How to Prepare for the Special Education Teacher License Test: An 8-Week Plan by Domain Weight

Last verified: 31 October 2026. The weights come from ETEC's candidate guide for Special Education teachers (pp. 6–7), and the standards from the Learning Disabilities teacher standards. This guide is independent: it is not affiliated with ETEC, Qiyas (the National Center for Assessment), the Ministry of Education or any government body.

In short: an eight-week plan that splits your time by domain weight: two weeks for general principles of special education (25%), one for planning instruction (15%), one for general principles of learning disabilities (20%), one for planning instruction for learning disabilities (17%), one for motivating and supporting learners with learning disabilities (16%), one for motivating and supporting learning in special education (7%) together with the first full mock exam, and a last week for review and full mock exams. The next sitting is expected in late January 2027, so adjust the plan to finish before your date (dates).

How we split the time

If a domain is already strong from your daily work, shorten its time and give it to your weakest domain after the week-one diagnostic.

If your track is not learning disabilities (intellectual disability or autism, for example): study weeks 1, 2, 3 and 7 here, since they are the general part (47%) shared by every track, and replace weeks 4 to 6 with material for your own specialised part (53%), which our questions do not yet cover.

Rules for every week

• Tie every fact to a student case: ETEC's questions ask which placement suits a particular student, which element an IEP must contain, or what role suits the teacher, so do not stop at memorising definitions. For each topic ask yourself what you would do with this student in class.
• Read the standard, then practise: each standard has indicators in what the test covers, and each question measures one indicator. Start every topic with its indicators, then work its questions in practice mode.
• Read the explanation of every option: a wrong option shows you the common misconception (such as mixing up generalisation and maintenance of a behaviour), so write down what you got wrong.
• Review your mistakes: every Sunday, redo last week's questions that you missed.
• Group the look-alike terms: criterion-referenced and norm-referenced, accommodations and modifications, generalisation and maintenance, co-teaching and parallel and alternative teaching. Write each pair down with an example.
• End of every week: practise that week's units, then from week 7 take a full timed mock exam.

Week 1: diagnostic and general principles of special education (1)

• Day one: the free questions (10 of them) to see where you stand across the domains.
• 6.13.1.1: the concept, history and terminology of special education, local and international laws, the categories of students and service models, and support services.
• 6.13.1.2: causes of disability before, during and after birth and how to prevent them, developmental characteristics and the effect of disability on development. Note the guide's example on the mother's age and Down syndrome.
• End of week: practise this part and note your three weakest standards from the diagnostic.

Week 2: general principles of special education (2)

• 6.13.1.3: assessment and diagnosis: formal and informal tools, the multidisciplinary assessment team and each member's role, and professional ethics.
• 6.13.1.5: early intervention: its concept and rationale, preventing disability, its programmes and models. Note the guide's example on the role of families and their cooperation with specialists.
• End of week: practise the whole domain, since it is the largest in the test (25%).

Week 3: planning instruction in special education

• 6.13.1.6: inclusive education: universal access, the multi-tiered system of support (MTSS), accommodations and modifications, and the assistant teacher's role.
• 6.13.1.4: the IEP: its components, its team and how it is written from diagnostic results. Note the guide's two examples on the present level of performance and the type of assessment that helps most in writing goals.
• 6.13.1.7: positive behaviour support: theories and methods, shaping behaviour, reinforcement and classroom management.
• 6.13.1.9: independence skills and transition programmes: daily-living skills, self-determination and transition steps.
• End of week: practise the domain and revisit the last two weeks' mistakes.

Week 4: general principles of learning disabilities

• 6.13.2.11: the history of the field, explanatory theories, definitions, regulations, causes of the difficulties and terminology.
• 6.13.2.12: students' developmental, cognitive, academic and social characteristics, how they compare with other categories, and risk indicators.
• 6.13.2.13: how these students learn: metacognitive behaviour, misconceptions in effective teaching, and the effect of cognitive problems on academic skills.
• End of week: practise the domain (20%).

Week 5: planning instruction for students with learning disabilities

• 6.13.2.14: specialised teaching methods: strategies for reading, writing and maths, presenting content in several ways, and research-supported strategies.
• 6.13.2.15: designing integrated programmes: writing the IEP, sequencing objectives, support services and transition plans.
• 6.13.2.18: assessment, diagnosis and evaluation: identification criteria, tools, choosing the method of assessment and writing achievement tools.
• End of week: practise the domain (17%).

Week 6: motivating and supporting learners with learning disabilities

• 6.13.2.16: creating learning opportunities: presenting concepts in several ways, the resource-room environment and changing IEP goals.
• 6.13.2.17: reinforcing learning: linking a new skill to earlier learning, choosing suitable reinforcement, and keeping and generalising the skill.
• Revisit the IEP standard (6.13.1.4) from week 3 and tie it to what you have studied here.
• End of week: practise the whole domain (16%).

Week 7: motivating and supporting learning in special education, and the first full mock exam

• 6.13.1.8: consultation, collaboration and teamwork: co-teaching, its models and dividing roles. Note the guide's example on the special education teacher's role in an inclusive setting.
• 6.13.1.10: family partnership: communicating with the family, the individualised family service plan (IFSP) and the types of involvement.
• End of week: practise this domain, then take your first full timed mock exam in two hours with no phone. Compare the result with your week-one diagnostic, domain by domain.

Week 8: review

• Review the mistakes from the first full mock exam and go back to its two weakest domains. Start with general principles of special education if it is one of them, since it is 25% of the questions.
• A second full mock exam in mid-week, then review its mistakes.
• Two days before the test: a third full mock exam, then a light review. Do not start a new topic on the last day.
• On test day: check the required ID and what is allowed, sleep early and arrive early.

If you have less time

If fewer than eight weeks remain, start with the diagnostic and then squeeze the plan in this order: general principles of special education, then general principles of learning disabilities, then planning instruction for learning disabilities, then motivating and supporting learners with learning disabilities, then planning instruction in special education, then the rest. Keep the last three days for two full mock exams and a review of their mistakes.

This plan is our suggestion for organising your time and does not guarantee a particular score, and a mock-exam result is an estimate of your readiness, not an official result. Start in unit practice with general principles of special education (25%), and leave the full mock exam for the end of the plan.