Understanding the GED 2014

Understanding the GED 2014

Sarah Tareco, GED Lab ManagerAdult Literacy League

The Adult Literacy League is a non-profit organization whose mission is to build a literate community. We are volunteer driven with a primary focus on our one-to-one tutoring program. The purpose of this presentation is to teach tutors information about the GED so that they can effectively help their students succeed. 1

Agenda GED 2014 The Fifth Generation New Question Types The Content Area Tests GED and your student

Please note the navigation buttons 2

In your opinion, what are the top five reasons to get a GED?

Make suggestion to pause the presentation3

Better employment

Better education

Higher self-confidence

Setting an example

Earned independence

GED 2014 - The Fifth GenerationThe General Education Development (GED) test started in 1942New versions of the test in 1978, 1988, 2002, and 20142014 version brought many changes

1. 1942: The test served as a way to receive high school equivalency; World War II was a big influence.2. New versions of the test to keep up with the changes in K-12 education3. January 1, 2014 brought many changes for both test takers and educatorsr5

GED 2014 The Fifth Generation: Computer Based TestingBasic computer literacy is needed to pass the GED 2014 test.Word processing (20-30 wpm)Test your typing speed! http://typing-speed-test.aoeu.eu/?lang=enKnowledge of common keyboard commandsMouse navigation

Knowledge of common keyboard commands: ctrl c, ctrl v, shift to capitalize letters6

New Question Types Drag and drop Hot spot Drop down Fill-in-the-blanks Short answer Extended response

New Question Types: Drag-and-drop

New Question Types: Hot spot

New Question Types: Drop down

New Question Types: Fill-in-the-blanks

New Question Types: Short Answer and Extended ResponseShort Answer Science Social StudiesExtended Response Reasoning through Language Arts

Short answer: Science: Two, 10 minute responses to a science related passage; Social Studies: One, 25 minute response to a social studies themed passage (usually based on government)Reasoning through Language Arts (RLA): 45 minute response to passages that have a centralized topic with opposing views

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The Content Area TestsMathematical reasoning, Science, Social Studies, and Reasoning through Language Arts

Reduction from 5 content area tests to 4

Variance of time for each test

Combination of 13

The Content Area Tests: Mathematical Reasoning45% Quantitative55% Algebraic problem solvingAcademic and workforce contexts

Statistics and data interpretation

New math tools:Use of on-screen calculatorsDry-erase boards in place of scratch paper

The Content Area Tests: Science40% Life Science40% Physical Science20% Earth and Space ScienceSkills of reasoning and thinking scientifically

Inference skills, problem solving, and real-life scenarios related to science

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The Content Area Tests: Social StudiesSkills of analysis, thinking and reasoning

Short Answer 25 minutes50% Civics and Government15% Geography15% Economics20% U.S. History

The Content Area Tests: Reasoning through Language Arts (RLA)Integrated reading and writing tasks that require complex texts

Use text-based evidence to support reasoning

Academic, workforce, and literary contexts

Text lengths of 400-900 words75% Informational25% Literary

GED and your studentAll of our students at the Adult Literacy League (ALL) come to us because they have the fundamental goal of improving their skills in literacy. Sometimes, our students need assistance with prioritizing their goals.

ALLs ABE extraordinare instructor, Nancy Cooper, working with her student

Goal-setting with SMARTSpecificMeasurableAchievableRealisticTime-oriented

GED Tutoring TipsConcentrate on short-term goals

No expertise in the content areas is required

Get to know your student(s)

Ideas shouldnt float. They should bounce.

1. Concentrate on short-term goals in the present and periodically revisit long-term goals 2. No expertise in the content areas is required Only mutual motivation to teach it and to learn it between you and your student.3. Getting to know your student is half the battle. There are ways to modify any lesson to make it more relatable to your student. i.e. If your student is currently working as a certified nursing assistant, find reading comprehension exercise that are related to healthcare.4. If you or your student has an idea, try it. Theres no use of not even attempting something that may or may not work. There is always the possibility of an idea inspiring another.

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Presentation Image Sources and Additional ResourcesOfficial GED testing service website: http://www.gedtestingservice.com/ged-testing-serviceGED 2014 modifications information: http://eastendadulteducationcenter.com/Documents/GED2014PowerPoint.pdfComputer literacy skills: http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10-things/10-things-you-have-to-know-to-be-computer-literate/ProLiteracy GED Workshop http://www.proliteracy.org/downloads/proliteracy_us-conference-on-adult-literacy-uscal-regionals_ged-workshop.pdf

All starred pages include images that are subject to copyright.

Thank you!Sarah TarecoESOL/ABE Instructor and GED Lab Manager(407) 422-1540, ext. 113stareco@adultliteracyleague.org