The California Basic Educational Skills Test, or simply CBEST, is a standardized exam held in the states of California and Oregon for those individuals who need enough credentials to be able to teach at public schools. The qualification of CBEST does not replace any requirement of subject matter knowledge, specialized preparation, and teaching practice applicable after the issuing of the credentials. The test is designed to examine the fundamental reading, writing, and mathematical skills that hold core significance for the job of any educator. The exam however is not a quantitative analysis of teaching skills of any candidate who appears for CBEST.

The CBEST test is divided into three sections.

1. Reading

The reading part consists of 50 multiple-choice questions. Every question in this section will evaluate one’s ability to understand and comprehend information presented in written passages, tables, graphs, and charts. The questions would not need you to possess any outside knowledge about a certain subject. You will be provided with paragraphs and short passages and every question you need to answer will be drawn from there. The answers could be extracted from the content or information available to you in those passages. You will be tested on two basic sectors of education in the reading section:

• Critical Analysis & Evaluation (40%)
• Comprehension & Research Skills (60%)

2. Writing

The writing part will require you to write two essays. This section includes two writing topics that evaluate your ability to write efficiently, relevantly, and effectively. One of the given topics provides you with a prompt, in which you are presented a certain situation or statement that you will have to analyze. The second topic in this section requires you to write about any specific personal experience. Both the questions are compulsory and must be attempted. This part does not require you to possess any prior knowledge about a specified subject or demonstrate any skilled expertise.

3. Mathematics

This part also consists of 50 multiple-choice questions and will require you to solve mathematical problems, the majority of which are arithmetic ones. This section of the test will evaluate the candidate on three significant skill factors:

• Estimation, Measurement, and Statistical Principles (30%)
• Computation and Problem Solving (35%)
• Numerical and Graphic Relationships (35%)

The use of calculators is prohibited in this exam.

The candidate must earn a total of 123 points to pass all three sections of the CBEST. You may be able to get away with scores as low as 37 in one or two sections.

The CBEST exam is held 6 times a year with a frequency of once in every two months at various locations in the states of California and Oregon. It is generally held on either the first or second Saturdays in the months of February, April, June, August, October, and December. The specific exam dates are available at the official CBEST website.