Test Design and 
Test Framework

Field 245: Social Science: Geography

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The test design below describes general test information. The framework that follows is a detailed outline that explains the knowledge and skills that this test measures.

Test Design

Format Computer-based test (CBT)
Number of Questions 100 multiple-choice questions
Time* 3 hours, 15 minutes
Passing Score 240

*Does not include 15-minute CBT tutorial

Test Framework

Pie chart of approximate test weighting outlined in the table below.



Test Subarea Number of Test Objectives Number of Scorable Items Number of Non-Scorable Items subarea weight as percent of total test score
Subarea 1—Social Science Foundational Skills 3 16 4 20 percent
Subarea 2—Social Science Foundational Knowledge 6 32 8 40 percent
Subarea 3—Geographic Concepts and Physical Systems 2 8 2 10 percent
Subarea 4—Human Systems, Ecosystems, and Resources 4 16 4 20 percent
Subarea 5—Interdependence and Geopolitics 2 8 2 10 percent
Totals 17 80 20 100%

Subarea 1—Social Science Foundational Skills

Objective 0001—Understand basic sources, tools, and methods of social science inquiry and interdisciplinary connections among the social sciences.

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Objective 0002—Understand the use of analysis, interpretation, and evaluation in social science inquiry and basic historical concepts.

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Objective 0003—Understand the process of reading, and apply knowledge of strategies for promoting students' reading development in the social science classroom.

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Subarea 2—Social Science Foundational Knowledge

Objective 0004—Understand political concepts, systems, features, and processes in the United States and other world areas.

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Objective 0005—Understand economic concepts and systems, the operation of the U.S. and world economies, and personal finance.

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Objective 0006—Understand major developments and patterns of continuity and change in world history.

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Objective 0007—Understand major developments and patterns of continuity and change in U.S. and Illinois history.

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Objective 0008—Understand tools, concepts, and processes of human and physical geography.

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Objective 0009—Understand concepts, terms, and theories related to human behavior and development, the study of cultures, the structure and organization of human societies, and the processes of social interaction.

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Subarea 3—Geographic Concepts and Physical Systems

Objective 0010—Understand basic geographic terms, concepts, tools, and processes.

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Objective 0011—Understand Earth's physical systems, features, patterns, and processes.

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Subarea 4—Human Systems, Ecosystems, and Resources

Objective 0012—Understand global and regional patterns of population distribution and migration, patterns and processes of human settlement, and contemporary issues related to demographic change.

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Objective 0013—Understand the human characteristics of places, global and regional patterns of culture, and the complexity of Earth's cultural mosaics.

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Objective 0014—Understand the characteristics and spatial distribution of Earth's ecosystems, the effects of human interactions with the environment, and contemporary issues related to human-environment interactions.

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Objective 0015—Understand global and regional patterns of resource distribution and land use and contemporary issues in energy and resource use.

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Subarea 5—Interdependence and Geopolitics

Objective 0016—Understand patterns and networks of economic interdependence and contemporary issues in economic development and interdependence.

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Objective 0017—Understand the political ordering of space and contemporary cultural, ethnic, and geopolitical issues.

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