"If my students don't pass before the changes go through, they'll never get their GEDs!"--Anonymous GED Teacher
Do those words sound familiar to you? Have you heard your colleagues saying similar things in staff meetings? If so, you might want to let them know this: The quote above is from 1987, the year before the "impossible" 1988 version of the test was implemented.
Change is always a little scary in education, especially when people's life plans may be affected. And there is no question that the GED 2002 has made some significant changes. But as you'll see, the changes we're facing are not insurmountable obstacles to success.
It's important to keep in mind with regard to the new GED that the content has not changed significantly. Most of the important information and concepts that we've always taught in math, English, science, and social studies will still be there. What has changed significantly is what students are expected to do with that content. The new test places much more emphasis than the old one on problem-solving strategies and higher order thinking skills, and these are not things that students will acquire without direct instruction, embedded in the context of the different GED subjects. In the paragraphs below, I'll summarize the major changes to the test, and suggest some strategies that will help you and your students transition to GED 2002.
• A new element, Organization, is included in both the multiple choice and essay portions of this test. In the multiple-choice section, a test taker might be asked which sentence in a passage should start a new paragraph. In the essay, this element is part of the scoring rubric and addresses both form (paragraphs, topic sentences) and content (thoughts flow logically, details are relevant and on topic, etc.).
• The passages students read in the multiple choice section will be longer--200-300 words, compared to 100-150 now. As there will be only five fewer questions in the same amount of time, this suggests that students will need to read more quickly in order to complete the test.
• The essay will now be scored on a 4-point scale, instead of a 6-point scale. Students need an average score of 2 (average of two readers) to pass this section.
• Students must achieve a passing score on both sections of the Writing Skills test in order to pass. If they do not meet the minimum score requirement for the essay, they will fail Writing Skills.
• The average length of a passing essay is expected to increase from 200 to 250 words in order to meet the criteria of the new scoring rubric.
• Reading passages now include business and how-to documents.
• The math test will now be divided into Part I: Calculator and Part II: Pencil-and-Paper. Each section is timed and includes 25 questions. Students are not required to use the calculator for all problems on Part I, but it is unlikely that they will complete the whole section if they do not use it for the majority of those problems.
• The answer sheet will now include two alternate format grids for responses to open ended questions, a five-column bubble grid and a plot for coordinate points. The test will include ten of these alternate format responses (seven bubble columns and one coordinate grid in Part I, one of each format in Part II).
• In addition to the current content areas tested (Number Sense & Operations, Algebra, Geometry) the new test will include items that address data analysis and probability.
• There is a significant increase in visual prompts (charts and graphs).
• The formula page has been revised. Where the area of a triangle was formerly written as "1/2 bh," it will now read "1/2 base x height."
• The official calculator for the GED 2002 is the Casio fx260.
• Behavioral sciences (psychology, sociology) have been eliminated.
• History has been increased to 40% of the total test.
• Students are expected to have prior knowledge of four "key documents": The Declaration of Independence, the U.S. Constitution, The Federalist Papers, and landmark Supreme Court cases.
• Single items (one question on a particular prompt) have been increased to 40% of the total items on this test.
• There is a significant increase in the number of visual prompts (charts, graphs, maps, cartoons, pictures).
• The content of this test has been reorganized into three primary areas: Life Science, Physical Science, and Earth & Space Science. This new organization follows the National Science Education Standards. (See <http://www.asta.org> for more information.)
• As in the other tests, there are more problem-solving items and fewer items that test comprehension.
• The new test includes more visual prompts (graphs, charts, maps, diagrams).
• The Nonfiction section of this test now includes business and how-to documents.
• Reading passages are longer than in the previous test (200-400 words).
Students will see at least one compare/contrast question on each iteration of the test.
• As in Language Arts, Writing, the overall amount of reading on this test has increased substantially. As a result, students will need to read more quickly than in previous years to complete all items.
• Each iteration of the test will include at least one drama selection and one poetry selection.
While every teacher will select a variety of tools and strategies for dealing with these changes, I'd like to suggest a few that will be helpful with each component of the new test. These are adapted from Jennifer Cromley's Literacy Leader Fellowship Report, Learning to Think, Learning to Learn: What the Science of Thinking and Learning Has to Offer Adult Education (NIFL 2000):
Link new learning to previous learning, and make sure that you present new material in organized ways. Most teachers try to do this, but it's often hard when students' attendance is sporadic. Think of organizing not according to the material, but according to the students' skill needs and prior learning--in other words, it's not "Well, we do writing on Wednesdays," it's "Susan, last time you were here you were working on U.S. History. Why don't you start to review the Declaration of Independence tonight."
Model strategies that build understanding, and don't be afraid to use the magic words "I don't know." Help your students to see the skills and strategies you use when you want to learn a new skill or concept.
Deliberately ask questions that have more than one right answer. Help students to recognize what a "best" answer looks like, and why. It's also helpful (particularly in math) to ask questions for which students have insufficient information to answer. This can lead to a discussion of the kinds of information necessary to solve different kinds of problems, and the clues to look for when a problem seems to be unsolvable.
Change is unnerving, and it's certain that we will experience some challenges as we transition to GED 2002. However, it's important to remember that we've seen similarly significant change before, and after some initial difficulty, we managed not just to survive, but to thrive and deliver excellent instruction that helped our students to earn their credentials. We will continue to do so in the future.
Marie Hassett is a curriculum, program, and staff development consultant specializing in adult education. If you have further questions about GED 2002, please feel free to email them to her at <AskMarie@MarieCentral.com>.