A parent reads that her son's score on a standardized reading test has a percentile rank of 70. What does the figure report?Wikipedia, Percentile rank. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0005
A student knows every word in "The report the committee the mayor appointed wrote was ignored" and still cannot say who wrote the report. Which component of language is causing the trouble?Wikipedia, Syntax. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0001
A student recognizes the words of a passage quickly and correctly but reads them without expression. In the terms of Put Reading First, what has the student reached?Put Reading First, third edition (National Institute for Literacy). Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0004
A student who is learning English can define every word in "spill the beans" and still misreads the sentence. What makes an idiom hard to work out from its parts?Wikipedia, Idiom. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0003
Show all 44 questions (40 more)
Reading comprehension, continued
A student writes, "The queen's rain lasted sixty years." What is the relationship between the word she wrote and the word she meant?Wikipedia, Homophone. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0003
A teacher choosing a memoir for a class weighs her students' motivation, knowledge and experiences against the purpose of the assignment. Which of the three factors of text complexity in the English language arts standards is she using?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, Standard 10. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0002
A teacher has students take turns reading one paragraph each aloud, once, to build fluency. What does Put Reading First say about this round-robin reading?Put Reading First, third edition (National Institute for Literacy). Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0004
A unit on the history of English reaches the year 1066. Which language then replaced Old English, for a time, as the language of the upper classes and left a heavy mark on English?Wikipedia, History of English. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0003
During an oral reading check, a student says "house" where the text reads "home". Which term did Ken Goodman choose for such a response, in place of "error"?Wikipedia, Miscue analysis. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0005
Each afternoon a middle school stops for a quiet stretch in which students read recreational books to themselves. What do researchers call this routine?Wikipedia, Sustained silent reading. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0002
In a story a host says, "It's getting late, isn't it?" and the guests rise to leave. A student who reads the line as a hint to go is drawing on which component of language?Wikipedia, Pragmatics. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0001
Two ninth graders read the same article on tide pools. The one who has explored tide pools recalls far more of it. Which idea from cognitive psychology explains the gap?Wikipedia, Schema (psychology). Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0001
Literary and informational texts 10
A class reading The Federalist comes to Madison's tenth essay. On his account, why is a factious majority less of a threat in a republic that covers a wide territory?Wikipedia, Federalist No. 10. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0007
A fourteen-line poem falls into an eight-line part rhymed ABBAABBA and a six-line part. Which form is it?Wikipedia, Petrarchan sonnet. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0006
A proposal for a later school start cites sleep research. An editorial replies, "Those who back this plan think teenagers should never have to get out of bed." Which flaw should students trace in the editorial?Wikipedia, Straw man. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0009
A teacher shows students a method for reading a textbook chapter whose five steps are survey, question, read, recite and review. What is the method called?Wikipedia, SQ3R. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0009
In a literature circle, one student holds the role of discussion facilitator. What does that student prepare for the meeting?Wikipedia, Literature circle. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0008
In a novel from Latin America, a girl rises into the sky while folding sheets, and her neighbors in an otherwise ordinary town treat it as an everyday event. Which style of fiction does the scene mark?Wikipedia, Magic realism. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0006
In Springfield in 1858, Lincoln told the Illinois Republican convention, "A house divided against itself cannot stand." Which device gives the line its weight?Wikipedia, Lincoln's House Divided Speech. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0007
Lorraine Hansberry's play A Raisin in the Sun takes its title from a Langston Hughes poem. Where does the family at its center live?Wikipedia, A Raisin in the Sun. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0006
The standards ask students to evaluate the legal reasoning of U.S. Supreme Court majority and dissenting opinions. What is a dissent?Wikipedia, Dissenting opinion. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0007
Which device holds together the separate stories of Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales?Wikipedia, The Canterbury Tales. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0006
Writing and research 17
A body paragraph opens with school gardens, then drifts to cafeteria prices and bus routes. What would give the paragraph unity?Wikipedia, Topic sentence. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0011
A student evaluating a web page with the CRAAP test checks when the page was last updated. Which of the five criteria is she applying?Wikipedia, CRAAP test. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0014
A student's editorial urging the city to add bike lanes lists benefits and nothing else. A peer reviewer who holds it to the grades 9-10 writing standard for arguments would ask her to add which element?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.9-10.1b. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0012
A student's report on urban heat ends by repeating its title. Which ending would meet the informative writing standard for a conclusion?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.9-10.2f. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0013
A student's research question, "What caused the Great Depression?", turns up far more material than a short project can use. What does the grades 9-10 research standard tell her to do?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.9-10.7. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0014
A student's story opens in the middle of a chase and supplies the earlier events afterwards. Which plot device is the student using?Wikipedia, In medias res. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0015
A teacher asks for a list of sources with a short summary and evaluation under each entry. What is this document called?Wikipedia, Annotated bibliography. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0014
A teacher opens class by having students write without stopping for a set time, paying little attention to conventions or mechanics. Which technique is this?Wikipedia, Free writing. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0010
By the grades 9-10 standard for informative and explanatory texts, with what does a writer develop the topic?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.9-10.2b. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0013
The grades 9-10 narrative standard asks for precise words, telling details and sensory language. Which revision of "The kitchen was nice" follows it?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.9-10.3d. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0015
The grades 11-12 argument standard asks a writer to introduce a precise, knowledgeable claim and to distinguish it from opposing claims. Which opening does both?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.11-12.1a. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0012
Language standard L.9-10.1a reads, "Use parallel structure." Which sentence does?Wikipedia, Parallelism (grammar). Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0016
Students cluster ideas around the word "migration" and sketch a storyboard before they write a first draft. Which stage of the writing process is this?Wikipedia, Prewriting. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0010
Where does a thesis statement usually appear in an essay?Wikipedia, Thesis statement. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0011
Which revision of "The bus was late, we missed the first act" mends the comma splice in the way language standard L.9-10.2a names?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, L.9-10.2a. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0016
Which sentence contains a dangling modifier?Wikipedia, Dangling modifier. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0016
Which sentence keeps the formal style and objective tone that the argument standard asks a writer to maintain?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, W.9-10.1d. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0012
Speaking, listening and viewing 5
A speaker says "Great job" slowly, in a low and flat voice, and the listeners take it as criticism. Which aspect of communication changed the meaning?Wikipedia, Paralanguage. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0017
A teacher hands a student a quotation and asks for a short talk on it at once, with no time to prepare. Which type of speech delivery is this?Wikipedia, Impromptu speaking. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0017
By speaking and listening standard 1b for grades 9-10, what do students work out with their peers for a collegial discussion?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, SL.9-10.1b. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0017
During a debate on school uniforms, a listener notes every point that agrees with her own view and forgets the rest. Which barrier to listening is at work?Wikipedia, Confirmation bias. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0018
Speaking and listening standard 3 for grades 9-10 asks listeners to evaluate a speaker's point of view, reasoning and use of evidence. What are they to identify as they listen?Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts, the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website, SL.9-10.3. Written to the ILTS English Language Arts (207) test framework, objective 0018
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the test design and framework of field 207, English Language Arts, in the study guide on the Illinois Licensure Testing System website (https://www.il.nesinc.com/Content/STUDYGUIDE/IL_SG_OBJ_207.htm, copyright 2017 Pearson Education, Inc.; test page https://www.il.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/IL207_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-13): 100 multiple-choice questions in 3 hours 15 minutes, passing score 240; Reading Comprehension (objectives 0001 to 0005, 28%), Reading Literary and Informational Texts (0006 to 0009, 22%), Writing and Research (0010 to 0016, 39%) and Speaking, Listening, and Viewing (0017 and 0018, 11%). The bank holds 44: 12, 10, 17 and 5. Every fact was read on the public page named under its question: the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts in the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website (https://www.isbe.net/Documents/ela-standards.pdf), Put Reading First and the named Wikipedia articles. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
Here are 44 questions of our own for the ILTS English Language Arts test, field 207, free and with no sign-up. The page is unofficial; the Illinois State Board of Education and Pearson have no part in it.
Read the full guide
ILTS English Language Arts (207): one subarea is 39%
On the ILTS site's framework, read October 13, 2026, Writing and Research weighs 39%, Reading Comprehension 28%, Reading Literary and Informational Texts 22% and Speaking, Listening, and Viewing 11%. The bank follows with 17, 12, 10 and 5 questions. A timed round gives 40 questions 78 minutes, as fast as the real test.
Written to the standards Illinois posts
Eleven questions rest on the Common Core State Standards for English Language Arts in the copy on the Illinois State Board of Education website: claims and counterclaims, formal style, narrative detail, research, text complexity and collegial discussion. Lincoln's House Divided speech and a play set in Chicago are among the texts asked about.
Seven of the eighteen objectives belong to Writing and Research, more than to any other subarea.
Questions and answers
Is this ILTS English Language Arts practice test free?
Yes, and it needs no account. Every question was written for this page from the framework of field 207, and its explanation names the standard or public page behind the answer. None is taken from the official sample questions.
Which English ILTS practice tests are on this page?
One: English Language Arts, field 207. The ILTS test list, read October 13, 2026, also shows Middle Grades (5–8) Language Arts (201) and English Language Proficiency (055), each a separate test.
How long is the ILTS English Language Arts test?
Testing time is 3 hours 15 minutes for 100 multiple-choice questions, by the test page, within an appointment of 3 hours 30 minutes that opens with a 15-minute tutorial. Eighty of the questions are scorable.
What score passes ILTS English Language Arts (207)?
The test page sets the passing score at 240. It does not say how many questions that takes, so the count you get here carries no verdict.