AEPA Principal Practice Test

Unofficial practice for both Arizona principal subtests, fields 181 and 281, with Arizona school law in the answers.

Subtest

Subtest I (181): vision, collaboration, finance, operations, law and ethics. Subtest II (281): instructional and organizational leadership.

A planning committee writes: "Every graduate will leave ready to shape a thriving community." A parent asks whether this is the school's mission. What should the principal say?

Pick an answer, then press Check answer. Then you see Correct or Not quite, with the reason. Keys: A to D pick, Enter checks.

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Exam mode: 20 questions, 36 minutes.

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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with the Arizona Department of Education or Pearson. Bank checked October 12, 2026.

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Subtest I: all 20 questions

Shared vision, goals and plans 5

  • A planning committee writes: "Every graduate will leave ready to shape a thriving community." A parent asks whether this is the school's mission. What should the principal say? Wikipedia, Vision statement. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0001
  • A school tries a new tutoring schedule for one quarter. The team then compares the results with the outcomes its plan expected. In the plan-do-check-act cycle, what does the next phase call for? Wikipedia, PDCA, Act. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0001
  • Before setting goals, a new principal compares current attendance and achievement data with the levels the school's vision calls for, and lists the gaps. What is this process called? Wikipedia, Needs assessment. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0001
Show all 20 questions (17 more)

Shared vision, goals and plans, continued

  • During strategic planning, a principal lists a new housing development that will send 200 more pupils to the school. Where does this belong in a SWOT analysis? Wikipedia, SWOT analysis, Internal and external factors. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0001
  • Which school improvement goal best fits the SMART criteria? Wikipedia, SMART criteria. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0001

Contexts of education and collaboration 5

  • A district governing board schedules a regular meeting. Absent an actual emergency, what notice does Arizona's open meeting law require? Arizona Revised Statutes 38-431.02. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0002
  • A district is weighing whether to close an elementary school. Under A.R.S. 15-341, what must the governing board do before the public meeting on the closing? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-341. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0002
  • A principal reviews who sits on the body that sets Arizona's school rules. Which of these seats does A.R.S. 15-201 reserve on the State Board of Education? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-201. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0002
  • An Arizona school council has five teachers. Under A.R.S. 15-351, how many parents or guardians of enrolled pupils sit on it? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-351. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0002
  • Under A.R.S. 15-102, who must adopt a policy to promote the involvement of parents and guardians in a district's schools? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-102. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0002

Fiscal and operational management 5

  • A district's proposed budget exceeds its aggregate budget limit for the budget year. Under A.R.S. 15-481, who decides whether that budget stands? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-481. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0003
  • A high school takes in gate receipts at football games and sales at its bookstore. In which fund does Arizona law place this money? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-1125. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0003
  • Arizona school funding starts from average daily membership. As A.R.S. 15-901 defines it, enrollment minus withdrawals is counted for each school day through which point? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-901. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0003
  • Who prescribes the uniform system of financial records that Arizona school districts must use each fiscal year? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-271. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0003
  • With whom must an Arizona governing board develop the emergency response plan for each of its schools? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-341. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0003

Law and ethics 5

  • A family moves into an Arizona district with children aged 5, 9 and 17. Under A.R.S. 15-802, which of them must attend a school? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-802. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0004
  • A principal recommends suspending a pupil for 12 days. Under A.R.S. 15-843, what must the governing board's discipline rules provide for a suspension of that length? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-843. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0004
  • A substitute teacher tells the principal she reasonably believes a pupil has been abused. Under A.R.S. 13-3620, what must happen? Arizona Revised Statutes 13-3620. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0004
  • An Arizona school keeps refusing a father access to his daughter's educational records. Beyond the enforcement that federal law itself provides, what remedy does A.R.S. 15-141 add? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-141. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0004
  • Under A.R.S. 15-752, how are children who are English learners to be educated in Arizona public schools? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-752. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest I (field 181) test objectives, objective 0004

How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to Subtest I (field 181) of the Principal Subtests I and II in the test design and test objectives of the study guide on the Arizona Educator Proficiency Assessments website (https://www.aepa.nesinc.com/Content/STUDYGUIDE/AZ_SG_obj_181.htm; test page https://www.aepa.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/AZ081_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-12): 50 selected-response questions and 2 written performance assignments in 3 hours 30 minutes, passing score 240; Subarea I, Visionary Leadership, Collaboration, and Educational Contexts (objectives 0001 and 0002, 50%) and Subarea II, Fiscal and Operational Management and Legal/Ethical Guidelines (0003 and 0004, 50%). This set holds 20, five for each objective. Every fact was read on the public page named under its question: the Arizona Revised Statutes on the Arizona Legislature's website and the named Wikipedia articles. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.

Subtest II: all 20 questions

Learning environment 5

  • A principal coaches teachers to hold and voice high expectations for every class, citing research that links expectations to performance. Which effect is she relying on? Wikipedia, Pygmalion effect. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0005
  • A school adopts positive behavior interventions and supports across every classroom. Which students does tier 1 of the model serve? Wikipedia, Positive behavior interventions and supports. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0005
  • After a fight, a school brings the two students and those affected together in a facilitated conference so that harm is mended and relationships are restored. Which approach is this? Wikipedia, Restorative practices. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0005
Show all 20 questions (17 more)

Learning environment, continued

  • An Arizona principal suspends a pupil for three days. Under A.R.S. 15-843, what must follow every suspension? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-843. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0005
  • Which component must an Arizona governing board's procedures against bullying include under A.R.S. 15-341? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-341. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0005

Instructional leadership 5

  • A curriculum team plans each unit by naming the learning outcomes first, then the evidence of learning, then the lessons. Which approach is the team using? Wikipedia, Understanding by Design. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0006
  • A grade-level team gives short checks for understanding midway through each unit. What is the purpose of this formative assessment? Wikipedia, Formative assessment. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0006
  • Arizona law holds back a third grader who does not show sufficient reading skills. Under A.R.S. 15-701, which pupil may the governing board promote all the same? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-701. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0006
  • How does Arizona's annual achievement profile classify the performance of each public school? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-241. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0006
  • In a response to intervention model, a second grader scores below grade level on the fall academic screening. What does the model most often provide next? Wikipedia, Response to intervention. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0006

Professional development 5

  • A principal makes brief, frequent visits to classrooms and shares the patterns she sees with the staff. As the classroom walkthrough was designed, what is its purpose? Wikipedia, Classroom walkthrough. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0007
  • A principal rebuilds the schedule so that the algebra teachers share a period, look at results together and refine their lessons as an ongoing team. Which structure is she building? Wikipedia, Professional learning community. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0007
  • In which practice does a small group of teachers plan one research lesson together, watch it taught live to students, and report the results for other teachers? Wikipedia, Lesson study. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0007
  • Under A.R.S. 15-537, how much of a teacher's evaluation outcome must rest on quantitative data on the academic progress of students? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-537. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0007
  • Which set names the four performance classifications that an Arizona teacher evaluation system must include? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-537. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0007

Organizational and human resource management 5

  • A teacher who is eligible under the Family and Medical Leave Act asks for leave after the birth of a child. What is the general limit on FMLA leave? 29 CFR 825.200, Amount of leave. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0008
  • Before proposing a new master schedule, a principal helps the staff see why the old one no longer serves students. In the three-step model of change, which step is this? Wikipedia, Change management. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0008
  • In an Arizona school district, who must establish the system for evaluating the performance of principals? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-503. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0008
  • Members of a new school leadership team have begun to voice their opinions, and conflict arises over roles and status. Which stage of group development is this? Wikipedia, Tuckman's stages of group development, Storming. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0008
  • Under A.R.S. 15-538.01, from what date each year does a governing board offer a continuing teacher a contract renewal for the next school year? Arizona Revised Statutes 15-538.01. Written to the AEPA Principal Subtest II (field 281) test objectives, objective 0008

How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to Subtest II (field 281) of the Principal Subtests I and II in the test design and test objectives of the study guide on the Arizona Educator Proficiency Assessments website (https://www.aepa.nesinc.com/Content/STUDYGUIDE/AZ_SG_obj_181.htm; test page https://www.aepa.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/AZ081_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-12): 50 selected-response questions and 2 written performance assignments in 3 hours 30 minutes, passing score 240; one subarea, Instructional and Organizational Leadership (objectives 0005 to 0008, 100%). This set holds 20, five for each objective. Every fact was read on the public page named under its question: the Arizona Revised Statutes on the Arizona Legislature's website, 29 CFR 825.200 in the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations and the named Wikipedia articles. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.

How it works

This free AEPA Principal practice test has a 20-question set for Subtest I and one for Subtest II. It is unofficial and not affiliated with the Arizona Department of Education or Pearson.

Read the full guide

What the two AEPA Principal subtests cover

By the test design on the AEPA site, read October 12, 2026, Subtest I is half Visionary Leadership, Collaboration, and Educational Contexts and half Fiscal and Operational Management and Legal/Ethical Guidelines. Subtest II is one subarea, Instructional and Organizational Leadership. Each set gives every objective five questions, and its timed exam keeps the online pace of 50 questions in 90 minutes.

Arizona law in the answers

Twenty-three questions rest on the Arizona Revised Statutes as they read today: school councils, open meetings, override elections, the uniform system of financial records, reporting abuse, suspensions, third grade promotion, A through F letter grades and teacher evaluation. Each explanation gives the section number.

  • In an online-proctored subtest the written assignments come first, and after the break you cannot go back to them.

Questions and answers

Is this AEPA Principal practice test free?

Yes. There is no account and no fee. The 40 questions were written here from the eight published objectives, and each explanation names the statute or public page behind the answer. The study guide's sample questions were left unopened.

Is there a practice test for AEPA Principal test number 2?

Yes. The Subtest II set holds 20 questions on field 281: the learning environment, instructional leadership, professional development, and organizational and human resource management.

How many questions are on the AEPA Principal test?

Each subtest has 50 selected-response questions plus 2 written performance assignments. A test center allows 3 hours 30 minutes a subtest. Online, the written part gets 2 hours and the questions 1 hour 30 minutes.

What is the passing score for the AEPA Principal subtests?

240 on each subtest, by the test page read October 12, 2026, and a certificate needs both. Because the written assignments feed that score, a count of right answers here says nothing about passing.

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