Writing Exam Overview: GED Test Prep (page 3)

To prepare effectively for the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam, you need to know exactly what the test is like. This article explains the structure of the exam, including the types of questions and passages you will see on the test.

What to Expect on the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam

As you know, the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam has two parts. Part I consists of 50 multiple-choice questions that measure your knowledge in four key writing areas:

• sentence structure—30%
• usage—30%
• mechanics—25%
• organization—15%

You will have 75 minutes to complete this part of the test. Each question will have five options; only one will be correct.

Because there's a lot more to writing an effective essay than good grammar or logical organization, and because effective writing is essential if you are to succeed in college or in the workplace, the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam also includes an essay. Part II consists of one essay topic. You will have 45 minutes to write an essay in response to that prompt.

A lot of people are intimidated by essay exams. After all, you are being asked to write well under pressure, and if you don't pass the essay exam, you don't pass the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam. But there is some good news about this part of the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam. For one thing, the essay doesn't have to be long. In fact, because you have only 45 minutes, you are only expected to write about five paragraphs. (In contrast, most college-level essays are expected to be at least three to five pages!) For another, you are given only one essay prompt. That means you don't have to spend any time deciding which question to answer. You only have to decide how you will answer that question.

In addition, no matter what writing prompt you get, you will be able to answer the question. All of the essay topics are general enough for anyone to write about. None of them will require you to have any kind of specialized knowledge or experience.

If you finish your essay in less than 45 minutes, you can return to Part I for the remainder of the test time. This can give you the opportunity to double-check your answers, especially those where you guessed at the answer.

Questions in Context

Unlike many other standardized English exams, the questions on Part I of the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam do not test writing knowledge and skills in isolation. Instead, all questions are asked in context. You may be used to seeing grammar or usage tests with questions like the following:

Identify the correct spelling of the word below:

1. embellesh
2. embelish
3. embillish
4. embellish
5. imbellish

On the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam, however, each question refers to specific words, sentences, or paragraphs taken from a complete passage. All of the questions in the pretest use this format, and you can expect all of the questions in Part I to look like this as well:

Sentence 8: Be sure to be honest and not embellish the truth in you are resume.

Which correction should be made to sentence 8?

1. Change Be sure to Make it sure.
2. Insert a comma after honest.
3. Change honest to honesty.
4. Replace you are with your.
5. Change be honest to being honest.

(The correct answer for both examples is d.)

To answer this kind of question, you will often need to read and understand the entire sentence and often surrounding sentences as well. A smaller portion of the questions will require you to read and understand the surrounding paragraphs in order to select the correct answer. You may also need a sense of the author's purpose and writing strategies. This is especially true of revision questions that ask you to find the best place for sentences or decide the best place to start a new paragraph.

Kinds of Passages

On Part I of the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam, questions will be drawn from reading passages that are between 200–300 words and 12–22 sentences long. Most passages will have three to five paragraphs. Part I will have three different types of reading passages:

1. informational, with topics such as home computers, recreational activities, historical events, family matters, health, and careers
2. business communications, such as memos, letters, reports, meeting minutes, e-mails, applications, and executive summaries
3. how-to documents that provide directions or instructions on matters such as finding a job, acing an interview, buying a computer, choosing a college, etc.

How the Tests Are Scored

You will receive one point for each correct answer on Part I. Part II is scored on a scale of 1 (lowest) to 6 (highest). The ACE uses a special formula to combine these scores and then convert them to the standard 200–800 scale. Thus, you will receive one score for both parts of the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam. Individual essay scores are not reported. For the combined score, the multiple-choice results represent 65% and the essay represents 35%

Part II, the essay, is scored by two independent readers. The scores of the independent readers are combined and averaged.

The essay is graded holistically, which means that the readers assess the essay's overall effectiveness, not just its grammatical correctness. You can still earn a high score if you have a few comma splices or misspelled words (after all, you aren't allowed to use a dictionary). If your essay

• has a clear main idea
• maintains focus
• develops its ideas
• provides strong support
• is logically organized
• adheres to the conventions of standard written English

you are well on your way to a passing score.

While scoring an essay is far more subjective than correcting a multiple-choice exam, the ACE has developed a detailed scoring rubric to guide readers through the essay scoring process. This rubric lists the specific criteria that an essay should meet for each score.What follows is a scoring rubric modeled after the official scoring guide for Part II of the GED Language Arts, Writing Exam. Be sure to review the scoring guide carefully. The more you know about what is expected of your essay, the better you will be able to meet those expectations.

Sample Essay Scoring Rubric

The essay exam is scored on a four-point scale from 4 (high) to 1 (low). The four levels of writing are:

4.   Effective
3.   Adequate
2.   Marginal
1.   Inadequate

The overall evaluation will be based on the following five areas:

1. Response to the assigned topic
2. Organization of the essay
3. Demonstration of the development and details
4. Conventions of language (grammar, usage, mechanics)
5. Word choice

A "4" Essay

• presents a well-developed main idea and a clear focus that responds to the assigned prompt
• exhibits a logical and clear organizational plan
• offers support that is specific, substantive, and/or highly illustrative
• consistently follows sentence structure and the conventions of Edited American English (EAE)
• exhibits accurate, diverse, and appropriate word choice

A "3" Essay

• uses the writing prompt to establish a main idea
• exhibits a sufficient organizational plan
• demonstrates a reasonably focused development with some relevant details and examples
• generally controls sentence structure and the conventions of Edited American English (EAE)
• exhibits appropriate word choice

A "2" Essay

• responds to the prompt, but the focus may shift
• exhibits some indication of organizational plan
• demonstrates some development, but details and examples may be redundant or generalized
• exhibits inconsistency in sentence structure and the conventions of Edited American English (EAE)
• exhibits a narrow range of word choice, frequently including inappropriate choices

A "1" Essay

• lacks a clear purpose or presents more than one purpose
• shows evidence of insufficient organizational plan
• is significantly underdeveloped or offers inadequate or inappropriate support
• exhibits minimal or no control of sentence structure and the conventions of Edited American English (EAE)
• exhibits weak or inappropriate word choice

A "0" score will be given to essays that are blank, illegible, or develop a topic other than the one assigned in the prompt.