Unofficial practice for MTEL Physical Education (22): motor learning, movement activities, fitness and the program, each answer sourced.
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Unofficial practice questions, not affiliated with the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or Pearson. Bank checked October 9, 2026.
Subarea I: Physical development and motor learning 10
A diver leaves the board turning slowly and then pulls into a tight tuck. Why does the spin speed up?Wikipedia, "Angular momentum", conservation (read 2026-10-09)
A student lowers a dumbbell slowly from the shoulder to the hip. Through the lowering the biceps stays under tension while it lengthens. What kind of muscle action is this?Wikipedia, "Muscle contraction", types (read 2026-10-09)
A teacher asks second graders to travel across the gym in a zigzag, then in a curve, then in a straight line. Which movement concept is the class exploring?MTEL Physical Education (22) test objectives (read 2026-10-09); the answer rests on the text printed in the question
After a throw a teacher says, "Your elbow dropped below your shoulder as you let go." Which type of feedback is this?Wikipedia, "Motor learning", feedback (read 2026-10-09)
Air resistance aside, a ball thrown from ground level at a fixed speed lands farthest when it is released at which angle?Wikipedia, "Projectile motion", maximum distance of projectile (read 2026-10-09)
An infant gains control of the upper arm before the hand and the fingers. Which principle of motor development does this show?Wikipedia, "Motor skill", development (read 2026-10-09)
Show all 40 questions (34 more)
Subarea I: Physical development and motor learning, continued
In the three-stage model of motor learning, a beginner who must think through each part of an overhand throw, asking "What needs to be done?", is in which stage?Wikipedia, "Motor skill", stages of motor learning (read 2026-10-09)
Oxygen-rich blood returns from the lungs to the left atrium of the heart. Into which chamber is it pumped next, before it leaves through the aortic valve for the rest of the body?National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, How the Heart Works: How Blood Flows Through the Heart (read 2026-10-09)
Which of these is a nonlocomotor skill, as the test objectives group the basic skills?MTEL Physical Education (22) test objectives, subarea I (read 2026-10-09)
Which statement correctly tells ligaments from tendons?Wikipedia, "Ligament", lead (read 2026-10-09)
Subarea II: Movement activities 10
A basketball coach tells each defender to guard an area of the court instead of a particular opponent. What is this defensive system called?Wikipedia, "Zone defense", lead (read 2026-10-09)
A jump-rope routine is set to music at 120 beats per minute. For beginners the teacher picks a track at 90 beats per minute. Which element of rhythm has the teacher changed?Wikipedia, "Tempo", lead (read 2026-10-09)
A teacher wants an activity that builds mutual support and cooperation in a sixth-grade class. Which choice fits that aim best?MTEL Physical Education (22) test objectives (read 2026-10-09); the answer rests on the text printed in the question
After a close loss a team lines up, shakes hands and thanks the officials. Which idea, an ethos of enjoying a sport for its own sake with fairness, respect and fellowship toward competitors, does the team show?Wikipedia, "Sportsmanship", lead (read 2026-10-09)
In most American forms of square dance, how do the four couples know which steps come next?Wikipedia, "Square dance", lead (read 2026-10-09)
In orienteering, which two tools do participants use to navigate from point to point across unfamiliar terrain?Wikipedia, "Orienteering", lead (read 2026-10-09)
In the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, which benefit does regular physical activity bring children ages 6 to 13?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, chapter 2, Physical Activity and Health (read 2026-10-09)
In volleyball, how many times may a team touch the ball to return it over the net, and what limit applies to a single player?Wikipedia, "Volleyball", lead (read 2026-10-09)
What do the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans ask of the adult caregivers of children ages 3 through 5?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, Key Guidelines for Preschool-Aged Children (read 2026-10-09)
Which approach does the World Health Organization name for preventing drowning among school-age children?World Health Organization, fact sheet: Drowning (read 2026-10-09)
Subarea III: Principles of physical fitness 10
A 12-year-old's body mass index falls at the 90th percentile for children of the same age and sex. In the percentile bands used for children, how is that BMI classed?Wikipedia, "Body mass index", children and youth (read 2026-10-09)
A runner adds a little distance each week so that the body keeps adapting. In the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, what is the term for physical stress that is greater in amount or intensity than usual?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, chapter 2, Physical Activity and Health (read 2026-10-09)
A student bounces again and again at the bottom of a toe-touch to push the hamstrings past their usual range. Which type of stretching is this?Wikipedia, "Stretching", types (read 2026-10-09)
A student jogging in class can talk but cannot sing. By the rule of thumb in the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, how intense is the activity?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, chapter 4, on relative intensity (read 2026-10-09)
A swimmer finds that months of lap swimming have done little for her push-up count. Which training principle explains this?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, chapter 2, Physical Activity and Health (read 2026-10-09)
By the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, what does a warm-up before moderate or vigorous aerobic activity allow?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, chapter 4, on warm-up and cool-down (read 2026-10-09)
How much physical activity do the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans set for children and adolescents ages 6 through 17?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, Key Guidelines for Children and Adolescents (read 2026-10-09)
Which energy system is the primary source of energy for a very short, all-out effort such as a 100-meter sprint?Wikipedia, "Bioenergetic systems", overview (read 2026-10-09)
Which nutrient does the body break down into glucose, the main source of energy for its cells, tissues and organs?MedlinePlus (National Library of Medicine), Carbohydrates (read 2026-10-09)
Which of these does the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans give as a muscle-strengthening activity that can be part of children's play?U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition, chapter 3, Active Children and Adolescents (read 2026-10-09)
Subarea IV: The physical education program 10
A class of 28 plays one large game of kickball, and most students wait a long time between turns. Which change best raises each student's practice time?MTEL Physical Education (22) test objectives (read 2026-10-09); the answer rests on the text printed in the question
A parent's suit claims that a teacher was negligent in supervising a climbing wall. Which set lists elements that typically must be proved?Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School, Wex: Negligence (read 2026-10-09)
A striking-and-fielding unit includes a student who uses a wheelchair. Which change keeps the student in the game with classmates?MTEL Physical Education (22) test objectives (read 2026-10-09); the answer rests on the text printed in the question
A teacher hands out a table that lists the criteria for a dance performance and describes four levels of quality for each. What is this scoring guide called?Wikipedia, "Rubric (academic)", lead (read 2026-10-09)
A teacher presents a new skill with a live demonstration, a wall chart and a short video, and lets students show what they learned by performing it, explaining it or drawing it. Which framework does the lesson follow?Wikipedia, "Universal Design for Learning", lead (read 2026-10-09)
Midway through a badminton unit a teacher watches each student serve, marks a checklist and regroups the next lesson by what the checklists show. What kind of assessment is this?Wikipedia, "Formative assessment", lead (read 2026-10-09)
Two games now taught in gym classes around the world were invented in Massachusetts in the 1890s by men working for the YMCA. Which pairing of game and city is correct?Wikipedia, "James Naismith", lead, and "Volleyball", history (read 2026-10-09)
Under the federal special education regulation at 34 CFR 300.108, what must each child with a disability be afforded in physical education?34 CFR § 300.108, Physical education, as printed by the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School (read 2026-10-09)
What does Massachusetts General Laws chapter 71, section 3 require of the public schools?Massachusetts General Laws, chapter 71, section 3, on the website of the Massachusetts Legislature (read 2026-10-09)
Which federal law states that no person shall, on the basis of sex, be excluded from participation in any education program or activity receiving federal financial assistance?20 U.S.C. § 1681, as printed by the Legal Information Institute of Cornell Law School; the law's name from the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (read 2026-10-09)
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the test objectives of MTEL Physical Education, field 22, as the test information guide prints them on the Massachusetts Tests for Educator Licensure website (https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/Content/StudyGuide/MA_SG_OBJ_22.htm and https://www.mtel.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/MA022_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-09): 100 multiple-choice questions and 2 open-response items in 4 hours; four multiple-choice subareas of 24 to 26 questions and 20% of the score each (Physical Development and Motor Learning, objectives 0001 to 0004; Movement Activities, 0005 to 0008; Principles of Physical Fitness, 0009 to 0012; The Physical Education Program, 0013 to 0016) and the open-response subarea, 20%. This bank holds 10 questions for each multiple-choice subarea. Every fact was read on 2026-10-09 in the public page named under its question: the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans, 2nd edition (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services), the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, MedlinePlus, the World Health Organization, Massachusetts General Laws chapter 71, section 3, 20 U.S.C. 1681 and 34 CFR 300.108 as printed by the Legal Information Institute, and Wikipedia articles on anatomy, motor learning, biomechanics, games and assessment. Four questions rest on the text printed in the question and the wording of the objective. Licence: Questions, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
This MTEL physical education practice test asks 40 questions of our own on Physical Education (22), ten in each multiple-choice subarea. It is unofficial and not affiliated with, endorsed by or sponsored by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education or Pearson.
Read the full guide
Four equal subareas
Physical development and motor learning, movement activities, principles of physical fitness, and the physical education program each bring 24 to 26 questions and 20% of the score, by the test objectives.
Where the facts come from
Fitness questions follow the federal Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. Law questions quote Title IX, the federal special education rule on physical education and Massachusetts General Laws chapter 71, section 3. Each source is named under its question.
A study aid, timed like the real section
This is practice for an exam, not medical or legal advice. Exam mode gives 40 questions in 54 minutes, the pace of the online-proctored multiple-choice section.
Two questions are on Massachusetts itself: the state law on physical education, and the games invented in Springfield and Holyoke.
The two open-response items are written analyses and are not practiced here.
Questions and answers
How many questions are on the MTEL Physical Education test?
Physical Education (22) has 100 multiple-choice questions and 2 open-response assignments in 4 hours of testing time. With an online proctor, the multiple-choice section gets 2 hours 15 minutes.
What is a passing score on the MTEL Physical Education test?
The qualifying score on the MTEL site is 240. The four multiple-choice subareas carry 80% of it and the open-response items 20%, so the tally on this page says nothing about a real result.
What is on the MTEL Physical Education test?
Sixteen multiple-choice objectives: growth, body systems and motor learning; dance, sports, aquatics and outdoor pursuits; exercise physiology, fitness training and nutrition; and the program itself, with instruction, inclusion, assessment, law and safety. A seventeenth objective is the written analysis.
Is the MTEL Physical Education test online?
It can be. The test page gives two ways to sit it: at a test center, by appointment year-round, or with an online proctor in one-week testing windows every month, from home if the room meets the stated requirements.