After you have fulfilled the necessary prerequisite coursework and teacher preparation, every state has a teacher certification test that you must pass in order to receive your teacher certification. It is likely that your teacher certification test will be administered by either Educational Testing Services (ETS) or the Evaluation Systems group of Pearson Education. ETS administers the Praxis Test, which is a uniform test offered throughout the United States. Pearson Education offers customized testing programs for individual states. A teacher certification test consists of general knowledge questions in a range of academic subjects. After you have passed the teacher certification test in the state where you wish to teach, you can obtain the certification to teach additional subjects by passing the appropriate certification examination.
Many states honor the teacher certification tests of other states. If this is the case, you can receive your teacher certification in a second state without having to pass that state’s teacher certification test. A complete list of what states accept teacher certification tests from other states can be found by using the interactive teaching map of the United States on Certification Map.