FTCE General Knowledge Test flashcards
FTCE General Knowledge Test · Build recall with a focused review session.
32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.
- Holistic essay scoring
- The FTCE essay is scored holistically on a 6-point scale judging overall focus, organization, development, and conventions rather than counting specific errors.
- Thesis statement
- A thesis statement is a single sentence in the introduction that states the essay's main position and previews the supporting reasons.
- Topic sentence
- A topic sentence opens a body paragraph and states the one idea that the paragraph will develop and support.
- Counterargument rebuttal
- Acknowledging an opposing view and then explaining why it is weaker strengthens a persuasive essay and shows balanced reasoning.
- Transition words
- Words such as however, therefore, and in addition connect ideas and signal logical relationships between sentences and paragraphs.
- Essay time budget
- In a 50-minute essay, plan for about 5-8 minutes prewriting, 30-35 minutes drafting, and 5-8 minutes proofreading.
- Subject-verb agreement
- A verb must agree in number with its subject; prepositional phrases between the subject and verb do not change the verb's number.
- Comma splice
- A comma splice joins two independent clauses with only a comma; correct it with a semicolon, a coordinating conjunction, or a period.
- Pronoun-antecedent agreement
- A pronoun must match its antecedent in number and gender, as in 'Each student must bring his or her book.'
- Dangling modifier
- A dangling modifier is a phrase that does not clearly modify the intended noun, often because the subject is missing.
- Semicolon use
- A semicolon joins two closely related independent clauses without a coordinating conjunction; it can also separate items in a complex list.
- Its versus it's
- 'Its' is possessive, while 'it's' is a contraction meaning 'it is' or 'it has.'
- Who versus whom
- Use 'who' for a subject and 'whom' for an object; substituting he/she or him/her helps test which is correct.
- Parallel structure
- Items in a series or list must use the same grammatical form, such as all nouns, all gerunds, or all infinitives.
- Colon use
- A colon introduces a list, explanation, or quotation and must follow a complete independent clause, not a sentence fragment.
- Active voice
- In active voice the subject performs the action, which usually makes sentences clearer and more direct than passive voice.
- Main idea
- The main idea is the central point of a passage; it is often stated in the first or last sentence of a paragraph.
- Inference
- An inference is a logical conclusion drawn from details in the text combined with the reader's prior knowledge, not stated directly.
- Author's tone
- Tone is the author's attitude toward the subject, revealed through word choice, sentence structure, and details.
- Context clues
- Context clues are nearby words or phrases that help a reader determine the meaning of an unfamiliar word.
- Fact versus opinion
- A fact can be verified with evidence, while an opinion expresses a belief, judgment, or feeling that cannot be proven.
- Author's purpose
- An author's purpose is the reason for writing, commonly to inform, persuade, entertain, or explain.
- Signal words
- Words such as first, then, however, and therefore show sequence, contrast, or cause-effect relationships between ideas.
- Percent change formula
- Percent change equals the new value minus the old value, divided by the old value, then multiplied by 100.
- Slope formula
- Slope equals the change in y divided by the change in x between two points on a line.
- Slope-intercept form
- The equation y = mx + b gives a line with slope m and y-intercept b.
- Pythagorean theorem
- In a right triangle, the square of the hypotenuse equals the sum of the squares of the other two sides: a² + b² = c².
- Mean median mode
- The mean is the average, the median is the middle value when ordered, and the mode is the most frequent value.
- Probability formula
- Probability equals the number of favorable outcomes divided by the total number of equally likely outcomes.
- Order of operations
- Perform operations in parentheses first, then exponents, then multiplication and division left to right, then addition and subtraction.
- Simple interest formula
- Simple interest equals principal times annual interest rate times time in years: I = Prt.
- Triangle angle sum
- The three interior angles of any triangle always add up to 180 degrees, which helps find a missing angle.