High School GED Test
What is on the high school GED test? The GED (General Education Development) test consists of five major sections and lasts about seven hours for most test takers. The sections include:
- Language Arts Writing - Two parts where part 1 is 75 minutes and 50 questions and part 2 is a 45 minute essay
- Language Arts Reading - One part, 65 minutes and 40 questions
- Social Studies - One part, 70 minutes and 50 questions
- Science - One part, 80 minutes and 50 questions
- Mathematics - Two parts, each 45 minutes and 25 questions
Total: 425 minutes, 240 questions plus the essay. This is about 7 hours.
Each section of the accredited GED test can be broken down as follows:
GED Test - Language Arts Writing
This section has two subsections:In the first subsection you will be asked to make sentence corrections to show that you would be able to create English sentences with the proper structure.
The first subsection is 75 minutes and 50 questions that covers the organization of ideas, the structure of sentences, word and phrase usage, and mechanics. Remember, the first subsection is
really a multiple choice test, even though it says 'writing.' The second subsection is the actual writing part. In this section you will have to address a topic by writing a
250 word essay within 45 minutes. In the essay you will be asked to use your personal life experiences, observations, knowledge and experience to address a topic. In the essay you will have to
generate ideas, express them in proper English, organize the ideas, and connect them together to create a narrative. The writing section is scored on having well focused main points, good organization
,idea development, and should show mastery and control of English sentence structure, punctuation, grammar, choice of words, and spelling.
GED Test - Language Arts Reading
In this section you will have 65 minutes to answer 40 questions that cover reading comprehension from fiction, non-fiction, drama, and poetry readings. The idea here is to show that you can
read literary and non-fiction text and be able to understand the main ideas. The questions are multiple choice and will ask you to comprehend, analyze, apply understanding, synthesize and evaluate
concepts.
GED Test - Social Studies
In this section you will be shown charts, graphs, maps and given short passages to study and answer multiple choice questions. The Social Studies section includes U.S History, World History, Geography,
Economic, and Civics and Government. This part of the test is 70 minutes and 50 questions. Overall, more emphasis is placed on both history sections and civics (65%), so it is better to focus on
these areas first if this is a weak spot for you.
GED Test - Science
The science section covers life science, physical science, and earth and space science. Overall, a larger portion (45%) of the science section is on life science such as biology, the environment
and health questions. This section is 50 questions and 80 minutes. In this section you are given short questions or asked to study charts, graphs, pictures of concepts, and models of biological and
physical process. Examples include the nitrogen cycle, the water cycle, and the bernoulli principle. The science test is based on the national science education standards (NSES).
GED Test - Mathematics
This section includes two parts,one portion with a calculator and one without. Both portions of the mathematics test are 25 questions in 45 minutes. The use of a calculator is allowed on
one portion to help with tedious calculations. The mathematics portion includes number operations and number sense, measurement and geometry, data analysis, statistics, and probability and
the last section covers algebra, functions and patterns.
GED Test - Passing Score
What score is needed to pass? The test has an individual score for each test and an average score for all tests. The minimum passing score for each test is 410 and the average score is 450.
Some states, however, set high scores than the minimum. The combined total needed to pass is 2250.
GED Test - Locations
Where can I take the high school GED test? A common question is whether or not the GED test can be taken online. As of now, the test cannot be taken online so be careful if you find
a website offering an online versionon the GED test, it is probably a scam! So where are the list of high school GED test locations or high school ged test programs? Testing centers can be
found by using a zip code search on the American Council on Education website.
GED Test - Links
We've pasted a few useful links below
- List of GED Test Preparation Centers by State
- Wikipedia Entry on the GED
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