How to Graduate, Endorsement

In short, our ESL endorsement program consists of three parts: courses, praxis specialty exam, and oral exit exam. Endorsement seekers need four courses for the class part of the endorsement: ENG 618, TSL 609, TSL 600 and TSL 634. 

To Graduate

        Since this is an endorsement added to an existing KY teaching license, there is no graduation per se. However, endorsement seekers should follow these steps as they finish or are finishing their final class:

 1. Sign up for the Praxis specialty exam for English to Speakers of Other Languages (test number 5361) and make sure to indicate that you want your scores sent to Murray State University. As you finish your last class, contact the Director of TESOL to set up a one-hour oral exit exam.

          2. Go to the KDE EPSB site and download the proper form (under "Application forms" http://www.kyepsb.net/certification/index.asp). Fill out your

         part of the form and send it to:

                Office of Teacher Education Services

                2010 Alexander Hall

                Murray State University

                Murray, KY 42071

                Attn: Certification Specialist

 3. Once Murray State has your paperwork which shows you have passed the Praxis, the exit exam and the courses, the university acts as the recommending entity to EPSB that an ESL endorsement be added on to your KY teaching certificate.

Exit Exam

The Exit Exam for the ESL Endorsement is designed to assess how you connect what you learn in the courses you took to the choices you would make as an ESL teacher.

The content will be similar to the Praxis specialty exam, but uses oral questions to ask how you would apply certain concepts and ideas in the ESL classroom and how what you studied informs decisions that you would need to make as a TESOL professional.

Each examining committee is made of two professors.

Exit exams are generally taken towards or at the end of your last graduate course.

How does one prepare for the exit exam?

Review notes and work you have done in your courses. It sometimes helps to scan tables of contents and indexes of textbooks and readings as well to remind you of major concepts and terms that are discussed and emphasized.

Exit exams are given at the end of every term (December, May and August) Contact the Director of TESOL about three weeks before the desired date of your exam.