• 50 questions

FTCE Physics Practice Test

Unofficial practice for FTCE Physics 6–12: mechanics, electricity and magnetism, waves and optics, thermodynamics and modern physics.

A student needs the potential difference across one resistor in a working circuit. How is the voltmeter connected?

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: 42 questions, 90 minutes.

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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with the Florida Department of Education or Pearson. Bank checked October 11, 2026.

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All 50 questions

Scientific investigation and instruction 4

  • A student needs the potential difference across one resistor in a working circuit. How is the voltmeter connected? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Voltmeter Design. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 1 (scientific investigation and instruction in physics)
  • What did the torsion balance experiment that Henry Cavendish ran in 1797 and 1798 measure in a laboratory for the first time? Wikipedia, "Cavendish experiment". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 1 (scientific investigation and instruction in physics)
  • Which device protects a student at a wet lab bench by cutting the power when the current going out on one supply conductor no longer matches the current coming back on the other? Wikipedia, "Residual-current device". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 1 (scientific investigation and instruction in physics)
  • Which statement separates a scientific law from a scientific theory? Wikipedia, "Scientific law". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 1 (scientific investigation and instruction in physics)
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The mathematics of physics 4

  • A = 3i + 4j and B = 2i − 5j. What is the dot product A · B? Wikipedia, "Dot product". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 2 (the mathematics of physics)
  • A capacitor is marked 4.7 nF. What is that in farads? National Institute of Standards and Technology, Metric (SI) Prefixes. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 2 (the mathematics of physics)
  • A student writes the period of a pendulum as T = 2π√(g/L), with g in m/s² and L in meters. What does dimensional analysis show? Wikipedia, "Dimensional analysis". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 2 (the mathematics of physics)
  • A velocity versus time graph is a straight line from 0 m/s at t = 0 to 12 m/s at t = 4.0 s. What do its slope and the area under it give? Wikipedia, "Motion graphs and derivatives". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 2 (the mathematics of physics)

Thermodynamics 5

  • A gas expands at a constant pressure of 200 kPa from 0.010 m³ to 0.030 m³. How much work does the gas do? Wikipedia, "Isobaric process". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 3 (thermodynamics)
  • A gas is compressed. The piston does 150 J of work on the gas, and during the stroke the gas gives off 60 J of heat. By how much does its internal energy change? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), First Law of Thermodynamics. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 3 (thermodynamics)
  • A steel rail is 20 m long at 10 °C. Its coefficient of linear expansion is 12 × 10⁻⁶ per °C. How much longer is the rail at 40 °C? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Thermal Expansion. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 3 (thermodynamics)
  • A weather balloon holds 2.0 m³ of gas at 100 kPa and 300 K. It rises to a height where the pressure is 50 kPa and the gas has cooled to 240 K. What is its volume there? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Ideal Gas Law. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 3 (thermodynamics)
  • Air warmed by a floor heater rises, cools near the ceiling and sinks again, carrying heat around the room. Which kind of heat transfer is this? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Heat Transfer. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 3 (thermodynamics)

Mechanics 13

  • A 2.0 kg ball is dropped from rest 5.0 m above the floor. Ignoring air resistance and taking g = 10 m/s², how fast is it moving just before it lands? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Energy of a Falling Object. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A 2.0 kg block hangs from a spring whose spring constant is 200 N/m and bobs up and down. What is the angular frequency of the motion? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Simple Harmonic Motion Frequency. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A 2.0 kg cart rolling to the right at 3.0 m/s meets a 1.0 kg cart rolling to the left at 3.0 m/s. They lock together. What is their velocity just afterward? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Inelastic Collisions. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A 3.0 kg block and a 1.0 kg block are tied to the two ends of a light cord that runs over an ideal pulley, and they are let go. Taking g = 9.8 m/s², what is the tension in the cord while they move? Wikipedia, "Atwood machine". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A 10 kg crate slides across a level floor. The coefficient of kinetic friction is 0.30 and g = 9.8 m/s². How large is the friction force? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Friction. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A ball rolls off the edge of a table 1.25 m high at 4.0 m/s. Taking g = 10 m/s² and ignoring air resistance, how far from the foot of the table does it land? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Trajectories. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A block of volume 0.0020 m³ is held fully under fresh water of density 1,000 kg/m³. Taking g = 9.8 m/s², what is the buoyant force on it? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Buoyancy. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A book rests on a table. By Newton's third law, which force is the partner of the Earth's gravitational pull on the book? Wikipedia, "Reaction (physics)". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A car starts from rest and speeds up at a steady 3.0 m/s² for 6.0 s. How far does it travel in that time? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Description of Motion in One Dimension. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A car takes a level curve, then takes the same curve at twice the speed. How does the centripetal force it needs compare? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Centripetal Force. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A motor lifts a 50 kg load straight up 6.0 m in 10 s at a steady speed. Taking g = 9.8 m/s², what power does it deliver to the load? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Power. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • A uniform meter stick balances on a pivot at its 50 cm mark. A 200 g mass hangs from the 20 cm mark. Where must a 300 g mass hang to keep the stick level? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Torque and Equilibrium. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)
  • The distance between the centers of two masses is tripled. The gravitational force between them becomes what fraction of its first value? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Gravity. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 4 (mechanics)

Waves and optics 9

  • A ray of light passes from air into glass. Which property of the light stays the same? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Refraction of Light. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • A siren moves toward a listener who is standing still. Why does the listener hear a higher pitch than the driver does? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), The Doppler Effect for Sound. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • A stamp is held 5.0 cm from a thin converging lens whose focal length is 10 cm. What image does the lens form? Wikipedia, "Thin lens". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • A tube 0.85 m long is closed at one end. Sound travels at 340 m/s in the air inside. What is the tube's lowest resonant frequency? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Closed Cylinder Air Column. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • A water wave has a frequency of 5.0 Hz and a wavelength of 0.40 m. How fast does it travel? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Traveling Wave Relationship. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • As a sound wave passes through air, how does the air itself move? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Transverse and Longitudinal Waves. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • Outdoors, with no reflections, a small loudspeaker gives a sound intensity of 8.0 mW/m² at 2.0 m. What is the intensity at 4.0 m? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Inverse Square Law, Sound. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • The tension in a guitar string is made four times as large, with nothing else changed. What happens to the speed of a wave on the string? Wikipedia, "String vibration". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)
  • Tuning forks of 440 Hz and 444 Hz are sounded together. How many beats does a listener hear each second? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Beats. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 5 (waves and optics)

Electricity and magnetism 10

  • A 4.0 Ω resistor is connected across a 12 V battery. How much power does the resistor dissipate? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), DC Electric Power. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • A 6.0 Ω resistor and a 3.0 Ω resistor are wired in parallel, and that pair is in series with a 4.0 Ω resistor. What is the equivalent resistance? Wikipedia, "Series and parallel circuits". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • A bar magnet is pulled away from a closed loop of wire, so the magnetic flux through the loop falls. What does the current induced in the loop do? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Faraday's Law and Lenz's Law. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • A closed surface surrounds a net charge. A second closed surface, twice as large, surrounds the same charge and no other. How does the total electric flux out of the second surface compare? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Gauss's Law. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • A proton moves due east through a magnetic field that points due north. In which direction is the magnetic force on the proton? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Magnetic Force. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • A wire is replaced by one of the same metal that is twice as long and has twice the cross-sectional area. How does the new resistance compare with the old? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Resistance and Resistivity. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • An air-filled parallel-plate capacitor has a capacitance of 2.0 μF. A material with a dielectric constant of 3.0 then fills the space between the plates. What is the capacitance now? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Dielectrics. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • An ideal transformer has 100 turns on its primary coil and 500 turns on its secondary. The primary is fed 120 V AC. What is the secondary voltage, and how does the secondary current compare with the primary current? Wikipedia, "Transformer". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • How much work is needed to move 2.0 C of charge through a potential difference of 12 V? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Voltage. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)
  • Two point charges are moved until they are half as far apart. How does the electric force between them change? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Coulomb's Law. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 6 (electricity and magnetism)

Modern physics 5

  • A carbon-14 nucleus (6 protons) undergoes beta-minus decay. Which nucleus is left? Wikipedia, "Beta decay". Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 7 (modern physics)
  • A detector near a radioactive source counts 800 decays a minute. Thirty-six hours later it counts 100 a minute. What is the half-life of the source? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Radioactive Half-Life. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 7 (modern physics)
  • A particle lives for 2.0 μs in its own rest frame. It moves past a laboratory at 0.60c. What lifetime does the laboratory measure? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Time Dilation and Length Contraction. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 7 (modern physics)
  • In the standard model, which fundamental force is carried by gluons? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Fundamental Forces. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 7 (modern physics)
  • Which observation about the photoelectric effect could the wave picture of light not explain? HyperPhysics (Georgia State University), Wave-Particle Duality, the photoelectric effect. Written to FTCE Physics 6–12 (032), competency 7 (modern physics)

How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the Competencies and Skills and Blueprint of FTCE Physics 6–12 (032) in the test information guide on the FTCE/FELE website, https://www.fl.nesinc.com/studyguide/FL_SG_obj_032.htm (copyright State of Florida, Department of State; site run by Pearson), read 2026-10-11: approximately 70 multiple-choice questions in seven competencies, scientific investigation and instruction about 7 percent, the mathematics of physics 8, thermodynamics 10, mechanics 27, waves and optics 18, electricity and magnetism 20 and modern physics 10. Each question names the public page its answer was checked on, opened 2026-10-11. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.

How it works

This free FTCE Physics practice test follows Physics 6–12, exam 032: 50 original questions across its seven competencies, each worked out. It is unofficial and not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the Florida Department of Education or Pearson.

Read the full guide

Seven competencies and their weights

Mechanics carries about 27% of the questions, electricity and magnetism 20% and waves and optics 18%. Thermodynamics and modern physics carry 10% each, the mathematics of physics 8%, and scientific investigation and instruction 7%. This bank holds 13, 10, 9, 5, 5, 4 and 4.

Timing

Exam mode draws 42 of the 50 here and allows 90 minutes, the pace of the real test.

Worked by hand

Most questions here are calculations, with numbers chosen so that each can be worked by hand. The explanation under each one shows the working.

  • Mechanics lists 21 skills, from motion graphs and Newton's laws to fluids, torque and simple harmonic motion: more than any other competency.
  • Competency 1 is about teaching as well as physics: laboratory hazards, choosing equipment, guided inquiry and teacher liability.

Questions and answers

How many questions are on the FTCE Physics 6-12 test?

Approximately 70 multiple-choice questions, taken on a computer in 2 hours 30 minutes. The FTCE site adds that a test may include questions being evaluated for future use that do not affect a score.

What is a passing score on the FTCE Physics test?

The FTCE site states it as a scaled score of at least 200. That is not a percent, so exam mode here gives the number you got right and no pass or fail.

Can you use a calculator on the FTCE Physics test?

An on-screen scientific calculator is provided during the test, and examinees may not bring their own. The FTCE site also lists a physics reference sheet as provided.

Is there a free FTCE Physics practice test?

This one is free. Every question was written for this page from the published competencies and checked on a public physics page named under it. None comes from a real test or the guide's sample questions, and no score here predicts a score there.

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