This CTEL 2 cheat sheet distills subtest 032 — Assessment and Instruction — into a printable rundown of the facts the CTC and Pearson test most. It's a premium cheat sheet built by Capital Prep — the one premium prep we trust — and it's yours free. Reinforce it with the rest of your free CTEL 2 toolkit: the practice test, study guide, and flashcards.
CTEL 2 exam at a glance
- Certifying body: California Commission on Teacher Credentialing (CTC), delivered by Pearson
- Format: 60 multiple-choice questions + 2 constructed-response (essay) assignments
- Time: 2 hours 45 minutes
- Scaled score range: 100 to 300
- Passing score: 220 (each subtest passed independently)
- Section weighting: Multiple choice ~70%, constructed response ~30%
- Cost: About $147 for CTEL 2 alone; ~$260 to schedule all three subtests together — verify current fees
What’s on the CTEL 2 cheat sheet
- Assessment of English Learners (~25%) — purposes of assessment, Initial vs. Summative ELPAC, formative vs. summative, rubrics, portfolios, and reducing cultural/linguistic bias.
- Foundations of Language & Literacy (~42%) — the largest domain — Krashen, Cummins (BICS/CALP), Vygotsky, language transfer, and the CA ELD Standards (Emerging, Expanding, Bridging).
- Approaches & Methods for ELD/Content (~33%) — ELD vs. SDAIE, sheltered instruction and SIOP, scaffolding, and program models (immersion, transitional, dual-language).
How to use it in your final week
- Cement the theorists first: Krashen (comprehensible input at i + 1, affective filter, silent period), Cummins (BICS 1–3 years vs. CALP 5–7 years, transfer), and Vygotsky (ZPD → scaffolding) — the Foundations domain is the largest MC share (~42%).
- Drill the ELD-vs-SDAIE line until it's automatic: ELD makes English the objective; SDAIE teaches grade-level content comprehensibly with sheltering (SIOP). Match each scenario to the lesson's objective.
- Read the assessment strip the morning of the test — separate language proficiency from content knowledge, Initial vs. Summative ELPAC, and rubrics/portfolios to reduce bias.
- Rehearse the two constructed-response essays (30% of your scaled score): practice explaining why an assessment or method fits, then pair each review pass with a short timed MC set to keep pacing for the 2-hour-45-minute limit.
The cheat sheet is your review layer — your CTEL 2 practice test drives the exam-readiness ring at the top of this page. Download it, review, then take a full practice exam (or drill with the study guide and flashcards) to see where you stand.
CTEL 2 cheat sheet FAQ
Yes — the CTEL 2 cheat sheet is 100% free to download as a PDF, with no sign-up required. It sits alongside Career Employer's free CTEL 2 practice test, study guide, and flashcards for subtest 032.
It condenses the highest-yield facts from all three domains of subtest 032: EL assessment and the ELPAC, second-language acquisition theory (Krashen, Cummins, Vygotsky), and ELD versus SDAIE instructional methods — plus the score you need and the exam format.
You need a scaled score of 220 on a 100–300 scale to pass CTEL 2. The multiple-choice section counts about 70% of that scaled score and the two constructed-response essays about 30%, and each subtest is passed independently.
No — the cheat sheet is a review and last-week cram aid, not a full course. Use it to lock in the theorists and the ELD/SDAIE distinction, then work the practice test and rehearse the two constructed-response essays, which the sheet alone cannot build.
Click the download button (or the preview card) at the top of this page to open the PDF instantly. Bookmark this page so you can find it again in the final week before your Pearson VUE appointment.
References
- 1.California Commission on Teacher Credentialing / Pearson. “CTEL Program — Test Structure & Test Codes (031, 032, 033).” ctcexams.nesinc.com, 2026. ↑
- 2.California Commission on Teacher Credentialing / Pearson. “CTEL Scoring & Score Reports.” ctcexams.nesinc.com, 2026. ↑
- 3.California Commission on Teacher Credentialing. “English Learner Authorizations (CTEL).” ctc.ca.gov, 2026. ↑
- 4.California Department of Education. “California English Language Development Standards.” cde.ca.gov, 2026. ↑
- 5.California Department of Education. “English Language Proficiency Assessments for California (ELPAC).” cde.ca.gov, 2026. ↑
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