THE GED TESTS continued...

WHERE CAN I TAKE THE GED TESTS?

You can take the GED Tests at one of more than 3,000 Official GED Testing Centers in the United States and Canada. There is probably an Official GED Testing Center not far from your home. Call your nearest adult education program and ask for the location and schedule of the testing center near you. Or contact your state, territorial, or provincial department of education and ask for the location and schedule of the closest Official GED Testing Center (see pages 15 and 16 of this Bulletin).

WHAT ARE THE GED TESTS LIKE?

The GED Tests measure important knowledge and skills expected of high school graduates. The five GED Tests are:

• Writing Skills
• Social Studies
• Science
• Interpreting Literature and the Arts
• Mathematics

These tests contain multiple-choice questions that test your ability to understand and use information or ideas. In many cases, you are asked to use the information provided to solve a problem, find causes and effects, or make a judgment. Very few questions ask about narrow definitions or specific facts. Instead, the focus of questions is on the major and lasting skills and knowledge expected of high school graduates. In addition to the multiple-choice questions, the Writing Skills Test includes an essay section. In this section, you are given 45 minutes to write an essay on the topic given. The topics are designed to be very general, so everyone can think of something to write. More information about the essay is given later in this Bulletin.

The multiple-choice questions on the five GED Tests are presented in one of three ways:

• Accompanied by a reading selection that may be as brief as one or two sentences or as long as 400 words
• Accompanied by a table, graph, chart, or illustration
• Stated as a problem to be solved (this type is most often used in the Mathematics Test)

Because most material presented in the GED Tests requires the ability to understand written text, the skill of reading comprehension is very important.

WHAT SUBJECTS ARE ON THE GED TESTS?

The next section of this Bulletin shows sample questions from each of the GED Tests, along with explanations of the correct answers. Read the sample questions to become familiar with the type of material you will find on the GED Tests. Do not be discouraged if you feel that the questions are too hard. Most people who have been out of high school for some time need to prepare for the GED Tests before taking them. Adult education programs in your community are specially designed to help you improve your skills so that you can succeed on the GED Tests.