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Hints will display for most wrong answers; explanations for most right answers. You can attempt a question multiple times; it will only be scored correct if you get it right the first time.

I used the official objectives and sample test to construct these questions, but cannot promise that they accurately reflect what’s on the real test. Some of the sample questions were more convoluted than I could bear to write. See terms of use. See the MTEL Practice Test main page to view questions on a particular topic or to download paper practice tests.

MTEL General Curriculum Mathematics Practice

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Question 1

A car is traveling at 60 miles per hour. Which of the expressions below could be used to compute how many feet the car travels in 1 second? Note that 1 mile = 5,280 feet.

A	$\large 60\dfrac{\text{miles}}{\text{hour}}\cdot 5280\dfrac{\text{feet}}{\text{mile}}\cdot 60\dfrac{\text{minutes}}{\text{hour}}\cdot 60\dfrac{\text{seconds}}{\text{minute}}$ Hint: This answer is not in feet/second.
B	$\large 60\dfrac{\text{miles}}{\text{hour}}\cdot 5280\dfrac{\text{feet}}{\text{mile}}\cdot \dfrac{1}{60}\dfrac{\text{hour}}{\text{minutes}}\cdot \dfrac{1}{60}\dfrac{\text{minute}}{\text{seconds}}$ Hint: This is the only choice where the answer is in feet per second and the unit conversions are correct.
C	$\large 60\dfrac{\text{miles}}{\text{hour}}\cdot \dfrac{1}{5280}\dfrac{\text{foot}}{\text{miles}}\cdot 60\dfrac{\text{hours}}{\text{minute}}\cdot \dfrac{1}{60}\dfrac{\text{minute}}{\text{seconds}}$ Hint: Are there really 60 hours in a minute?
D	$\large 60\dfrac{\text{miles}}{\text{hour}}\cdot \dfrac{1}{5280}\dfrac{\text{mile}}{\text{feet}}\cdot 60\dfrac{\text{minutes}}{\text{hour}}\cdot \dfrac{1}{60}\dfrac{\text{minute}}{\text{seconds}}$ Hint: This answer is not in feet/second.

Question 1 Explanation:

Topic: Use unit conversions and dimensional analysis to solve measurement problems (Objective 0023).

Question 2

The window glass below has the shape of a semi-circle on top of a square, where the side of the square has length x. It was cut from one piece of glass.

What is the perimeter of the window glass?

A	$\large 3x+\dfrac{\pi x}{2}$ Hint: By definition, $\pi$ is the ratio of the circumference of a circle to its diameter; thus the circumference is $\pi d$ . Since we have a semi-circle, its perimeter is $\dfrac{1}{2} \pi x$ . Only 3 sides of the square contribute to the perimeter.
B	$\large 3x+2\pi x$ Hint: Make sure you know how to find the circumference of a circle.
C	$\large 3x+\pi x$ Hint: Remember it's a semi-circle, not a circle.
D	$\large 4x+2\pi x$ Hint: Only 3 sides of the square contribute to the perimeter.

Question 2 Explanation:

Topic: Derive and use formulas for calculating the lengths, perimeters, areas, volumes, and surface areas of geometric shapes and figures (Objective 0023).

Question 3

The function d(x) gives the result when 12 is divided by x. Which of the following is a graph of d(x)?

A	Hint: d(x) is 12 divided by x, not x divided by 12.
B	Hint: When x=2, what should d(x) be?
C	Hint: When x=2, what should d(x) be?
D

Question 3 Explanation:

Topic: Identify and analyze direct and inverse relationships in tables, graphs, algebraic expressions and real-world situations (Objective 0021)

Question 4

A biology class requires a lab fee, which is a whole number of dollars, and the same amount for all students. On Monday the instructor collected $70 in fees, on Tuesday she collected $126, and on Wednesday she collected $266. What is the largest possible amount the fee could be?

A	$2 Hint: A possible fee, but not the largest possible fee. Check the other choices to see which are factors of all three numbers.
B	$7 Hint: A possible fee, but not the largest possible fee. Check the other choices to see which are factors of all three numbers.
C	$14 Hint: This is the greatest common factor of 70, 126, and 266.
D	$70 Hint: Not a factor of 126 or 266, so couldn't be correct.

Question 4 Explanation:

Topic: Use GCF in real-world context (Objective 0018)

Question 5

Which of the lists below contains only irrational numbers?

A	$\large\pi , \quad \sqrt{6},\quad \sqrt{\dfrac{1}{2}}$
B	$\large\pi , \quad \sqrt{9}, \quad \pi +1$ Hint: $\sqrt{9}=3$
C	$\large\dfrac{1}{3},\quad \dfrac{5}{4},\quad \dfrac{2}{9}$ Hint: These are all rational.
D	$\large-3,\quad 14,\quad 0$ Hint: These are all rational.

Question 5 Explanation:

Topic: Identifying rational and irrational numbers (Objective 0016).

Question 6

What fraction of the area of the picture below is shaded?

$q21 fraction area$

A	$\large \dfrac{17}{24}$ Hint: You might try adding segments so each quadrant is divided into 6 pieces with equal area -- there will be 24 regions, not all the same shape, but all the same area, with 17 of them shaded (for the top left quarter, you could also first change the diagonal line to a horizontal or vertical line that divides the square in two equal pieces and shade one) .
B	$\large \dfrac{3}{4}$ Hint: Be sure you're taking into account the different sizes of the pieces.
C	$\large \dfrac{2}{3}$ Hint: The bottom half of the picture is 2/3 shaded, and the top half is more than 2/3 shaded, so this answer is too small.
D	$\large \dfrac{17}{6}$ Hint: This answer is bigger than 1, so doesn't make any sense. Be sure you are using the whole picture, not one quadrant, as the unit.

Question 6 Explanation:

Topic: Models of Fractions (Objective 0017)

Question 7

Use the problem below to answer the question that follows:

T shirts are on sale for 20% off. Tasha paid $8.73 for a shirt. What is the regular price of the shirt? There is no tax on clothing purchases under $175.

Let p represent the regular price of these t-shirt. Which of the following equations is correct?

A	$\large 0.8p=\$8.73$ Hint: 80% of the regular price = $8.73.
B	$\large \$8.73+0.2*\$8.73=p$ Hint: The 20% off was off of the ORIGINAL price, not off the $8.73 (a lot of people make this mistake). Plus this is the same equation as in choice c.
C	$\large 1.2*\$8.73=p$ Hint: The 20% off was off of the ORIGINAL price, not off the $8.73 (a lot of people make this mistake). Plus this is the same equation as in choice b.
D	$\large p-0.2*\$8.73=p$ Hint: Subtract p from both sides of this equation, and you have -.2 x 8.73 =0.

Question 7 Explanation:

Topics: Use algebra to solve word problems involving percents and identify variables, and derive algebraic expressions that represent real-world situations (Objective 0020).

Question 8

Use the table below to answer the question that follows:

Each number in the table above represents a value W that is determined by the values of x and y. For example, when x=3 and y=1, W=5. What is the value of W when x=9 and y=14? Assume that the patterns in the table continue as shown.

A	$\large W=-5$ Hint: When y is even, W is even.
B	$\large W=4$ Hint: Note that when x increases by 1, W increases by 2, and when y increases by 1, W decreases by 1. At x=y=0, W=0, so at x=9, y=14, W has increased by $9 \times 2$ and decreased by 14, or W=18-14=4.
C	$\large W=6$ Hint: Try fixing x or y at 0, and start by finding W for x=0 y=14 or x=9, y=0.
D	$\large W=32$ Hint: Try fixing x or y at 0, and start by finding W for x=0 y=14 or x=9, y=0.

Question 8 Explanation:

Topic: Recognize and extend patterns using a variety of representations (e.g., verbal, numeric, pictorial, algebraic) (Objective 0021)

Question 9

The chart below gives percentiles for the number of sit-ups that boys of various ages can do in 60 seconds (source , June 24, 2011)

Which of the following statements can be inferred from the above chart?

A	95% of 12 year old boys can do 56 sit-ups in 60 seconds. Hint: The 95th percentile means that 95% of scores are less than or equal to 56, and 5% are greater than or equal to 56.
B	At most 25% of 7 year old boys can do 19 or more sit-ups in 60 seconds. Hint: The 25th percentile means that 25% of scores are less than or equal to 19, and 75% are greater than or equal to 19.
C	Half of all 13 year old boys can do less than 41 sit-ups in 60 seconds and half can do more than 41 sit-ups in 60 seconds. Hint: Close, but not quite. There's no accounting for boys who can do exactly 41 sit ups. Look at these data: 10, 20, 41, 41, 41, 41, 50, 60, 90. The median is 41, but more than half can do 41 or more.
D	At least 75% of 16 year old boys can only do 51 or fewer sit-ups in 60 seconds. Hint: The "at least" is necessary due to duplicates. Suppose the data were 10, 20, 51, 51. The 75th percentile is 51, but 100% of the boys can only do 51 or fewer situps.

Question 9 Explanation:

Topic: Analyze and interpret various graphic and nongraphic data representations (e.g., frequency distributions, percentiles) (Objective 0025).

Question 10

The table below gives the result of a survey at a college, asking students whether they were residents or commuters:

Based on the above data, what is the probability that a randomly chosen commuter student is a junior or a senior?

A	$\large \dfrac{34}{43}$
B	$\large \dfrac{34}{71}$ Hint: This is the probability that a randomly chosen junior or senior is a commuter student.
C	$\large \dfrac{34}{147}$ Hint: This is the probability that a randomly chosen student is a junior or senior who is a commuter.
D	$\large \dfrac{71}{147}$ Hint: This is the probability that a randomly chosen student is a junior or a senior.

Question 10 Explanation:

Topic: Recognize and apply the concept of conditional probability (Objective 0026).

Question 11

Four children randomly line up, single file. What is the probability that they are in height order, with the shortest child in front? All of the children are different heights.

A	$\large \dfrac{1}{4}$ Hint: Try a simpler question with 3 children -- call them big, medium, and small -- and list all the ways they could line up. Then see how to extend your logic to the problem with 4 children.
B	$\large \dfrac{1}{256}$ Hint: Try a simpler question with 3 children -- call them big, medium, and small -- and list all the ways they could line up. Then see how to extend your logic to the problem with 4 children.
C	$\large \dfrac{1}{16}$ Hint: Try a simpler question with 3 children -- call them big, medium, and small -- and list all the ways they could line up. Then see how to extend your logic to the problem with 4 children.
D	$\large \dfrac{1}{24}$ Hint: The number of ways for the children to line up is $4!=4 \times 3 \times 2 \times 1 =24$ -- there are 4 choices for who is first in line, then 3 for who is second, etc. Only one of these lines has the children in the order specified.

Question 11 Explanation:

Topic: Apply knowledge of combinations and permutations to the computation of probabilities (Objective 0026).

Question 12

How many factors does 80 have?

A	$\large8$ Hint: Don't forget 1 and 80.
B	$\large9$ Hint: Only perfect squares have an odd number of factors -- otherwise factors come in pairs.
C	$\large10$ Hint: 1,2,4,5,8,10,16,20,40,80
D	$\large12$ Hint: Did you count a number twice? Include a number that isn't a factor?

Question 12 Explanation:

Topic: Understand and apply principles of number theory (Objective 0018).

Question 13

The letters A, and B represent digits (possibly equal) in the ten digit number x=1,438,152,A3B. For which values of A and B is x divisible by 12, but not by 9?

A	$\large A = 0, B = 4$ Hint: Digits add to 31, so not divisible by 3, so not divisible by 12.
B	$\large A = 7, B = 2$ Hint: Digits add to 36, so divisible by 9.
C	$\large A = 0, B = 6$ Hint: Digits add to 33, divisible by 3, not 9. Last digits are 36, so divisible by 4, and hence by 12.
D	$\large A = 4, B = 8$ Hint: Digits add to 39, divisible by 3, not 9. Last digits are 38, so not divisible by 4, so not divisible by 12.

Question 13 Explanation:

Topic: Demonstrate knowledge of divisibility rules (Objective 0018).

Question 14

Which of the following is an irrational number?

A	$\large \sqrt[3]{8}$ Hint: This answer is the cube root of 8. Since 2 x 2 x 2 =8, this is equal to 2, which is rational because 2 = 2/1.
B	$\large \sqrt{8}$ Hint: It is not trivial to prove that this is irrational, but you can get this answer by eliminating the other choices.
C	$\large \dfrac{1}{8}$ Hint: 1/8 is the RATIO of two integers, so it is rational.
D	$\large -8$ Hint: Negative integers are also rational, -8 = -8/1, a ratio of integers.

Question 14 Explanation:

Topic: Identifying rational and irrational numbers (Objective 0016).

Question 15

A family on vacation drove the first 200 miles in 4 hours and the second 200 miles in 5 hours. Which expression below gives their average speed for the entire trip?

A	$\large \dfrac{200+200}{4+5}$ Hint: Average speed is total distance divided by total time.
B	$\large \left( \dfrac{200}{4}+\dfrac{200}{5} \right)\div 2$ Hint: This seems logical, but the problem is that it weights the first 4 hours and the second 5 hours equally, when each hour should get the same weight in computing the average speed.
C	$\large \dfrac{200}{4}+\dfrac{200}{5}$ Hint: This would be an average of 90 miles per hour!
D	$\large \dfrac{400}{4}+\dfrac{400}{5}$ Hint: This would be an average of 180 miles per hour! Even a family of race car drivers probably doesn't have that average speed on a vacation!

Question 15 Explanation:

Topic: Solve a variety of measurement problems (e.g., time, temperature, rates, average rates of change) in real-world situations (Objective 0023).

Question 16

The following story situations model $12\div 3$ :

I) Jack has 12 cookies, which he wants to share equally between himself and two friends. How many cookies does each person get?

II) Trent has 12 cookies, which he wants to put into bags of 3 cookies each. How many bags can he make?

III) Cicely has $12. Cookies cost $3 each. How many cookies can she buy?

Which of these questions illustrate the same model of division, either partitive (partioning) or measurement (quotative)?

A	I and II
B	I and III
C	II and III Hint: Problem I is partitive (or partitioning or sharing) -- we put 12 objects into 3 groups. Problems II and III are quotative (or measurement) -- we put 12 objects in groups of 3.
D	All three problems model the same meaning of division

Question 16 Explanation:

Topic: Understand models of operations on numbers (Objective 0019).

Question 17

The picture below represents a board with pegs on it, where the closest distance between two pegs is 1 cm. What is the area of the pentagon shown?

A	$\large 8\text{ c}{{\text{m}}^{2}}$ Hint: Don't just count the dots inside, that doesn't give the area. Try adding segments so that the slanted lines become the diagonals of rectangles.
B	$\large 11\text{ c}{{\text{m}}^{2}}$ Hint: Try adding segments so that the slanted lines become the diagonals of rectangles.
C	$\large 11.5\text{ c}{{\text{m}}^{2}}$ Hint: An easy way to do this problem is to use Pick's Theorem (of course, it's better if you understand why Pick's theorem works): area = # pegs inside + half # pegs on the border - 1. In this case 8+9/2-1=11.5. A more appropriate strategy for elementary classrooms is to add segments; here's one way. There are 20 1x1 squares enclosed, and the total area of the triangles that need to be subtracted is 8.5
D	$\large 12.5\text{ c}{{\text{m}}^{2}}$ Hint: Try adding segments so that the slanted lines become the diagonals of rectangles.

Question 17 Explanation:

Topics: Calculate measurements and derive and use formulas for calculating the areas of geometric shapes and figures (Objective 0023).

Question 18

The first histogram shows the average life expectancies for women in different countries in Africa in 1998; the second histogram gives similar data for Europe:

How much bigger is the range of the data for Africa than the range of the data for Europe?

A	0 years Hint: Range is the maximum life expectancy minus the minimum life expectancy.
B	12 years Hint: Are you subtracting frequencies? Range is about values of the data, not frequency.
C	18 years Hint: It's a little hard to read the graph, but it doesn't matter if you're consistent. It looks like the range for Africa is 80-38= 42 years and for Europe is 88-64 = 24; 42-24=18.
D	42 years Hint: Read the question more carefully.

Question 18 Explanation:

Topic: Compare different data sets (Objective 0025).

Question 19

Here is a method that a student used for subtraction:

Which of the following is correct?

A	The student used a method that worked for this problem and can be generalized to any subtraction problem. Hint: Note that this algorithm is taught as the "standard" algorithm in much of Europe (it's where the term "borrowing" came from -- you borrow on top and "pay back" on the bottom).
B	The student used a method that worked for this problem and that will work for any subtraction problem that only requires one regrouping; it will not work if more regrouping is required. Hint: Try some more examples.
C	The student used a method that worked for this problem and will work for all three-digit subtraction problems, but will not work for larger problems. Hint: Try some more examples.
D	The student used a method that does not work. The student made two mistakes that cancelled each other out and was lucky to get the right answer for this problem. Hint: Remember, there are many ways to do subtraction; there is no one "right" algorithm.

Question 19 Explanation:

Topic: Analyze and justify standard and non-standard computational techniques (Objective 0019).

Question 20

In January 2011, the national debt was about 14 trillion dollars and the US population was about 300 million people. Someone reading these figures estimated that the national debt was about $5,000 per person. Which of these statements best describes the reasonableness of this estimate?

A	It is too low by a factor of 10 Hint: 14 trillion $\approx 15 \times {{10}^{12}}$ and 300 million $\approx 3 \times {{10}^{8}}$ , so the true answer is about $5 \times {{10}^{4}}$ or $50,000.
B	It is too low by a factor of 100
C	It is too high by a factor of 10
D	It is too high by a factor of 100

Question 20 Explanation:

Topics: Estimation, Scientific Notation in the real world (Objective 0016).

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MTEL General Curriculum Mathematics Practice

A car is traveling at 60 miles per hour. Which of the expressions below could be used to compute how many feet the car travels in 1 second? Note that 1 mile = 5,280 feet.

The window glass below has the shape of a semi-circle on top of a square, where the side of the square has length x. It was cut from one piece of glass.

What is the perimeter of the window glass?

The function d(x) gives the result when 12 is divided by x. Which of the following is a graph of d(x)?

A biology class requires a lab fee, which is a whole number of dollars, and the same amount for all students. On Monday the instructor collected $70 in fees, on Tuesday she collected $126, and on Wednesday she collected $266. What is the largest possible amount the fee could be?

$2

$7

$14

$70

Which of the lists below contains only irrational numbers?

What fraction of the area of the picture below is shaded?

Use the problem below to answer the question that follows:

T shirts are on sale for 20% off. Tasha paid $8.73 for a shirt. What is the regular price of the shirt? There is no tax on clothing purchases under $175.

Let p represent the regular price of these t-shirt. Which of the following equations is correct?

Use the table below to answer the question that follows:

Each number in the table above represents a value W that is determined by the values of x and y. For example, when x=3 and y=1, W=5. What is the value of W when x=9 and y=14? Assume that the patterns in the table continue as shown.

The chart below gives percentiles for the number of sit-ups that boys of various ages can do in 60 seconds (source , June 24, 2011)

Which of the following statements can be inferred from the above chart?

95% of 12 year old boys can do 56 sit-ups in 60 seconds.

At most 25% of 7 year old boys can do 19 or more sit-ups in 60 seconds.

Half of all 13 year old boys can do less than 41 sit-ups in 60 seconds and half can do more than 41 sit-ups in 60 seconds.

At least 75% of 16 year old boys can only do 51 or fewer sit-ups in 60 seconds.

The table below gives the result of a survey at a college, asking students whether they were residents or commuters:

Based on the above data, what is the probability that a randomly chosen commuter student is a junior or a senior?

Four children randomly line up, single file. What is the probability that they are in height order, with the shortest child in front? All of the children are different heights.

How many factors does 80 have?

The letters A, and B represent digits (possibly equal) in the ten digit number x=1,438,152,A3B. For which values of A and B is x divisible by 12, but not by 9?

Which of the following is an irrational number?

A family on vacation drove the first 200 miles in 4 hours and the second 200 miles in 5 hours. Which expression below gives their average speed for the entire trip?

The following story situations model 12÷3 12\div 3:

I) Jack has 12 cookies, which he wants to share equally between himself and two friends. How many cookies does each person get?

II) Trent has 12 cookies, which he wants to put into bags of 3 cookies each. How many bags can he make?

III) Cicely has $12. Cookies cost $3 each. How many cookies can she buy?

Which of these questions illustrate the same model of division, either partitive (partioning) or measurement (quotative)?

I and II

I and III

II and III

All three problems model the same meaning of division

The picture below represents a board with pegs on it, where the closest distance between two pegs is 1 cm. What is the area of the pentagon shown?

The first histogram shows the average life expectancies for women in different countries in Africa in 1998; the second histogram gives similar data for Europe:

How much bigger is the range of the data for Africa than the range of the data for Europe?

0 years

12 years

18 years

42 years

Here is a method that a student used for subtraction:

Which of the following is correct?

The student used a method that worked for this problem and can be generalized to any subtraction problem.

The student used a method that worked for this problem and that will work for any subtraction problem that only requires one regrouping; it will not work if more regrouping is required.

The student used a method that worked for this problem and will work for all three-digit subtraction problems, but will not work for larger problems.

The student used a method that does not work. The student made two mistakes that cancelled each other out and was lucky to get the right answer for this problem.

In January 2011, the national debt was about 14 trillion dollars and the US population was about 300 million people. Someone reading these figures estimated that the national debt was about $5,000 per person. Which of these statements best describes the reasonableness of this estimate?

It is too low by a factor of 10

It is too low by a factor of 100

It is too high by a factor of 10

It is too high by a factor of 100

The following story situations model $12\div 3$ :