For many this exam is considered a difficultly level of 3, where 5 is the hardest and 1 is the easiest. The exam covers natural physiological and psychological progression of a human from birth to death. It will ask questions on infancy, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and lastly aging. As a mixture of biology and psychology, there are definitely ways to make this test a little easier. Find out from this study guide where you might be able to save time studying, as well as a method for preparing for more than one exam.
Exam Day Details
The Human Growth and Development CLEP is 90 questions with 90 minutes to complete the test. The ACE does recommend a score of 50 to pass. Always check with the university to see what they require for the 3 credits this exam provides. It’s usually $80 to take the test and $20 for the sitting fee at most locations. For certain test takers there may be an option of getting tuition assistance to take the exam free.
Helpful Exam Tips
This exam is more of a psychology topic with biology thrown in. It tends to be one of the harder psychology exams because it takes students through biology development and correlates it to the mind. For those who have yet to take any exam it is recommended that you start with introductory to sociology and introductory to psychology CLEP exams first. You will learn the basics of both, which are going to be seen and used on the Human Growth and Development CLEP exam. In fact, many of the psychology CLEPs tend to overlap concepts.
As long as you take these psychology exams in order it will be easier for you to pass the exam and not have any trouble with the topics. If you were planning to take this one first, you might want to stop and take the others. If you still want to proceed, then you know you will at least be better prepared for the other psychology topics.
A more formal breakdown in this Human Growth and Development CLEP guide will be provided below, but you can expect to find at least 8 questions on theories of development in terms of cognitive theory and other psychology terms. There are about 5 questions on learning theory principles. About the same amount of questions can be found on biological development such as the stages, nutrition, and what is needed for a healthy development of the body.
Language development is a fairly large portion of the exam including the different levels and learning process of language development. It is important to understand the following theories by the person who developed them:
Erik Erickson
Lawrence Kohlberg
Albert Bandura
Freud
Susan Carey
Chomsky
Piaget
One last tip is for you to take a prep test. There are numerous human growth and development prep tests for the CLEP. You can find them online as well as through university resources. A prep test will show you exactly where you need to focus based on what you know and do not know.
Study Resources
You will want to find study resources that are akin to introductory Psychology and Sociology textbooks. There are plenty available online. One of the better options is to use InstantCert prep materials including the study guides, prep tests, and the forum area that helps you with what to study.
REA is also a great option for students as it provides a book and flashcards too.
For some of the terms you might want to start with Wikipedia just to get an easier version and historical background, but always check your facts with a text book or on a test prep to ensure you are getting it correct.
Detailed Breakdown of Exam Questions
It is important to understand there are different versions of the Human Growth and Development CLEP exam out there. Depending on the version you receive you may see more of certain questions than others. Some exams ask very little about Freud while others increase the questions slightly.
The following is a good breakdown of what you can expect to see:
Cognitive Development through the lifespan 12%
Theoretical Perspectives, Biological Development, and Social Development are each about 10%
Language Development, Personality and Emotion; Family, home, society; and learning are each about 8%
Perceptual development is about 7% of the exam
5% for each: research strategies and methodology; schooling work and interventions; and atypical development
4% intelligence throughout one’s life
For a more in-depth breakdown here are a couple of areas to concentrate on:
Gender
Research Strategies like longitudinal, cross-sectional, and observational
Sexual maturation
Nutritional influences on growth
Autism
Motor development
Memory attention and information processing
Social influences
Sense of self
Language development both vocalization and sound
Schools of Thought from the top psychologists and those who shaped the industry
Mood disorders
As long as you have a handle on the introductory courses to sociology, psychology, and biology this exam will be fairly easy to take. It will depend on what your interest are and have been with regard to academic study, but with hours spent using the study resources named in this study guide it is possible to find what you need and learn it prior to taking the exam. You have plenty of time to study, so do not rush into the exam room until you feel ready.
Personal Thoughts
Take the introductory psychology and sociology exams first; then take this one immediately after. If you do as such, then you won’t even need to study for this one, assuming you passed the first two. At most, if done in the recommended order, a couple times through the Instant Cert cards for review is all you’ll need.
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