CliffsTestPrep CBEST, 6th Edition, can help you prepare for the California Basic Education Skills Test, a requirement for obtaining teaching credentials in California and Oregon. The test is based on the theory that teachers should be able to use the same skills taught to students -- skills essential to students both in the classroom and outside school. Inside this test prep tool, you'll find
- Full-length practice tests with answers and complete explanations
- Analysis of all exam subject areas
- An assessment mini-test to gauge a candidate's strengths and weaknesses with the various test sections
- Introduction to the format and scoring of the exam, overall strategies for answering multiple-choice questions, and questions commonly asked about CBEST
- A list of last-minute test-taking tips.
This book will help you understand the types of questions that will test your knowledge in three general subjects: reading, mathematics, and writing. You can get ready to show what you know in areas such as
- Basic math and algebra, including whole numbers, fractions, decimals, percents, and simple equations
- Practical applications of arithmetic operations, such as invoices, unit cost, and totals.
- Standard units in the U.S. measurement system
- Reading comprehension with emphasis on interpreting and analyzing passages
- Essay writing in a descriptive/narrative form that draws from personal experience
- Original writing in an analytical/expository essay that calls for explaining an issue, problem, or quotation and relating a well-supported personal opinion on the subject
With guidance from the CliffsTestPrep series, you'll feel at home in any standardized-test environment!
Customer Reviews:
Only book you need to buy!.......2007-07-10
I had this book shipped to me less than a week before the exam, and this is the only book I used to study for the test. I passed with a 183, and read this book front to back (more or less) in the few days before the exam. The example questions and answers are throughly explained, and are particularly helpful for the math section (if you're like me, and haven't taken a math class in many years).
The only tip I have for anyone taking the CBEST, is to brush up on your conversion charts for math--(i.e. how many feet in a mile, how many pints in a gallon...etc. etc.) there were a couple of questions along those lines, that I just couldn't remember!
Now, onto taking the CSET this September...any useful information anyone can offer me??! ha ha ha.
read this before buying CBEST guides..........2007-06-17
I took the CBEST yesterday morning (06/16/07)and have several observations and suggestions which not only do I hope you'll find helpful but with any luck can save you some time and grief. I purchased four review books. The Princeton Review's Cracking the CBEST (2002)," Cliff's Testprep "CBEST, 6th Edition,(2000)" Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST (2006)," and Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST (2001)." Additionally, I purchased one on-line guide and began receiving emails with "tips of the day" from another. Neither on-line guide was helpful in the least and I would caution you to stay away from them no matter how luring their websites are.
Now onto the test (and then I'll come back to the guidebooks). The test, as I'm sure you're aware is divided into three sections: Reading, math and a writing portion in which you're asked to write two essays.
Let's start with the math. If you go to the official CBEST website they will tell you specifically what you need to know in order to pass this part of the exam. There is no geometry (apparently there was a law suit several years ago and the math portion was made easier) and the algebra on the test is beginner stuff. About the most difficult algebra question went something like this: 10y - 36 + 4y - 6 + y = 3. What's the value of y? Most of the questions are basic math and if I can do them, so can you!
With the exception of The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST," all the guidebooks, when it came to math, were significantly more difficult than you need to know. The biggest offender of this was Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST" which included very high level math and was poorly written and filled with mistakes. The book also comes with a CD of practice tests but the tests on the CD are nothing more than the same questions from the text in a different order. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK -- YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. In fact we should all stay away from Learning Express' books; after all, as consumers all we can do to send a message to those who try and rip us off is to boycott their products. Enough said...
Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST" math sections was also more difficult than it needed to be. Additionally they do something that never seems to appear on the actual test. Very often their "choice E" will be "none of the above." I still haven't run into none of the above on any actual CBEST test. I also had an older version of this text and when I compared the two I found almost no difference which I felt odd since between the two publications the test has changed.
Cliff's TestPrep's "CBEST (6th Edition) should be the best of the bunch based on the entire line of Cliff's books but while this one is pretty good it's not great. Again, they're not up to date on what's really necessary to learn with regard to the math section, also taking the reader deeper into math than the test taker will ever need to pass the CBEST. But as one of your guides, I do recommend this one but do your own editing with too complex math problems.
The best of the bunch (for math) was The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST." In fact on page 7 the authors explain how the CBEST has changed recently. For math, this book is excellent. Enough said.
A suggestion to make this experience a bit easier is first go to the CBEST site, read about the specifications but DON'T TAKE THE PRACTICE TEST YET. Use this guide (Princeton's) first and take their practice tests. When you feel you're ready take the official CBEST Practice Test (which you'll find is very close to the actual test), see how you do and what you still need to review. Sadly, CBEST only offers one practice test.
READING: First of all, the CBEST passages are reading comprehension and they're short. Think about it, you only have four hours to answer 50 math questions, 50 reading questions and write two essays. There's simply not enough time for long reading passages. The CBEST Reading practice test is a realistic example of the length of the passages.
Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST" was pretty good (not great) with their reading section prep. Cliff's TestPrep was also good and I thought some of their suggestions and study strategies were very good. Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST" reading section was very good and they have a section called "How to Crack It" which was very helpful in their breaking down of the different types of reading questions.
Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST" was sloppy. One of the questions asked about something that wasn't mentioned and there were several mistakes.
For the Writing portion I recommend both Cliff's TestPrep and The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST." They both give some good tips and sample essays. Princeton has a template you can follow for your essay which was helpful. The one frustrating aspect of their writing section was they only had the opening paragraph of their sample essay when it would have been helpful to have the entire sample essay to review.
One suggestion is to practice writing essays in short periods of time. By the way most of the sample questions I've run into in these guides are pretty close to what's actually asked on the exam. Yesterday's questions were something like, "if you could change one thing about schools what would it be?" and people can find happiness in the little things -- do you agree (something like that).
I guess this has been a long winded way of saying there are two guidebooks that are worth buying: The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST," and CliffsTestPrep (although it's out of date for math.)
Good Luck.
I aced the CBEST with this book!.......2007-02-01
I took the CBEST last December 2, 2006 and i got the highest cumulative results - 185. The passing score for the CBEST is 123 and higher, and i beat it by 62 points and the ONLY book i used to study for it was this one.
This book is the ONLY book you need to get, and I'll give you 4 reasons why:
1. The Math review is in-depth and very complete. It provides an intensive review of all the skills you need to beat the Math section of the test and gives all of the equations and formulas you need that you've probably already forgotten. As it teaches you the skills, it gives you examples and then gives you problems to solve and then walks you through the solution and explains exactly how it got the right answer. It also gives more than one method to solve certain problems.
2. The Reading section is in-depth and gives questions that are very similar to those in the actual exam. The writing section is even better - it provides dozens of sample writing topics that are similar to those in the actual exam, and provides examples of well-written and poorly-written essays. It ALSO teaches you how to approach the topics and teaches writing techniques like Clustering and Outlining. Aside from that, it explains how the writing section is scored and tells you what the scorers look for in the essays.
3. The book teaches you test-taking and time saving strategies. This was VERY IMPORTANT and I'm glad i learned it from the book, because the exam is very long and you need to have a plan to efficiently maximize the time you have for the test. I used the techniques i learned in the book and was a LOT more confident during the exam, since i already knew what was in store for me and had a set plan on dividing my time for the 3 sections and time for checking my answers and proofreading my essays.
4. (*this ties in with #3) The book provides FOUR full-length practice tests that are VERY similar to the CBEST. The style of the questions, the number of questions you have to answer and the time it will take are all very similar to the real thing. I used the practice exams to hone my test-taking skills, learn how to divide my time (i attacked the reading section first since it's my forte, and then worked on the math part which was the hardest section for me, and then the writing section) AND improve my score. It was through these tests that i was able to identify my weak points and work on them so that by the time i took the 4th practice test, i was confident that i would pass - and i did!
If you plan on passing the CBEST, BUY THIS BOOK.
One last tip - and this one is from me - give yourself 2-3 weeks to prepare for the CBEST. It's not difficult if you're well-prepared.
Perfectly detailed and helpful.......2006-12-30
I just took (and passed!) the CBEST exam, and had purchased several books as study guides to prepare. CBEST Cliffs Test Prep had just the right amount of helpful, useful info without being overwhelming. The detailed explainations of problems I'd missed when taking the practice tests provided in the book were incredibly concise and proved invaluable on the actual test. Great study guide - I'd highly recommend it to anyone preparing for the test!
CBEST CLIFFS A MUST.......2006-04-28
I took the CBEST in April 2006 and used Cliffs and Princeton Review. There are a few versions of the CBEST but what I saw was that I was over prepared from the books. Remember the books have test examples and you NEED to go through them so you have a good idea what is expected. Practice writing essays and watch your watch-time goes by fast so take their advice and use their methods for getting through the test.
Book Description
This guide includes:
* 3 full-length practice tests
* Diagnostic test to build a personalized study plan
* Detailed explanations for every answer
* Dozens of practice questions
* In-depth content review for Reading, Math, and Writing topics
* Concise section summaries for quick review
* Powerful strategies to help you take control and succeed on the exam
Customer Reviews:
harder than the actual test!.......2007-10-23
This was an excellent preparation for the CBEST. Why? Because it overprepared me!
If you can get 50% of these questions right (from this book), you'll pass the CBEST!!!
Good for preparing for the CBEST.......2007-02-19
I found the questions on the CBEST easier than the practice tests in this book. The math section offers easy to understand problems and solutions. I would say it is a must for practicing for the math section of the CBEST. If you can do what is in this book you will pass the math section of the CBEST. It explains the Algebra and Geometry perfectly. The reading comprehension section was a bit frustrating as the questions are harder than the actual test but I felt very prepared after studying with the book.
Book Description
The CBEST, or California Basic Educational Skills Test, must be passed by all who intend to teach in California's elementary and secondary schools. The new edition of this test prep manual has been extensively updated to reflect the latest tests. It presents three full-length model tests with answers and explanations, subject reviews in reading, math, and writing skills, and additional help for test takers who speak English as their second language. Other features include strategies for succeeding on the exam and a general overview of the CBEST.
Customer Reviews:
There are better study guides than this one.......2007-07-10
I took the CBEST in June of 07 (and passed with lots of room to spare) and have several observations and suggestions which not only do I hope you'll find helpful but with any luck can save you some time and grief. I purchased four review books. The Princeton Review's Cracking the CBEST (2002)," Cliff's Testprep "CBEST, 6th Edition,(2000)" Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST (2006)," and Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST (2001)." Additionally, I purchased one on-line guide and began receiving emails with "tips of the day" from another. Neither on-line guide was helpful in the least and I would caution you to stay away from them no matter how luring their websites are.
Now onto the test (and then I'll come back to the guidebooks). The test, as I'm sure you're aware is divided into three sections: Reading, math and a writing portion in which you're asked to write two essays.
Let's start with the math. If you go to the official CBEST website they will tell you specifically what you need to know in order to pass this part of the exam. There is no geometry (apparently there was a law suit several years ago and the math portion was made easier) and the algebra on the test is beginner stuff. About the most difficult algebra question went something like this: 10y - 36 + 4y - 6 + y = 3. What's the value of y? Most of the questions are basic math and if I can do them, so can you!
With the exception of The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST," all the guidebooks, when it came to math, were significantly more difficult than you need to know. The biggest offender of this was Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST" which included very high level math and was poorly written and filled with mistakes. The book also comes with a CD of practice tests but the tests on the CD are nothing more than the same questions from the text in a different order. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK -- YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. In fact we should all stay away from Learning Express' books; after all, as consumers all we can do to send a message to those who try and rip us off is to boycott their products. Enough said...
Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST" math sections was also more difficult than it needed to be. Additionally they do something that never seems to appear on the actual test. Very often their "choice E" will be "none of the above." I still haven't run into none of the above on any actual CBEST test. I also had an older version of this text and when I compared the two I found almost no difference which I felt odd since between the two publications the test has changed.
Cliff's TestPrep's "CBEST (6th Edition) should be the best of the bunch based on the entire line of Cliff's books but while this one is pretty good it's not great. Again, they're not up to date on what's really necessary to learn with regard to the math section, also taking the reader deeper into math than the test taker will ever need to pass the CBEST. But as one of your guides, I do recommend this one but do your own editing with too complex math problems.
The best of the bunch (for math) was The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST." In fact on page 7 the authors explain how the CBEST has changed recently. For math, this book is excellent. Enough said.
A suggestion to make this experience a bit easier is first go to the CBEST site, read about the specifications but DON'T TAKE THE PRACTICE TEST YET. Use this guide (Princeton's) first and take their practice tests. When you feel you're ready take the official CBEST Practice Test (which you'll find is very close to the actual test), see how you do and what you still need to review. Sadly, CBEST only offers one practice test.
READING: First of all, the CBEST passages are reading comprehension and they're short. Think about it, you only have four hours to answer 50 math questions, 50 reading questions and write two essays. There's simply not enough time for long reading passages. The CBEST Reading practice test is a realistic example of the length of the passages.
Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST" was pretty good (not great) with their reading section prep. Cliff's TestPrep was also good and I thought some of their suggestions and study strategies were very good. Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST" reading section was very good and they have a section called "How to Crack It" which was very helpful in their breaking down of the different types of reading questions.
Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST" was sloppy. One of the questions asked about something that wasn't mentioned and there were several mistakes.
For the Writing portion I recommend both Cliff's TestPrep and The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST." They both give some good tips and sample essays. Princeton has a template you can follow for your essay which was helpful. The one frustrating aspect of their writing section was they only had the opening paragraph of their sample essay when it would have been helpful to have the entire sample essay to review.
One suggestion is to practice writing essays in short periods of time. By the way most of the sample questions I've run into in these guides are pretty close to what's actually asked on the exam. Yesterday's questions were something like, "if you could change one thing about schools what would it be?" and people can find happiness in the little things -- do you agree (something like that).
I guess this has been a long winded way of saying there are two guidebooks that are worth buying: The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST," and CliffsTestPrep (although it's out of date for math.)
Good Luck.
Great Review for the Test.......2006-11-05
I bought the book and studied the material and did the practice tests. If anything the book overprepares you for the CBEST which is not necessarily a bad thing. Passed the test on my first try thanks to this great refresher book.
AVOID AT ALL COSTS!!!.......2006-06-18
I JUST returned home from taking the CBEST. Since I feel pretty good about it, you'd think I'd be happy. But I am simply FUMING over what a horrible job this book did to prepare me.
I agree with what others have posted. This book leads you to believe that the math section is about five times more advanced than it really is. For example, I spent hours laboring over quadratic equations and geometric formulas, particularly applying them in word problems and there was not a SINGLE question invovling ANY of the concepts on the actual CBEST. On the upshot, hey - never hurts to be overprepared, but it was at the expense of a great deal of stress and time.
And to confirm another posting - yes I found typos in the math section as well! Thinking that I must have been the one who was wrong, I asked some math genius buddies of mine and sure enough, it was confirmed. How DARE they let that slip by when so many people struggle with the intricacies of long, drawn out equations!
I will NEVER by another Barron's study guide as long as I live!
Overwhelming, confusing, and unnecessary!.......2004-12-18
Do not buy this book. You are better off simply working through the practice problems in the CBEST instructional booklet. I bought this book because I needed to review basic math before taking the test. The book gave such complex descriptions that I was incredibly intimidated. This book recommends that you memorize all kinds of formulae, even the quadratic equasion(!), whereas the test will give you complicated formulae--your task is to perform operations. A look at the English grammar section was equally, if not more, intimidating to me, and I am a grammarian! I also found more than a few typos in the math section--one wonders how many more there are throughout. The CBEST tests basic proficiency, not expertise. If you need to review some basic concepts, look online, or get a different prep book, just not this one. I wasted a lot of time because of this book.
Worth Every Penny.......2004-07-27
This book helped me a great deal. I had been out of school for almost ten years. The reading and writing portions helped me regain my confidence. The math helped me remember what I had almost forgotten.
Book Description
Consisting of three parts — Reading, Math, and Writing — the CBEST exam is required for California and Oregon teacher certification. This guide, which includes a CDROM, features a diagnostic test to determine a candidate’s strengths and weaknesses. There are also three practice examples with complete answer explanations, a scoring guide for the essay portion, and a mini-course of 24 lessons for quick and easy studying.
Customer Reviews:
Before buying guidebooks for the CBEST read on... .......2007-06-17
I took the CBEST yesterday morning (06/16/07) and have several observations and suggestions which not only do I hope you'll find helpful but with any luck can save you some time and grief. I purchased four review books. The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST (2002)," Cliff's Testprep "CBEST, 6th Edition,(2000)" Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST (2006)," and Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST (2001)." Additional, I purchased one on-line guide and began receiving emails with "tips of the day" from another. Neither on-line guide was helpful in the least and I would caution you to stay away from them no matter how luring their websites are.
Now onto the test (and then I'll come back to the guidebooks). The test, as I'm sure you're aware is divided into three sections: Reading, math and a writing portion in which you're asked to write two essays.
Let's start with the math. If you go to the official CBEST website they will tell you specifically what you need to know in order to pass this part of the exam. There is no geometry (apparently there was a law suit several years ago and the math portion was made easier) and the algebra on the test is beginner stuff. About the most difficult algebra question went something like this: 10y - 36 + 4y - 6 + y = 3. What's the value of y? Most of the questions are basic math and if I can do them, so can you!
With the exception of The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST," all the guidebooks, when it came to math, were significantly more difficult than you need to know. The biggest offender of this was Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST" which included very high level math and was poorly written and filled with mistakes. The book also comes with a CD of practice tests but the tests on the CD are nothing more than the same questions from the text in a different order. DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK -- YOU'VE BEEN WARNED. In fact we should all stay away from Learning Express' books; after all, as consumers all we can do to send a message to those who try and rip us off is to boycott their products. Enough said...
Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST" math sections was also more difficult than it needed to be. Additionally they do something that never seems to appear on the actual test. Very often their "choice E" will be "none of the above." I still haven't run into none of the above on any actual CBEST test. I also had an older version of this text and when I compared the two I found almost no difference which I felt odd since between the two publications the test has changed.
Cliff's TestPrep's "CBEST (6th Edition) should be the best of the bunch based on the entire line of Cliff's books but while this one is pretty good it's not great. Again, they're not up to date on what's really necessary to learn with regard to the math section, also taking the reader deeper into math than the test taker will ever need to pass the CBEST. But as one of your guides, I do recommend this one but do your own editing with too complex math problems.
The best of the bunch (for math) was The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST." In fact on page 7 the authors explain how the CBEST has changed recently. For math, this book is excellent. Enough said.
A suggestion to make this experience a bit easier is first go to the CBEST site, read about the specifications but DON'T TAKE THE PRACTICE TEST YET. Use this guide (Princeton's) first and take their practice tests. When you feel you're ready take the official CBEST Practice Test (which you'll find is very close to the actual test), see how you do and what you still need to review. Sadly, CBEST only offers one practice test.
READING: First of all, the CBEST passages are reading comprehension and they're short. Think about it, you only have four hours to answer 50 math questions, 50 reading questions and write two essays. There's simply not enough time for long reading passages. The CBEST Reading practice test is a realistic example of the length of the passages.
Barron's "How to Prepare for the CBEST" was pretty good (not great) with their reading section prep. Cliff's TestPrep was also good and I thought some of their suggestions and study strategies were very good. Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST" reading section was very good and they have a section called "How to Crack It" which was very helpful in their breaking down of the different types of reading questions.
Learning Express' "The Complete Preparation Guide CBEST" was sloppy. One of the questions asked about something that wasn't mentioned and there were several mistakes.
For the Writing portion I recommend both Cliff's TestPrep and The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST." They both give some good tips and sample essays. Princeton has a template you can follow for your essay which was helpful. The one frustrating aspect of their writing section was they only had the opening paragraph of their sample essay when it would have been helpful to have the entire sample essay to review.
One suggestion is to practice writing essays in short periods of time. By the way most of the sample questions I've run into in these guides are pretty close to what's actually asked on the exam. Yesterday's questions were something like, "if you could change one thing about schools what would it be?" and people can find happiness in the little things -- do you agree (something like that).
I guess this has been a long winded way of saying there are two guidebooks that are worth buying: The Princeton Review's "Cracking the CBEST," and CliffsTestPrep (although it's out of date for math.)
Good Luck.
There have to be better prep books than this one.......2006-11-10
This book is riddled with typos and incorrect answers. As I read the book, I got so bothered by all the mistakes that I marked them all in red pen and am considering sending it back to the publisher (I think they should pay me for serving as the editor!). Although it did help in my prepartion by making me familiar with the format and general content of the CBEST, there have to be better books out there. Along with all the typos, there were areas, particularly in the reading section, that were not even discussed in the book. Just a tip: take the practice test on the CBEST site along with your other test prep just so you aren't caught off guard.
I passed!.......2006-11-10
This book helped me prepare for the CBEST and I passed on the first try.
Book Description
Whether preparing to be a teacher in California or Oregon, the California Basic Educational Skills Test (CBEST) is an essential part of the certification process. This is a full CBEST test prep system, including a description of pertinent CBEST details, ample test-taking tips and advice, and a diagnostic test for establishing strengths and weaknesses. Candidates can sharpen their test-taking skills with three sample CBEST practice exams featuring complete answer explanations and a scoring guide for the essay portion of the test. There's also a mini-course (often used in California test prep classes) divided into 24 lessons for quick and easy studying. Plus, included with the book is a free CD-ROM to practice exams on a personal computer.
Customer Reviews:
good book.......2006-03-30
not good for an average reader, little difficult than actual CBEST.practice material is good for twisting up ur brains. good luck:)
CBEST: California Basic Educational Skills Test, Second Edition .......2005-10-25
I'm finding this book to be very helpful!
Book Description
Only about half the people who take the CBEST pass on The first try. How can you be SURE you'll be one of them?Give yourself the EXCLUSIVE LearningExpress ADVANTAGE!
Customer Reviews:
Good book, but a little wordy.......2002-02-19
I took the CBEST on February 9, 2002. It was SO EASY compared to the tests in this book. The math was harder in the book than on the real test. The reading comprehension was about equal. The essay section gave good pointers. I only had about a month to study and this book helped me cram. But parts of it seemed like they over explained.
All in all, I would recommend this book because I did feel over prepared going into the test. I would rather know too much than too little!
CBEST by Learning Express.......2002-02-16
Overall the book was pretty good. The Reading section was almost identical to the actual test, EXCEPT for the poetry. The test did not include any poetry. The math section was close to the test EXCEPT the test did not test on definitions like "whole number", "integer" etc... If you can do well on the practice exams, you will pass the test for sure. One thing that the book failed to note is that TIME is the most crucial of all. Nearly everyone stayed right up until the end of the four hours and some did not finish.
Great Help.......2000-08-09
I did not have much time to study so I read through this book and did a reading and math practice test using the cd-rom. I did not practice essay writing at all but did review the essay section in the book. I would not suggest my approach to anyone but thankfully I passed with pretty good scores. The reading and essay sections are practically just as the book says. The math is too except the test gives you some formulas that the book tells you to memorize.
This Book is harder and more confusing than the test........1999-09-15
This book isn't accurate to the test. The math is much harder in this book than it was on my test. This book made me very nervous about my test and was not very helpful. The CD-ROM included is also disappointing and more of a bother than a help. Get a different CBEST book.
Usefull Sample Tests.......1999-05-27
Sample tests with explinations of answers were good. Especially usefull were the essay writing examples of what is a 4 point, 3 point, 2 point, 1 point answer to the topic questions. I passed the first time while my sister using Clift's guide did not. CD was not compatible with my Apple computer.
Customer Reviews:
Do NOT buy this book!.......2007-10-05
Run away from this book!
If you have no other way to study for the CBEST, then I would recommend borrowing this from the library ONLY. There were incorrect answers in each of the three math sections, all very obvious. Several "answers" didn't even have anything to do with the question!
Example: #9 on page 229:
If 2/3 is divided by 8/11, the quotient will lie between which TWO numbers?
a.) 3.39
b.) 3.25
c.) 3.11
d.) 2.97
e.) 2.83
Ummm... so I check in the back, clearly thinking I'm missing something. It says the answer is B. 2/3 divided by 8/11 = .916, which lies between .91 and .92.
The English portion of this is also filled with mistakes. Number 32 on page 23 has letter C being "Satisfaction." In the back, it states that the answer is C, "Pensive." Not only do these not match, but neither of these is actually the correct answer!!
DO NOT BUY THIS BOOK... BORROW IT FROM THE LIBRARY only IF YOU ARE TRULY DESPERATE AND CANNOT FIND anything ELSE!! :)
Nonsensical.......2005-02-06
I suspect that this book isn't very much like the CBEST. I was struck by how incomprehensible the reading test samples were. For instance:
"There is an importance of learning communication and meaning in language... Communication in the classroom is vital. The teacher should use communication to help students develop the capacity to make their private responses become public responses."
Huh?
If you are looking for a single sentence that combines the banal, the barbarous, and the unfathomable, it's hard to beat: "There is an importance of learning communication and meaning in language."
The clarity of other passages on the exam could be enhanced by recasting them as, say, dialogue spoken by Shaggy on Scooby-doo. For example,
"In view of the current emphasis on literature-based reading instruction, a greater understanding by teachers of variance in cultural, language, and story components should assist in narrowing the gap between reader and text and improve reading comprehension. Classroom teachers should begin with students' meaning and intentions about stories before moving students to the commonalities of story meaning based on common background and culture."
makes far more sense when rendered in Shaggy-speak:
You gotta dig where these stories are coming from, man! And you gotta grok where your kids heads are at.
Customer Reviews:
Much more advanced than necessary for the actual test........1999-06-22
This book really did a poor job of preparing me for the actual CBEST. The level of information the book focused on, especially in the math section, was much more advanced than anything that was on the actual test. This book would have you think the test was going to cover advanced mathematics principles, rather than basic high-school level math, which is what was actually covered. The reading and writing portions of this book were much more accurate in terms of the level of information tested on the CBEST.
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Books Index
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General
| Education
| Reference
| Subjects
| Books
CBEST (Cliffs Test Prep)
Beating the CSET! Methods, Strategies, and Multiple Subjects Content for Beating the California Subject Examinations for Teachers (Subtests I-III) (Boosalis Series)
Kaplan CBEST, 2nd Edition: California Basic Educational Skills Test (Kaplan Cbest)
CSET: Multiple Subjects (Cliffs Test Prep)
Kaplan CSET, Second Edition: California Subject Examination for Teachers (Kaplan Cset)
