A cube-shaped cell doubles the length of each side. What happens to its ratio of surface area to volume?The answer rests on the text printed in the question and on the wording of the objective (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 005 (links among the sciences, mathematics and technology).
A procedure calls for 7.5 mL of a salt solution. Which piece of glassware measures it best?Wikipedia, Graduated cylinder (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 002 (methods and materials of investigation).
A student keeps three identical tanks of duckweed at 15, 20 and 25 degrees Celsius and counts the fronds after ten days. Light and nutrients are the same in each tank. What is the independent variable?The answer rests on the text printed in the question and on the wording of the objective (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 001 (conducting scientific research).
A student wants the most trustworthy account of a new gene therapy study. Which source should rank highest?University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Science: Scrutinizing science: Peer review (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 004 (biology and society).
Show all 51 questions (47 more)
Foundations of scientific inquiry, continued
Barbara McClintock received the 1983 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for which discovery?The Nobel Prize, Physiology or Medicine 1983, summary (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 003 (nature and history of scientific thought).
Before a class uses a new solvent, which document gives its hazards, safe handling and storage, and first-aid measures?Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA Brief: Hazard Communication Standard: Safety Data Sheets (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 002 (methods and materials of investigation).
Five leaves measure 4, 5, 5, 6 and 10 centimeters. Which statement about the data is correct?The answer rests on the text printed in the question and on the wording of the objective (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 001 (conducting scientific research).
In a fertilizer trial, one tray of plants gets no fertilizer and is otherwise treated exactly like the others. What is this tray for?Wikipedia, Treatment and control groups (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 001 (conducting scientific research).
In reproductive cloning, what do researchers transfer into an egg cell whose own nucleus has been removed?National Human Genome Research Institute, Cloning Fact Sheet (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 004 (biology and society).
Which question about cloning can science not settle with evidence?University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Science: Science has limits (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 003 (nature and history of scientific thought).
Cellular function 8
A cell from an organism with a diploid number of 16 goes through meiosis. What results?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Meiosis (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 009 (cell division, growth and differentiation).
A cell has finished the S phase of the cell cycle but has not yet divided. How does its DNA content compare with its content in G1?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Cell Cycle (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 009 (cell division, growth and differentiation).
A red blood cell placed in distilled water swells and may burst. Why?Wikipedia, Tonicity (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 008 (physiological processes of cells).
Pairs of guard cells in the epidermis of a leaf swell and shrink. What do they control?Wikipedia, Guard cell (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 006 (cell theory, structure and function).
Under an electron microscope a cell shows a cell membrane and ribosomes but no nucleus and no other membrane-bound organelles. What kind of cell is it?Wikipedia, Prokaryote (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 006 (cell theory, structure and function).
Where in a chloroplast are the photosystems, which absorb light for photosynthesis, found?Wikipedia, Photosystem (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 008 (physiological processes of cells).
Which property of water helps hold an unbroken column of water together as it is pulled up through a plant?U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School, Adhesion and Cohesion of Water (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 007 (chemical components and reactions of cells).
Why does the rate of most enzyme-catalyzed reactions fall sharply above an optimum temperature?Wikipedia, Denaturation (biochemistry) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 007 (chemical components and reactions of cells).
Heredity and evolutionary changes 11
A river changes course and divides a population of mice. After many generations the two groups can no longer interbreed. What began the process?University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Evolution: Causes of speciation (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 014 (processes of evolutionary change).
A thin layer of clay rich in iridium lies in rocks around the world at the end of the Cretaceous. Which cause of that mass extinction does it support?Wikipedia, Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 015 (ancient life and its evidence).
During protein synthesis, which molecule links each codon of the messenger RNA to the amino acid it calls for?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Transfer RNA (tRNA) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 011 (molecular genetics).
The forelimbs of a whale, a bat and a human are built on the same pattern of bones. What does this similarity indicate?University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Evolution: Homologies and analogies (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 014 (processes of evolutionary change).
How many of the 64 codons act as stop signals and code for no amino acid?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Codon (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 011 (molecular genetics).
In a family tree a disorder appears in every child of each affected woman and in no child of an affected man. Which explanation fits best?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Mitochondrial DNA (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 011 (molecular genetics).
In a population in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium, 16 percent of individuals show a recessive trait. What share is expected to be heterozygous?Wikipedia, Hardy-Weinberg principle (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 013 (population genetics).
In gel electrophoresis of DNA, which fragments travel farthest from the wells?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Electrophoresis (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 012 (techniques of modern genetics).
In snapdragons a red-flowered plant (RR) crossed with a white-flowered plant (rr) gives pink offspring (Rr). Two pink plants are crossed. What is expected among their offspring?Wikipedia, Dominance (genetics) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 010 (Mendelian genetics).
Red-green color blindness is a recessive, X-linked trait. A woman who carries one copy of the allele has a son with a man who has normal color vision. What is the chance the son is color-blind?MedlinePlus Genetics, Color vision deficiency; National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: X-Linked (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 010 (Mendelian genetics).
Ten people leave a large city to settle a remote valley, and by chance three of them carry an allele that is rare in the city. Generations later the allele is common in the valley. Which mechanism explains this?University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Evolution: Genetic drift (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 013 (population genetics).
Organization of living things 11
A bacterium divides by binary fission. Barring mutation, how do the two daughter cells compare with the parent cell?Wikipedia, Fission (biology) (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 017 (life cycles, reproduction and development).
After a meal the level of glucose in the blood rises. Which response brings it back toward its normal range?Wikipedia, Blood sugar regulation (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 019 (matter, energy and homeostasis).
At deep-sea hydrothermal vents no sunlight arrives. What do the bacteria at the base of the food web use to make sugar?NOAA Ocean Exploration, What is the difference between photosynthesis and chemosynthesis? (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 019 (matter, energy and homeostasis).
During gastrulation an animal embryo forms three germ layers. Which layer gives rise to the nervous system and the epidermis?Wikipedia, Germ layer (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 017 (life cycles, reproduction and development).
The heart is made of cardiac muscle, connective tissue and nervous tissue working together. Which level of organization is the heart?The answer rests on the text printed in the question and on the wording of the objective (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 018 (systems in organisms).
On a phylogenetic tree, lizards and birds branch from a node that is more recent than the node they share with frogs. What does the tree show?University of California Museum of Paleontology, Understanding Evolution: Understanding phylogenies (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 016 (characteristics and classification of organisms).
What is the filtering unit of the human kidney called?National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, Your Kidneys and How They Work (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 020 (human anatomy and physiology).
Where in the human lungs does gas exchange with the blood take place?National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, How the Lungs Work: The Respiratory System (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 020 (human anatomy and physiology).
Which cells of the immune system become the plasma cells that produce antibodies?MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia, Immune response (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 021 (human diseases and immunology).
Which plant tissue carries the sugars made in the leaves to the roots and other parts of the plant?Wikipedia, Phloem (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 018 (systems in organisms).
Why are viruses usually not counted among living organisms?National Human Genome Research Institute, Talking Glossary: Virus (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 016 (characteristics and classification of organisms).
Ecological systems 11
Bacteria in the root nodules of clover and alfalfa carry out which step of the nitrogen cycle?Wikipedia, Nitrogen fixation (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 025 (biogeochemical cycles).
Fertilizer runs off farmland into a bay and an overgrowth of algae follows. Why does a low-oxygen dead zone form afterward?NOAA National Ocean Service, What is a dead zone? (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 026 (natural and human effects on ecosystems).
Fungi on the roots of a tree take up minerals from the soil for the tree and receive sugars from it. Which relationship is this?Wikipedia, Mycorrhiza (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 022 (populations and communities).
In fisheries management, what is the maximum sustainable yield?NOAA Fisheries, Understanding Fisheries Management in the United States (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 027 (resource use and management).
In primary succession on bare rock, which stage follows the pioneer mosses and lichens?Wikipedia, Primary succession (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 022 (populations and communities).
In the demographic transition model, which change sets off a period of rapid population growth?Wikipedia, Demographic transition (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 023 (human population growth and diversity).
Net primary production is what remains of gross primary production after which loss?Wikipedia, Primary production (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 024 (transfer of energy in ecosystems).
The producers in a field store 10,000 kilojoules of energy. By the ten percent rule, about how much reaches the secondary consumers?Wikipedia, Ecological efficiency (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 024 (transfer of energy in ecosystems).
Which energy resource is nonrenewable?U.S. Energy Information Administration, Energy Explained: Sources of energy (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 027 (resource use and management).
Which process moves water from the soil through a plant and releases it from the leaves as vapor?U.S. Geological Survey, Water Science School, Evapotranspiration and the Water Cycle (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 025 (biogeochemical cycles).
Zebra mussels have spread rapidly through the Great Lakes region. How did this species probably reach the lakes?U.S. Geological Survey, What are zebra mussels and why should we care about them? (read 2026-10-09). Outline: MTTC Biology (017) test objectives, objective 026 (natural and human effects on ecosystems).
How this list was compiled: Our own questions, written to the test objectives of the Michigan Test for Teacher Certification (MTTC) field 017, Biology, as the MTTC site prints them (https://www.mttc.nesinc.com/Content/STUDYGUIDE/MI_SG_obj_017.htm and the test page https://www.mttc.nesinc.com/TestView.aspx?f=HTML_FRAG/MI017_TestPage.html, read 2026-10-09): Foundations of scientific inquiry, 19%; Cellular function, 15%; Heredity and evolutionary changes, 22%; Organization of living things, 22%; Ecological systems, 22%; 100 multiple-choice questions, 2 hours 30 minutes of testing time, passing score 220. This bank holds 51 questions, spread 10, 8, 11, 11, 11 over those subareas. Every fact was read on 2026-10-09 in the public page named under its question: the Talking Glossary and the Cloning Fact Sheet of the National Human Genome Research Institute, Understanding Evolution and Understanding Science of the University of California Museum of Paleontology, the U.S. Geological Survey, NOAA (Ocean Exploration, the National Ocean Service and NOAA Fisheries), the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, MedlinePlus, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Nobel Prize site, and the Wikipedia article named for each remaining question. 4 questions rest on a text, a table or an argument printed in the question and on the wording of the objective. Licence: Questions, passages, choices and explanations are original work of this site.
How it works
These free MTTC practice tests for biology use 51 questions of our own for Biology, field 017: a practice round, a timed exam or a paper test. Nothing here is official, and the site is not affiliated with the Michigan Department of Education or Pearson.
Read the full guide
MTTC Biology study guide: what field 017 covers
By the test objectives read October 9, 2026: foundations of scientific inquiry 19%, cellular function 15%, heredity and evolutionary changes 22%, organization of living things 22%, and ecological systems 22%. This bank holds 10, 8, 11, 11 and 11. Exam mode draws 50 of them for 75 minutes, half the real test at its pace.
Where the answers come from
Each explanation names the page its fact was read in: the NHGRI genetics glossary, Berkeley's Understanding Evolution and Understanding Science, USGS, NOAA, NIH institutes, OSHA, the EIA, the Nobel Prize site or a named Wikipedia article. Four rest on the question's own data.
Nearly a fifth of the test is scientific inquiry: experimental design, lab safety, measurement and the nature of science, not biology content.
Objective 013 asks candidates to apply the Hardy-Weinberg equation, so practice finding allele and genotype frequencies by hand.
Questions and answers
How many questions are on the MTTC Biology test?
The test page lists 100 multiple-choice questions on a computer, with 2 hours 30 minutes of testing time. The appointment is 2 hours 45 minutes, because 15 minutes go to a tutorial and a nondisclosure agreement.
What score do you need to pass MTTC Biology?
A scaled score of 220 or higher, on a scale that runs from 100 to 300. The Michigan Department of Education sets the passing score, and numeric total scores are reported only to examinees who do not pass.
Is there an MTTC biology study guide?
Yes. The MTTC site has a study guide for Biology (017) that includes the test objectives and sample multiple-choice questions. The questions on this page follow the same objectives and repeat none of the samples.
How soon can you retake MTTC Biology?
The MTTC retake policy sets no limit on attempts at a test you have not passed. There is a 30-day wait between attempts at the same test, and the official score report for the last attempt has to be posted first.