Delaware Praxis Requirements

Which Praxis Exams Delaware Requires

Delaware requires the applicable content assessment for a Standard Certificate. For many certificates, that is a Praxis II Subject Assessment — a content-knowledge exam administered by ETS that verifies you know your teaching area; bilingual and world-language certificates use ACTFL assessment(s).

Delaware does not require the Praxis Core academic skills assessment for standard teacher certification. However, your teacher preparation program may require Praxis Core or equivalent SAT/ACT/GRE scores for admission — that's a program requirement, not a state one.

Traditional program graduates also need a performance assessment: either the edTPA (administered by Pearson) or the Praxis Performance Assessment for Teachers (PPAT, administered by ETS). Both are portfolio-based — you submit lesson plans, video recordings, and written reflections through an online portal.

Registration and Score Reporting

Register for your Praxis exam through the ETS Praxis website. You can test at a designated testing center or through ETS's home-proctored online platform. Individual content exams run $120 to $170 depending on the test code and length.

The critical step most candidates miss: during registration, you must designate the Delaware Department of Education as an official score recipient using reporting code R7065. Without this, your scores won't reach DEEDS and your application stalls. You must arrange for the score to be routed to DDOE.

Elementary Education Assessment Changes

Delaware is transitioning its elementary assessment requirements, and the timing matters:

• The Elementary Education: Multiple Subjects (5001) and Content Knowledge for Teaching (7811) subtests are being phased out
• Subtest 5002 (Reading and Language Arts) is accepted for applications submitted through December 31, 2026
• Starting January 1, 2027, only the Teaching Reading: Elementary (5205) assessment will be accepted

If you're pursuing elementary certification, check which test applies to your application timeline before registering. Taking the wrong test wastes $120+ and weeks of preparation.

Performance Assessment Update: edTPA Essentials

Pearson announced edTPA Essentials, beginning August 2026. This replaces the legacy edTPA portfolio with a simplified two-task design, streamlined evidence requirements, and broader grading flexibility. If you're a traditional or ARTC candidate planning to submit your portfolio after August 2026, verify which version your preparation program expects.

The baseline fee for either edTPA or PPAT is approximately $300. If you don't pass, you can resubmit individual non-passing sections at a reduced, pro-rated fee rather than redoing the entire portfolio.

Retake Rules

If you don't pass a Praxis assessment, you must wait a mandatory 28 days before retaking it. Plan your testing schedule with this buffer in mind, especially if you're targeting the June–September hiring window when DEEDS processing already stretches to six weeks.

For a complete mapping of which Praxis test corresponds to each Delaware content-area certificate — plus timeline planners that account for score reporting delays — the Delaware Teacher Certification Guide covers the full assessment logistics for every pathway.

See more Delaware guides →