Failing the LANTITE is more common than most candidates expect, and it does not end your teaching career. The test is deliberately set at the 70th percentile of the Australian adult population, so a meaningful number of candidates do not meet the standard on their first attempt. What matters is understanding what the result means, what your options are, and how to use the experience to prepare more effectively.
What Your Result Report Actually Tells You
After a fail, ACER releases a result report that tells you one thing clearly: you did not meet the minimum standard for that component. The report places you in one of three bands. Failing means you are in the band below standard. If you passed, you would be placed in Band 2 (at or above standard) or Band 3 (clearly above standard).
What the report does not tell you is how close you were. You will not receive a raw score, a percentage, or a point gap between your performance and the pass mark. This is frustrating but deliberate. ACER does not release item-level breakdowns or borderline margins. You cannot request a re-mark, and there is no appeals process for the result itself. The score is final.
Re-Sits: What You Need to Know
There is no limit on the number of times you can sit the LANTITE. You can re-sit as many times as required until you meet the standard. A registration fee applies for each re-sit. For current fees, visit the ACER registration page. There is no penalty attached to previous attempts. When you sit again, your result is assessed exactly as it was the first time.
Each component is taken independently. If you failed Numeracy but passed Literacy, you only need to re-sit Numeracy. You do not repeat a component you have already passed. Once a component result meets the standard, it does not expire and is transferable between university providers. You sit it once and it stands.
Registration for each re-sit goes through the ACER portal at teacheredtest.acer.edu.au. Test windows run multiple times per year, and components are booked separately. Results are released on published dates after each window closes.
Step One After a Fail: Identify the Component
Your first step is straightforward. Confirm which component you failed: Literacy, Numeracy, or both. Then treat them as entirely separate preparation problems.
The Literacy test contains 65 questions across 120 minutes. Roughly two thirds are Reading questions covering three processes: accessing and identifying information, integrating and interpreting meaning, and evaluating and reflecting on text. The remaining third is Tool for the Syntax of Written Language (TSWL), covering syntax and grammar, spelling, word usage, and text organisation. Passages range from 100 to 900 words, drawn from personal, community, schools, and further education contexts.
The Numeracy test also contains 65 questions across 120 minutes, split into two sections. Section 1 has 52 questions and allows an online calculator. Section 2 has 13 questions with no calculator. Scratch paper and a pen are provided for Section 2. Once you move to Section 2, you cannot return to Section 1. Content spans number and algebra (40 to 50 percent of the test), statistics and probability (25 to 35 percent), and measurement and geometry (20 to 30 percent). Common number work, fractions, percentages, ratios, proportional reasoning, and interpreting data appear throughout.
How to Prepare More Effectively for a Re-Sit
Because the result report does not show you which questions or topics you missed, you need to rebuild from the content structure rather than from a specific gap list. Here is a practical approach:
- Work through timed practice tests in full. Both components are 120 minutes for 65 questions. Candidates who run out of time often leave questions unanswered that they could have answered correctly. Pacing under real conditions is a skill that only develops through repeated timed practice.
- For Literacy: Pay particular attention to the evaluate and reflect reading process (10 to 20 percent of reading questions). This process asks you to judge the purpose, tone, or quality of a text rather than retrieve information from it. It catches candidates who read efficiently but do not read critically.
- For Numeracy: Prepare the no-calculator section specifically. Section 2 covers common numbers, fractions, and percentages in a small number of familiar steps. These questions are designed to be done by hand, but candidates who have not practised without a calculator often slow down significantly or make careless errors.
- Use contexts you find less familiar. About 30 to 40 percent of questions in both components are set in school and teaching contexts. If you are early in your degree, these contexts may feel less natural. Read timetables, student data, and curriculum-style documents as part of your practice.
Ready to prepare for your re-sit?
Our practice tests are built to the LANTITE format: 65 questions, timed conditions, and content drawn from the ACER Skills and Content Guide. Work through full tests in both components so you arrive at your re-sit knowing exactly what to expect.
Prepare for your re-sitAll facts on this page are sourced directly from teacheredtest.acer.edu.au. For the latest information, always refer to the ACER website.