm required to take a test in New York State called the Content Specialty Test (CST) in Social Studies, which is very similar the Praxus exam. Therefore, I've been preparing for it by using this guide. So far, in taking the practice tests within I've come across some very odd questions, but this particular one below makes me doubt the validity of the entire book.
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55. One historical lesson from the McCarthy era is the realization that

A. loyalty oaths prevent spying

B. communism is influential in prosperous times.

C. communist agents had infiltrated all levels of the U.S. government

D. public fear of traitors can lead to intolerance and discrimination.

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Okay, A and B are obviously wrong, which leaves C and D. Personally, I chose "D" as the correct answer. Yet, the guide lists "C" as the correct answer. Now, I know that recent research has uncovered evidence that our government did indeed have communist spies hiding in various agencies during that era, but I would think that the LESSON of the McCarthy era would be more in line with answer D.

Then, this is the explanation provided for answer 55 in the guide....

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55. C. Think about the definiton of McCarthyism, the use of unsubstantiated accusations to discredit people. So, you're looking for the answer that best relates to this definition.

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The explanation for "C" as the correct answer contradicts itself.

I've forwarded this question and others like it from the guide to a highly respected history professor at Lehman College-CUNY in NYC. He and his wife (also an educator) have advised me to steer clear of this guide, as they find it filled with typographical errors which may negatively influence my test results.

I hope that this review is helpful.

For my personal needs, this book was perfect. I am an English teacher & have only had 12 hours of undergraduate history courses. I have always been interested in history, so I decided to take the Praxis 2 in Social Studies. This book offers a basic overview of every section that will be on the test. There is no in-depth information here, but, then again, the Praxis 2 is not exactly an in-depth assessment. It will only test a very rudimentary knowledge of your content area.

It seems that most of the negative reviews are from history majors who felt this book was too basic. This book probably is too basic for a history major & would likely be a waste of money. If you are not a history major or it has been awhile since you have been in school, I would highly recommend this book. Otherwise, you could probably pass the test without even studying, as I did with the Praxis 2 in English.

This book was pretty much worthless in preparing for the exam. The actual exam was much harder than the practice versions in the book, which almost always had at least one "ridiculous" choice that you could eliminate easily. Not so on the real test. And the content review is kind of laughable. If you're not conversant with the content, you're not going to get there by reading a few bullet points about history or economics. I don't know if there are any viable alternatives, but I would steer clear of this one.

Awful. Embarrassing. The Subject Area Review is poorly written, contains contradictions, leaves out incredibly important details, and, in some places, is simply inaccurate. It is also egregiously inconsistent in the way it presents information.

CliffsTestPrep needs to find a Historian who possesses both the substantive knowledge and the ability to present it in a consistent and effective manner.

Shana Pate (Ph.D.?!!!!) needs to find another career.

This is one of the WORST sources of test preparation I have ever seen. The questions in no way resemble the actual test, in terms of higher order thinking, or organization. A sharp stick in the eye would be a better way to prepare yourself for this exam then buying this book

I found out that I passed the NJ Praxis 2 exam which I took in October of 2008.

The Social Studies test contains questions on American History, European History, Sociology, Geography and Economics and I relied on the book for everything except History. Since History is what I want to teach, I didn't want to take shortcuts with my knowledge so I prepared for teaching and consequently for the Praxis by reading the entire Oxford History of the United States collection (comprising of "A Glorious Cause", "Almost A Miracle", "What Hath God Wrought", "Battle Cry of Freedom", "Freedom from Fear", "Grand Expectations" and "Restless Giant"). I also lucked out and read Hsu's Oxford History of China - I say I lucked out because I had almost 15 questions on Chinese history on my exam. I read quite a bit more than just these books, but reading these will basically guarantee you passing the exam. The European History questions were ridiculously basic questions.

If you read only this book and expect to pass the test, you will probably fail. It is not a substitute for the long hours of reading or school work. But from my experience, it is good enough to rely on for the geography, sociology and economics part of the test.

As some other reviewers pointed out, many of the history questions contain wrong answers in the answer key. Don't rely on it blindly. If something raises a flag, double check the author. But the best policy is to take your teaching craft seriously and know as much as possible from as many scholarly sources as possible before you take the test.

Good luck.

I purchased this book to help me review for the Praxis II. I can not express any more strongly how opposed I am to anyone else buying this book. The text is wrought with grammatical errors-- I counted at least ten while reviewing. Also, many questions are ambiguous and ill-formed. The answer key itself has errors on it as it is missing some of the numbers needed for filling in while taking the practice test.
SHORT SUMMARY: DO NOT FOR ANY REASON PURCHASE THIS GUIDE-- IT IS ABSOLUTELY WORTHLESS AND FULL OF ERRORS.

I used this book to study for my recent Praxis examination. The format is friendly, with review information first, practice tests second. However, there are innumerable problems in the practice test--the question mentioned in the other review about McCarthyism is one of the many eyebrow raising-questions--that are not limited to typos or grammatical errors. The content reviewed leaves out an extraordinary amount of information. I just took the test yesterday and there were at least twenty questions on the Praxis itself that concern topics which the CliffsTest didn't even mention, much less provide background information. Even the practice tests that Cliffs itself provides ask about information that is not present in the first half of the text.
A complete and utter waste of time--I would recommend using several more detailed books about each area of content on the Praxis instead of this text.

Here is a good quote that really sums up the quality of this book. Part I: Subject Area Review: United States History, page 30, "Christopher Columbus sought financial backing for a sea route to Asia. In 1492, King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain agreed to give Columbus the funding to reach Asia by going east around Africa, so he and his three ships - the Nina, the Pinta, and the Santa Maria - finally left Spain." That is just sad. Ferdinand agreed to finance Columbus's plan (radical at the time) to sail west, directly to Asia, not around Africa.

I have not yet taken the Praxis II: Social Studies Content Knowledge Test (0081), but I do know from the first thirty pages of this book that it is totally worthless. I am scheduled to take the exam this Saturday. I signed up for the first available exam and paid extra for the last minute signup fee. I searched through the local bookstores and found this to be the only Praxis Text 0081 study guide available. I wanted to buy a book with practice tests instead of downloading something from the internet (that would be more expensive from dubious websites). I really regret buying this book and wish that I had read through it before I left the store. The information in it is very common knowledge with vague summaries of content anyone needing to take the test would already know. I am very knowledgeable about world history and American history but my memory is fuzzy on exact dates and I was hopping it would have been possible to brush up on them but there are very few actual dates given, everything is surmised in time spans of several hundred years leaving gaping holes of important events. In those summaries there are at least one or two important people mentioned or listed (I can think of many more that would possibly appear on the real test) but no supporting information about why they are important. I was really hoping for some good information in the Political Science, Economics, and Behavioural Science categories because I am worried I may not be familiar with all the terms and key people in these areas. From what I read in the History section, I really don't think I can place any trust in these sections for test preparation. Since the test is so soon I do not have time to go online to find another book, I can only just hope for the best and go online for a better resource if I do not pass with a high enough score on those sections. For the Praxis I Math, Reading, and Writing test I used Barron's test prep book. It was actually helpful (I had forgotten much of my math) and the practice tests and advice throughout reflected closely to the testing experience I went through, except that the test times were actually longer than the time listed in Baron's (no complaints from me on that!). This Cliffs Test Prep book does not even say that the test is timed nor if the sections are timed independently or if it is all at once! I still don't know! I'd be a lot better off gauging myself against a set time, especially if it is slightly shorter than the real test - then I will feel a bit relief when I have more time than expected on the test day. Stay away from this book. If I end up looking for something better after the test I will update this post with a alternative resource suggestion.

As a recent college graduate working towards a teaching certificate, i got this book to help me study for the Praxis test(s). But honestly, who did they get to edit this book?, a mentally challenged monkey? An ESL student? Seriously?! Im a history person, and not all that great when it comes to picking up on gramatical errors, but i found at least a dozen! Including skipping an entire number on the answer sheet (106, 107, 109...108 anyone??) for test number 1. While the content seemed okay, the grammer and some rather ambigious questions really makes me doubt this book's creditability. Dont buy it!