United States
Hong KongWhat is a scaled score of 200 on the FTCE?
200 is the passing scaled score on each FTCE subtest, and it is not a percentage or a number of correct answers. Scaling makes the same score mean the same standard across different versions of a subtest, so a harder version needs slightly fewer correct answers to reach 200.
It is a converted score, not a count. Two candidates can reach 200 with different numbers of right answers and both have met the same standard, which is the entire point of the exercise.
What 200 is worth, per subtest
| Subtest | Passing scaled score | Published as at most | Questions |
|---|---|---|---|
| English Language Skills (826) | 200 | 63% correct | 30 |
| Reading (827) | 200 | 70% correct | 30 |
| Mathematics (828) | 200 | 63% correct | 35 |
Same scaled score, three different percentages. That is the clearest possible demonstration that 200 is not a percentage: if it were, the three rows would match.
Why the percentages are maximums
FLDOE publishes them in a table of maximum percentages of correct answers needed to achieve a minimum passing score. The word doing the work is maximum. On a harder version of a subtest, reaching a scaled 200 takes slightly fewer correct answers, so the published figure is a ceiling rather than a threshold you can count on.
Which is good news, mildly. You will never need more than the published percentage and you may need less.
The mistake worth avoiding
It is a point on a scale, not a fraction. Reading it as a raw total, or dividing it by some imagined maximum, produces a number that means nothing. The only percentages FLDOE attaches to it are the three in the table above, and each belongs to one subtest.
The essay does not use it
The essay is scored holistically by two qualified raters whose scores are summed, with a passing total of 6 set by Rule 6A-4.0021. No scaling, no percentage, no item count. So of the four subtests, three pass at a scaled 200 and one passes at a summed 6.
What to aim at instead of 200
A readiness percentage on your own practice papers, per subtest, high enough to absorb the uncertainty in that word maximum. Ours is 78% on our own mocks, set above the highest published cut of 70% on purpose. It is our target and it is not a pass mark, and we would rather label it than have it quoted back at us as Florida's.
Common questions
What is a scaled score of 200 on the FTCE?
It is the passing score on each FTCE subtest. A scaled score converts your raw performance onto a common scale so that the same score means the same standard whichever version of a subtest you sat.
Is 200 a percentage?
No. FLDOE separately publishes what a scaled 200 is worth as a maximum percentage correct, and it differs by subtest: at most 63% in English Language Skills, at most 70% in Reading, at most 63% in Mathematics.
How many questions do I need right to reach 200?
It varies by version, which is why FLDOE publishes maximums rather than fixed counts. Applying the published percentages gives at most 19 of 30, 21 of 30 and 22 of 35 respectively, and that arithmetic is ours.
Does the essay have a scaled score of 200?
No. The essay is scored holistically by at least two qualified raters and their scores are summed, with a passing total of 6 under Rule 6A-4.0021. Only the three multiple-choice subtests use the scaled 200.
Is a higher scaled score better?
Not for anything practical. Each subtest is pass or fail against the scaled 200, a pass does not expire, and you may not retake a subtest you have passed. Nothing in the certification route compares the numbers.