Praxis II: Mathematics Content Knowledge Test: 0061

This book is a very detailed and thorough list of the material covered on the exam, as compared with the Praxis website material. It is not a review of the material content but it does have helpful descriptions of the expected materials and formats of possible questions. There are three practice tests to help you find your weak areas to determine what you need to study. One disappointment with the practice tests is that they were not necessarily representative of the three actual exams that I took. It would have been much more valuable to have five or six tests to better represent the possibility of providing questions you see on the actual test. In addition, as you practice you tend to memorize the questions so that the more different tests the better. Luckily, ETS' study guide has practice tests, too. There are few materials for studying for this test so this is very valuable tool.

I used this book as my only study aid in preparing for the November 2006 PRAXIS II Math Exam (0061). This book is very thorough and gets right to the point, providing all the definitions, theorems, formulas, etc. that you need to know. I only completed one of the practice tests, but glanced through the others. My only complaint is that the practice tests are easier than what I saw on the actual exam. As a matter of fact, one of the practice test questions was the exact same question I saw on the **MIDDLE SCHOOL** Math PRAXIS II (0069) that I took the same day. However, if you take time to go through each section (and don't wait until the last minute to cram), you should do fine on the High School Math PRAXIS II (0061). I have never had any discrete math, but as a result of studying that section in this book, I got every discrete math question right on the test. As a matter of fact, I got a 190 (the test is scored on a 100-200 scale, 128-157 was the middle 50% on this edition, and 165 is always the 85th percentile) on my first attempt as a result of using this book, so if I can pull that off using this guide, I'm sure others can have the same success. The only thing that I could see as a potential turn off to some people is the fact that the topic sections do not contain any examples (only definitions, theorems, and formulas). The only examples you'll see are what is on the practice tests (each question has an explained solution in the answer key section).

Some comments: Other reviewers had good points: book does not show enough examples in the review section. This would be the quickest way to get a point across. Book has some typos and incorrect answers in sample tests. Tests in this book seemed easier than actual Praxis. Some good points: Book is very focused on the 0061 test - inexpensive way to focus effort on useful subjects. This book was more useful than the programmable calculator I bought for the test. FWIW, I have an engineering background have not taken a math class in about 20 years, studied for a week with this manual and got a 192. One disclaimer: I'm good at taking standardized tests.

This book is great. It is cheap and it tells you all the areas you need to review to do well on the PRAXIS II exam. That is not to say that it is a thorough review of everything in math up to calculus. It is not intended for that. It is intended to show you what concepts you need to understand as a teacher. I used this book to help me focus what I needed to brush up on. The best approach for this book is to go through the review section first. If you find something that you are a little rusty on, pull out your old textbook on that subject and go through the section covering it. After doing this take the first practice test. Then review any areas you may have done poorly on while taking the practice test. Take the last two practice tests a week or two apart from each other as your test date approaches. I followed this strategy and got a score of 167 the first time, well over the 141 I needed for Maryland. Remember the math content exam is a long test and you may not be able to complete it on time. Don't worry though, take your time. Most of the problems are not overly difficult; they just take many steps and require you to pull different areas of mathematical thinking together. Keep a clear head and you'll do fine. Also, buy this book! It is well worth the money just for the practice tests in the back.