Customer Reviews

Ftce Elementary Education Competencies and Skills

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This study giude reviews all of the 6 compentcies and associated skills in an in-depth outline form which is easy to read. At the end of the book there are 90 exam questions pertaining to each of the compancies coverd. I found this book essential to a teacher preparing for the Florida Teachers Certification Exam in elementary education.

I purchased this book to study for the K-6 SAE after I recieved the study guide from the University of South Florida. I wanted a book that had all the information I would need to study the many compentencies listed in the USF study guide. I thought this book would do that. To some degree it did, but I found myself looking alot of compentencies up on answers.com because they were not provided in this book. The Social Science section is great! Tons of information there but the science section is very lacking and the lang. arts section left out several key compentencies that are on the test. For the price of the book I would recommend downloading the compentencies and doing your own research. I hope my opinions can be of some help.
Also, I read the other reviews and didn't believe that a study guide worth so much money would really be littered with typos, but it is true. I couldn't believe it.

First, let me tell you where I am coming from in this review. I was a music major, not an education major. I am switching career areas after attaining a BA in music. I have taken no education classes, but am good with children and have a high interest and willingness to learn. I have already taken and passed the General Knowledge (GK) portion of the FTCE and will be taking the K-6 shortly. Now that you know my situation, here's my opinion:

+1 STAR: Tons of information... from the formation of mountains to linear algebra to physical fitness, it's all here. No lack of content.
-1 STAR: Quite possibly TOO much content. It's a bit intimidating and - if you're not sure what will be on the subject area exam and you didn't take teaching classes and you don't remember a lot of what you were taught in middle and high school - you'll find yourself trying to cram a ton of information in.
+1 STAR: Well organized and easy to follow... for the most part.
+1 STAR: Explains essential terms non-teaching majors haven't heard before. (Despite the book's warning that it assumes you've had teaching classes, you can still understand it.)
+1 STAR: It's just been tough to find an FTCE K-6 study guide... it deserves a star for just being available.
-1 STAR: The thing that bothered me the MOST - so much I should actually take 2 stars off - there are a lot of glaring errors any editor over the age of eight should have been able to catch. Misspellings, grammatical errors and incorrect punctuations are sprinkled throughout the entire book. The editing is, by far, the worst part of the book, in my opinion. It makes it difficult to take the book seriously.
+1 STAR: Just because it's still not bad enough for 2 stars.

Overall, I'm happy I found this book. But it DOES raise doubts for me - a study aid for potential teachers that contains such a careless editing job kind of bothers me. (It also doesn't help that I feel I may be trying to remember too much - some things that were already covered in the General Knowledge Exam that I might not even need to know for this one. Again, I could be wrong.)

In short, if you have an idea of what you need to know, or just need brushing up (and can overlook spelling/editing errors), this book is fine. If you have no idea of what to expect on the exam, I'm not suggesting you DON'T get this book - just be prepared for a lot of information being thrown at you. Make sure you reserve plenty of time to study up and don't try to cram. And have a highlighter ready - taking notes takes way too much time. (And just remember - when it comes to writing, do as they say, not as they do. :)

I purchased this book to prepare for the Florida K-6 Elementary Teacher Certification Exam based on the other reviews. Although I can't say that the book isn't a worthy guide for some of the certification exams, it isn't subject matter based and the emphasis is on theories and approaches to education. The exam I have to take emphasizes actual subject area content and this book is not helpful for that at all. In order to study for the subject area certification, I recommend a GED review guide.

The title of this book is: "FTCE Elementary Education K-6: Teacher Certification Exam" and you may purchase it thinking that it would be a great study guide for the FLORIDA ELEMENTARY K-6 SUBJECT AREA EXAM. But please, beware...

I took the Florida Elementary Education K-6 Subject Area test YESTERDAY and NOTHING in this book is ON THE TEST. This book is filled with concepts taught in teacher education courses and you have to work out ACTUAL problems from content areas on the FLORIDA ELEMENTARY K-6 SUBJECT AREA TEST.

A better idea is to look on the DOE's website and look up the competency's and do a search for the info online that you don't know (I wanted to review the US Amendments and branches of government before I went). You can also purchase a study guide (even download it) that has a 100 question practice test that IS like the real thing. Study from the things you missed on the pretest, but PLEASE don't buy this book thinking that it is a study guide for the FLORIDA K-6 ELEMENTARY SUBJECT AREA EXAM.

I just got through taking the K-6 test three hours ago, and I am extremely disappointed. Not only did I pay too much for this study guide, I wasted valuable time studying and wading through the many errors and typos in this book. The only thing from this book that was actually helpful on the test was the math! I could have gotten a review of that from any old textbook. Save your time and money, just do research online.

Aside from the design being totally basic (black and white outline format), there were many typos and incorrect word placements. I thought one of the exercises would be to edit and proof the whole manual and sadly, it wasn't. I did not enjoy reading this material and am currently searching for another resource to pass the exam.

This book is very outdated. The competencies have changed completely. It is ok for a general review.

I purchased this book to prepare for the Florida K-6 Elementary Teacher Certification Exam. Although I can't say that the book isn't a worthy guide for some of the certification exams, the exam I have to take emphasizes actual subject area content and this book is not helpful for that at all. Don't waste your money buying this book.