Santa Clara University's Center for Professional Development is committed to providing our students with an exceptional level of support, and we understand that passing certification exams is a crucial step in the path to becoming a teacher. That’s why we’re pleased to partner with Teachers Test Prep, the nationwide leader in credentialing test preparation, to provide our eligible students with Core Plus Online Prep for the Praxis, CSET, CBEST, RICA, and CPACE, at a 40% discount off of the regular test prep materials price.

To get started, please contact cpd@scu.edu to request that an account be created on your behalf, so that you may utilize free practice questions and diagnostics to determine if you are in need of prep. Once you complete your free practice test, you will receive an instant diagnostic breakdown. If your likelihood of passing is borderline or below, we will purchase the corresponding online prep program for you at a discounted price.

PLEASE NOTE: If you do not contact us and instead purchase prep directly on your own, we are unable to reimburse for costs.

To learn more about the prep resources available and to see general info about the exams, visit the Praxis, CSET, CBEST, RICA, and CPACE test info pages on the Teachers Test Prep website.

If you have questions or are interested in purchasing a test prep package, please contact cpd@scu.edu.

Timothy Porter is an Army veteran of 10 years. He achieved the rank of Sergeant First Class within 7 years. After being involved in a bomb explosion, Porter was medically retired and began pursuing his passion: technology. In 2009, after teaching himself how to develop mobile apps, Appddiction Studio was formed. In 2011, Appddiction Studio was nationally recognized by the USA Network Channel. Porter was one of their USA Character Unite Award winners for developing an award-winning anti-bullying App for schools. Appddiction Studio has developed well over 200 commercial mobile apps and has become a leader in Enterprise transformations focusing on Agile and the SAFe Framework.

Porter has multiple degrees in Management Information Systems and holds an MBA. He is an SPC and RTE and has performed roles for Appddiction Studio as Scaled program Consultant, Enterprise Coach & Trainer, Agile Coach, Release Train Engineer to Scrum Master. Appddiction Studio has been performing for programs supporting Gunter AFB as a Prime Contractor in: Agile Coaching, EODIMS JST & EODIMS Backlog Burndown and now as a subcontractor on ACES FoS.

Porter has taught over 50 public/private SAFe classes and has submitted his packet for consideration to become SPCT Gold Partner. He is certified at all levels of SAFe Framework and teaches Leading SAFe, SAFe Scrum Master, Advanced Scrum Master, Lean Portfolio Management, Product Owner/Product Management, SAFe DevOps, SAFe Architect in addition to Agile courses like ICAgile Agile Fundamentals, ICAgile Agile Team Facilitation, ICAgile Agile Programming & ICAgile DevOps Foundations.

In the ever-evolving landscape of test preparation, a new player has sprouted on the scene – artificial intelligence.

At the forefront of this movement is a Korean start-up, Riiid, founded by YJ Jang, a graduate of the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley. Riiid has already made a name for itself in the Asian test-prep market for the TOEIC, a measure of English proficiency in the business world. Now, the company has set its sights on the American market with an SAT and ACT prep system called R.Test.

A.I. technology, with its mimicry of the networks of neurons in the human brain, has the potential to revolutionize the way educators approach their craft.

“R.Test makes it easy for students to solve practice problems, as well as read the explanations to help fill gaps in knowledge,” said Kelly Jung, a 9th grade student at Lighthouse International School in Korea who has tried the product. “The post-test analysis was the most helpful part of the test, as it helped highlight both my weaknesses and strengths, allowing me to streamline my studying moving forward."

This is not the first time the world has seen the integration of technology in the classroom. In the 1960s, the earliest forms of computer tutoring systems were developed, but their prohibitive cost and lack of widespread access limited their impact. Decades later, rule-based A.I. systems were implemented, but they failed to live up to their potential due to scalability issues and the high cost of programming extensive domain expertise.

It was at Berkeley where Jang was introduced to the game-changing potential of deep learning. This form of A.I. allows algorithms to learn on their own, drawing from vast amounts of data. Jang recognized the implications of this technology for education, and upon returning to Korea, he founded Riiid in 2014. The company's team of data scientists have developed A.I. algorithms that track student performance, predict scores and anticipate when students may disengage. Through the use of their popular test-prep app, Santa, Riiid has amassed one of the largest public education data sets in the world, known as EdNet.

However, the task of gathering enough data to make A.I. applicable to the broader field of education remains a challenge. For now, Riiid focuses on the lucrative test-prep market, where data is more readily available, easily collectable and has partnered with educational companies around the world to develop test-prep apps.

The company's success has attracted a substantial investment from SoftBank's Vision Fund II, bringing Riiid's funding to over $250 million. With the upcoming release of their A.I.-powered R.test platform for college entrance exams, Riiid has the potential to drastically change the way students prepare for their future.

While there is no shortage of SAT or ACT test-prep offerings, none assess students based on immediate data. Khan Academy’s SAT test prep, for example, connects to College Board, administrator of the SAT, and assesses student weaknesses based on their last test – usually the PSAT. But that data can be months old.

R.Test relies on live data collected as students use the system. With the R.Test, students can quickly get their predicted scores for the full test just answering 30 questions, and learn actionable insights that include weaknesses and even test habits.

R.Test is “very targeted to your current work,” noted Oscar Torres, a high school math teacher in Chicago who has tried Riiid’s system. “That's what I liked.”

The Law School Admission Test (LSAT) is a 3 1/2 hour standardized test that is comprised of studying comprehension, analytical reasoning, and logical reasoning questions. The purpose of the LSAT is to show law schools that applicants possesses skills in each of the areas that are essential to a student’s success in law school.

The LSAT is an integral part of the law school admission process and is required on all applications. The test is administered four times each year through LSAC at designated testing centers.

Divided into five 35-minute sections of multiple-choice questions, the LSAT focuses on five specific sections that have been allocated accordingly, (1) studying Comprehension Section
(2) Analytical Reasoning Section 
(3) Two Logical Reasoning Sections

In addition to these four sections is an unscored fifth section that would complete the multiple-choice questions. The unscored section, also known as the variable section, typically is used to pretest new test questions or prepare new test forms. This section of the test will not be disclosed until you receive your results. The placement of each section throughout the test will be spastic and vary based on the test. Furthermore, a 35-minute, unscored writing demo is administered at the end of the test. The unscored writing demo is sent to each law school as part of the application.

The LSAC describes the design of the LSAT to be, “to measure skills that are considered essential for success in law school: the studying and comprehension of complex texts with accuracy and insight; the organization and management of information and the ability to draw reasonable inferences from it; the ability to think critically; and the analysis and evaluation of the reasoning and arguments of others.”

All students should only take the LSAT once they feel fully prepared.

The test is administered four times a year leaving flexibility for students who do not feel fully prepared. Students who have selected a test date should begin preparing at minimum 3 – 6 months prior to the test date.

Students are able to access free LSAT preparation materials through CamelLink and LSAC.org. These preparation materials include demo questions with explanations, test preparation videos, the ability to familiarize yourself with test instructions and question types, and practice tests. The use of these materials is highly encouraged.