- The 702 exam has five 30-question testlets, each worth 20% of your score.
- You need a cumulative scaled score of 220, plus a minimum floor on every testlet.
- Testlets can be scheduled and retaken individually at $34 each, or $169 for all five.
- Pearson has administered this exam since July 1, 2025, replacing the prior ETS delivery.
What the 702 Assessment Actually Tests
Georgia Assessments for the Certification of Educators: Elementary Education (P-5) (702) is not one long exam - it's five independent testlets bundled under a single assessment code. Each testlet contains 30 selected-response questions and contributes exactly 20% to your overall score, which means there's no "easy" section you can coast through and no single dominant domain to over-prepare for. The full assessment totals 150 questions, delivered within four hours of actual testing time inside a four-hour-and-30-minute appointment window.
This modular structure is the single biggest thing that separates 702 preparation from a typical single-test certification exam. Because Evaluation Systems, Pearson administers the assessment (as of July 1, 2025, replacing the previous ETS-delivered version), candidates can choose to sit for all five testlets in one appointment or split them across separate sessions. If you want the full breakdown of how each content area is weighted and structured, the GACE Exam Domains 2026 guide walks through all five in depth.
Registration, Eligibility, and Fee Mechanics
Before you can register for any 702 testlet, you need testing eligibility established through MyPSC, the Georgia Professional Standards Commission's system. This step trips up more first-time candidates than any content gap - you cannot simply create a Pearson account and pay; GaPSC has to clear you first. If you haven't gone through this yet, review the full eligibility rules in the GACE Requirements 2026 guide before you touch a study plan.
Once eligibility is confirmed, pricing is straightforward but worth planning around:
- $169 to sit for all five testlets in one appointment
- $34 per individual testlet if you're retaking one or spreading out your schedule
That per-testlet pricing is exactly why the modular format matters financially, not just academically - a full breakdown of what this means for your total certification budget is covered in GACE Certification Cost 2026. For scheduling logistics, appointment availability, and deadline planning, see GACE Exam Dates 2026.
Key Takeaway
Confirm your MyPSC eligibility status weeks before you plan to test - this administrative step, not the content itself, is the most common cause of delayed registration.
The Five Testlets, One at a Time
Each testlet is self-contained, so your study plan should treat them as five separate mini-exams rather than one blended review. Here's what candidates need to master in each.
Testlet 001: English Language Arts (P-5)
Covers foundational literacy instruction, reading comprehension pedagogy, writing process instruction, and language conventions appropriate for grades P-5.
- Phonemic awareness, phonics, and decoding instruction sequencing
- Comprehension strategies across fiction and informational text
- Writing genres and the developmental writing process
- Grammar, vocabulary, and language acquisition for young learners
Testlet 002: Mathematics (P-5)
Focuses on number sense, operations, algebraic thinking, geometry, measurement, and data - plus the pedagogical reasoning behind how young students build these concepts.
- Place value and multi-digit operations progression
- Fraction concepts and their real-world representations
- Geometric reasoning and measurement for elementary grade bands
- Interpreting and constructing data displays appropriate to P-5
Testlet 003: Social Studies (P-5)
Tests knowledge of history, geography, government/civics, and economics, along with how to introduce these concepts developmentally.
- Map skills, regions, and geographic reasoning
- U.S. history themes appropriate for elementary instruction
- Basic civics: rights, responsibilities, and community structures
- Economic concepts like goods, services, and resources
Testlet 004: Science (P-5)
Covers life science, physical science, earth and space science, and the inquiry-based instructional practices used to teach them.
- Scientific method and inquiry-based lesson design
- Life cycles, ecosystems, and organism classification basics
- Matter, energy, and force concepts at the elementary level
- Earth systems, weather, and space science fundamentals
Testlet 005: The Arts, Health, and Wellness (P-5)
Often the most overlooked testlet by candidates who assume it's a footnote - it carries the same 20% weight as every other domain.
- Visual arts, music, and movement integration in elementary classrooms
- Physical education concepts and motor-skill development
- Health education topics: nutrition, safety, and personal wellness
- Cross-curricular integration of arts and wellness with core subjects
Because Testlet 005 is equal in weight to ELA or Math but rarely gets equal study time, it's a common source of avoidable point loss. Treat it with the same seriousness you'd give any other 30-question section - skipping it in your review is one of the fastest ways to miss the floor requirement on an otherwise strong overall score.
Science of Reading Alignment for ELA
If you're an initial-program candidate beginning on or after June 1, 2025, or a reciprocity applicant applying on or after July 1, 2026, the ELA testlet content connects to Georgia's Application of the Science of Reading assessment requirements under the state's literacy-assessment implementation schedule. This isn't a separate exam bolted onto 702 - it's a reflection of how Georgia now expects elementary educators to demonstrate evidence-based reading instruction knowledge as part of certification.
Practically, this means your ELA (001) preparation should go beyond general reading comprehension review and dig into structured literacy principles: how phonological awareness, phonics, fluency, vocabulary, and comprehension build on one another in a research-backed sequence. If your teacher-prep coursework already covers structured literacy, use it as your primary review source rather than generic reading-pedagogy material that may not reflect Georgia's specific implementation timeline.
Passing Score Mechanics You Cannot Ignore
Passing 702 requires two things simultaneously, and missing either one means you don't pass:
- A cumulative scaled score of at least 220 across all five testlets combined
- Meeting the minimum floor score on every individual testlet - a high combined score does not offset one weak testlet dropping below its floor
This dual requirement is why a "study everything a little" approach often underperforms a targeted one. A candidate who's excellent at Math and Science but weak in Social Studies can't simply outscore the requirement overall - if Social Studies falls under its floor, that testlet must be retaken regardless of your other four scores. For the exact scoring structure and how the floors interact with the 220 total, see GACE Passing Score 2026.
The retake structure works in your favor here: since testlets are scored and can be retaken independently, a floor miss on one testlet doesn't require you to resit the other four. Budget for the $34 single-testlet fee if this happens rather than treating it as a full restart.
A Testlet-by-Testlet Study Timeline
Because 702 is modular, your study calendar should be too. Rather than reviewing all five content areas every week, dedicate concentrated blocks to one or two testlets at a time, then rotate back for review passes closer to your appointment.
English Language Arts + Diagnostic
- Take a full-length practice run to identify weak strands
- Review structured literacy and Science of Reading concepts if applicable
- Drill comprehension and writing-process pedagogy questions
Mathematics
- Rebuild number sense and fraction concept fluency
- Practice explaining the "why" behind procedures, not just the steps
- Work through geometry and measurement item sets
Social Studies
- Map skills, government structures, and economic vocabulary review
- Timeline-based recall for major historical themes
Science
- Inquiry-method question practice
- Life, physical, and earth science content refresh
The Arts, Health, and Wellness
- Don't skip this block - treat it as a full 20% testlet
- Review wellness, PE, and arts-integration concepts
Full Review + Mock Testlets
- Run timed practice sets across all five testlets
- Focus remaining hours on your two lowest-scoring domains
This schedule assumes you're sitting for all five testlets together. If you're registering separately due to the $34 per-testlet fee structure, simply compress the timeline around whichever testlet is next on your calendar. For a broader look at how difficult candidates generally find each section, How Hard Is the GACE Exam? breaks down where most study time gets lost.
Test-Day Mechanics and Common First-Attempt Mistakes
With four hours of testing time across 150 questions, pacing is generous but not unlimited - roughly 96 seconds per question on average if you're sitting for all five testlets in one appointment. Selected-response formatting means every question has a defined answer set, so process-of-elimination is a legitimate strategy when you're unsure, rather than leaving items blank.
| Mistake | Why It Hurts First-Attempt Candidates |
|---|---|
| Ignoring Testlet 005 | Equal 20% weight is often under-studied relative to core academic subjects |
| Studying only to the 220 total | Ignores the per-testlet floor requirement that can fail you independently |
| Skipping the MyPSC eligibility step | Delays registration regardless of how ready your content knowledge is |
| Treating all five testlets as one blended review | Wastes time reviewing already-strong domains instead of targeting weak ones |
One more mechanical point worth planning around: since testlets can be scheduled separately, some candidates intentionally sit for their strongest two or three domains first to build momentum and confirm they're clearing the floor, then schedule remaining testlets once weaker content review is complete. There's no rule against this approach, and the fee structure supports it.
For a condensed, single-page reference you can review the night before your appointment, the GACE Cheat Sheet 2026 consolidates must-know facts across all five domains. And if you want to gauge your readiness against realistic question formats before appointment day, running through timed practice sets on our GACE practice test platform is one of the most direct ways to simulate the actual 30-question testlet pacing.
Key Takeaway
Use full-length, timed practice sessions on our practice platform to confirm you're clearing both the 220 cumulative target and every individual testlet floor - not just your overall average.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Testlets can be scheduled together or separately, and each is priced individually at $34, or $169 if you take all five in one appointment.
You need a cumulative scaled score of at least 220 across all five testlets, and you must also meet the minimum floor score on each individual testlet.
Yes. Testing eligibility through MyPSC is required before you can register for any 702 testlet, so confirm your eligibility status before setting a study timeline.
It applies based on Georgia's literacy-assessment implementation schedule, covering initial-program candidates starting on or after June 1, 2025, and reciprocity applicants from July 1, 2026 onward.
No. Testlets are scored independently, so you can retake only the specific testlet that didn't meet the required floor, at the $34 single-testlet fee.