From The University of Texas at Austin Scoring Center

These hints were prepared by the actual readers who score the GED essay for Texas and other
states. These hints are designed to help GED candidates prepare for the essay portion of the
Writing Skills test.
GED readers read holistically for an overall impression of your essay. Do you have a clear focus
on the idea about which you are writing? Have you organized your thoughts about this idea?
Have you provided some specific details about this idea? Readers do not expect your essay to be
perfect because 45 minutes is simply not enough time to produce an error-free piece of writing.
As long as the reader can understand what you are saying, an occasional error in spelling or
grammar will not lower your score.
At The Test

Make sure you:

DO use a ballpoint pen.
DO listen to all instructions from the person who administers the test. Carefully read the topic in
your test booklet.
DO take time to brainstorm the topic before you begin writing. Jot down notes or a web diagram
to help you focus and organize your thoughts. Consider specific details you might add to extend
your ideas and create a more complete picture for the reader.
DO you have personal experiences that you could use? If not, always remember that you can use
your imagination to create a connection to this topic.
DO plan your essay. You should take time to organize your ideas. This will help you keep your
ideas organized in paragraphs and should help remind you to provide enough examples,
illustrations, explanations, etc.
DO develop your ideas fully. If you can only think of one or two ideas, provide specific
examples and explanation. It is better to illustrate one or two points fully than to give a sketchy
list of reasons with little support.
DO think of the essay as a conversation with your reader. Think of what you would say to
someone if you were talking about the topic. Try to think about any questions your conversation
partner might like answered. In a conversation you talk freely and supply plenty of details; you
should do that in writing too.

DO use paragraphs. Paragraphs signal the reader that you are moving to another point and helps
the reader see your organizational plan.
DO use transitions, e.g. first, another time, finally, words that link one sentence to another or one
paragraph to another. This helps the reader easily follow and understand your ideas. DO make
your handwriting as neat as possible.
DO leave time to go back over your essay. Use your editing skills and neatly correct any errors
in spelling or punctuation that you notice. Feel free to cross out any unnecessary words or
phrases or add to the content. Remember, we dont expect the writing to look perfect.
Things to Avoid:
DONT waste time and words with phrases like, Well, I dont know much about this topic but
here goes, or I dont really know how to do this but I hope you like what I write. Just start
writing!
DONT stop writing too soon. Sometimes essays receive low scores simply because they are not
fully developed. While an extremely short essay may be error-free, it usually lacks the
development (explanations, illustrations, examples) necessary to receive a passing score or
better. You should use the full 45 minutes to organize, write, and edit your essay.
DONT sign your name. We like to get to know you from your writing, but we dont need to
know your name because scoring should be done anonymously.
*** Remember that holistic scoring rewards what is good about an essay. We do not use red
pens. Relax, remember what you have learned about good writing, and write with confidence
and lots of detail!***

The General Equivalency Development test, commonly known as the GED, tests high school
students who didn't graduate to see if they sufficiently mastered basic high school academic
subjects. Most states require students to be at least 16 years old to take the GED, and they must
submit legal proof of residency. The test has five multiple-choice sections, including a two-part
language arts section that requires one written essay.
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Length of Essay
A GED essay must clearly communicate thoughts and ideas and should include an introduction
and a conclusion. Even though there aren't any specific essay length requirements, GED Online
recommends writing an essay that's approximately 250 words. You might have trouble
transitioning from one point to another and incur difficulty creating a cohesive, well-constructed
essay if it's much less than 250 words. Depending on your writing style, margins and the size of
your letters, one to two handwritten pages is usually enough. Clear communication, word choice,
sentence structure and the ability to thoroughly answer the topic question is more important than
a lengthy response. Don't break your essay into several smaller essays -- only one meets the
requirement.

Time Restrictions
Each section of the GED is timed, so you must work quickly and efficiently. According to
Purdue University's Online Writing Lab, you have 45 minutes to plan, write, edit and proofread
your essay. Make sure you have a good pencil eraser in case you need to revise, correct or
rearrange some of the content. If you finish your essay in less than 45 minutes, you can go back
to Part One of the language arts section and finish or proofread your answers. You aren't allowed
to go back to other sections of the test.

Sample Topics
GED essay topics don't ask you to recite historical information or quote statistical data, so you
don't need to study or memorize content for the test. According to sample GED topics on Purdue
OWL's website, you can expect questions such as, "In your opinion, is censorship positive or
negative?" or "What are common methods used to combat stress?" You must provide sufficient
examples and express your ideas clearly, but the approach you take and the examples you choose
won't affect your score. In other words, as long as you communicate effectively, it doesn't matter
whether you support censorship or not. You're being tested on your writing skills, not your values
or belief system.

Scoring
Since you only have the opportunity to write one essay, the goal is to make sure you get a
minimum score of 2 out of 4 -- two GED graders score your essay, and their scores are averaged.
Your essay score is combined with your score on Part One to create a composite score for the
entire language arts section. An essay score below 2 means you automatically failed the language
arts section even if you got a passing score on the multiple-choice questions. According to
Purdue OWL, evaluators analyze your response to the prompt, organizational skills, details and
development, sentence structure and word choice. A score of 4 is considered effective, 3 is
adequate, 2 is marginal and 1 is inadequate.

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The essay portion of the GED will require you to compose a short essay on a pre-selected topic.
The essay will be either a narrative, descriptive, or persuasive essay. Narrative essays require you
to tell a story from your own life. Descriptive essays require you to paint a picture for your
audience by focusing on individual characteristics. Persuasive essays require you to express your
personal opinion on a topic. Each essay type will require a strong thesis and several welldeveloped paragraphs. You may ONLY write on the assigned topic, so its helpful to practice
writing several essays from multiple practice topics. Set a timer for 45-minutes, and try your
hand at one of the GED essay topics below!
1. What is the true meaning of honesty? In your essay, determine whether or not honesty is
always the best policy.
2. What is one event from your life that taught you a powerful life lesson? Use your personal
observations and experience to describe why that lesson was valuable.
3. Who is the most important member of your family to you? Describe your relationship to this
person and your reasons for selecting him or her.
4. Consider how our society has changed over time. Are young people today better off than they
were in the past? Write an essay explaining why or why not.
5. Is the current high school system sufficient to educate our countrys youth? Describe what is
valuable about our countrys system or what might be changed in order to produce better results.
6. Do hobbies have any real value to the individuals who participate in them? If so, how do
extracurricular activities benefit participants? Write an essay describing your own activities
outside of school and work.
7. If you won the lottery today, what aspects of your life would you change? What would you
keep the same? Write an essay discussing your ideas. Support them with reasons and examples.
8. What can be done to prevent drivers from texting while driving? Give suggestions and
examples to support your opinion.
9. Is a college degree important in todays workplace? Describe your opinions on the value of
higher education, and use details from your own life.

10. The Internet is an invention that has done irreparable harm to our collective ability to engage
in long-term research. How do you think that the benefits of instantaneous information provided
by the Internet compare with the potential drawbacks of shortened attention spans?
11. Do you most admire people your own age or people older than you? Write an essay
explaining what you think, and give specific examples of an individual you admire, and the
reasons you admire him or her.
12. In your opinion, should schools require students to complete a minimum number of
community service hours? Discuss whether you believe mandatory community service would
benefit most young people.
13. If you could live in another time period, when would it be and why? Be sure to include
relevant historical details.
14. Describe a situation in which you made a difficult decision involving an ethical issue. Show
how the experience was important and developed your character.
15. Describe one of your most prized possessions. Make sure to isolate three or four different
characteristics of the item, and explain why its important to you.

Sample Essay
Questions
Explain your answer using your knowledge, observations, and experience.
Use examples.
1. What are the most important considerations when choosing a job?
2. What are the qualities that make someone a good boss?
3. What kind of animal makes the best pet?
4. What are your goals to succeed in the next five years?
5. Do you think it is better to live in a small town or in a big city?

6. What are the qualities of a true friend?

7. What are the qualities that make someone a good parent?
8. If you could live anywhere in the world, where would you live?
9. Do you think girls or boys have it tougher in the world?
10. Why do you think radio is still popular today?
11. What is your opinion on how much TV we watch? Do you think we
watch too much TV, yes or no?
12. Do you think it is a good idea for high school students to all serve one
year in the military before they go to college or get a job?
13. Should we do more to deal with the problem of domestic violence, or
is the problem exaggerated?
14. We are becoming overwhelmingly dependent on computers. Is this
dependence on computers a good thing, or should we be more suspicious
of their benefits?
15. Is there too much of commercialism in the Internet?
16. Technology makes communication easier in today's world. Many
people choose to work at home in front of a computer screen. What
danger does the society face depending on computer screens rather than
face-to-face contact as the main means of communication? Are we the
prisoners of the progress?
17. Should animals be used for scientific research?
18. Should cigarettes smoking be banned?
19. Should drivers of automobiles be prohibited from using cellular
phones?
20. Should restrictions be placed on the use of mobile phones in public
areas like restaurants and theaters?
21. Should the death penalty be mandatory for people who kill other
people?

22. Should the "Right to Die" be Considered a Right?

23. What are two sides of the death penalty? Is it a cruel murderer or a
just punishment? Can it be a deterrent to crime?
24. Euthanasia as a way of relieving ill people's pain and save them from
the tortures of their illness. Do we have the right to take people's life?
25. Should there still be colleges and schools just for men/boys and some
just for women/girls?
26. Human beings do not need to eat meat in order to maintain good
health because they can get all their food needs from meatless products
and meatless substances. A vegetarian diet is as healthy as a diet
containing meat. Argue for or against the opinion above.

28. What are some of the best ways to welcome and then assimilate
immigrants into American life? What are the pros and cons of each of
these?
29. Education is an indivisible part of the prosperity of the nation. The
more educated and cultured people there are in the country the more
flourishing and thrifty the country is. Comment on this issue, argue your
decision
30. Should society assume more responsibility for pregnant teenagers and
the children they bear?
31. The mass media, including TV, radio, newspapers have a great
influence on people and especially on the younger generation. It plays an
important role in shaping the opinions and positions of the younger
generation. Argue for or against this statement.

GED Essay Testing Simulation

Essay Directions and Topic
Look at the box on the following page. In the box are your assigned topic and the
letter of that topic. (For this assignment, choose one of the links below.)

You must write on the assigned topic ONLY.

*Mark the letter of your assigned topic in the appropriate space on your answer
sheet booklet. Be certain that all other requested information is properly recorded
in your answer sheer booklet.
You will have 45 minutes to write on your assigned essay topic. *If you have time
remaining in this test period after you complete your essay, you may return to the
multiple-choice section. Do not return the Language Arts, Writing Test booklet until
you finish both Parts I and II of the Language Arts, Writing Test.
Two evaluators will score your essay according to its overall effectiveness. Their
evaluation will be based on the following features:

Well-focused main points

Clear organization

Specific development of your ideas

Control of sentence structure, punctuation, grammar, word choice and spelling

*REMEMBER, YOU MUST COMPLETE BOTH THE MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS (PART
I) AND THE ESSAY (PART II) TO RECEIVE A SCORE ON THE LANGUAGE ARTS, WRITING
TEST. To avoid having to repeat both parts of the test, be sure to do the following:

Do not leave pages blank.

Write legibly in ink so that the evaluators will be able to read your writing.

Write on the assigned topic. If you write on a topic other than the one assigned,
you will not receive a score for the Language Arts, Writing Test.

Write your essay on the lined pages of the separate answer sheet booklet. Only
the writing on these pages will be scored.

*IMPORTANT:
You may return to the multiple-choice section after you complete your essay if you
have time remaining in this test period. Do not return the Language Arts, Writing
booklet until you finish both Parts I and II of the Language Arts, Writing Test.

GED Essay Testing Simulation

Essay Topic

Topic A
What does it take to be a good parent?
In your essay, describe the characteristics of a good parent. Give specific details to explain your
views. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge.
Part II is a test to determine how well you can use written language to explain your ideas.
In preparing your essay, you should take the following steps:

Read the DIRECTIONS and the TOPIC carefully.

Plan your essay before you write. Use scratch paper provided to make any notes. These
notes will be collected but not scored.

Before you turn in your essay, reread what you have written and make any changes that will
improve your essay.

Your essay should be long enough to develop the topic adequately.

Topic B
What has been the happiest day of your life so far?
In your essay, tell what happened that made it so wonderful. Use your personal observations,
experience, and knowledge.
Part II is a test to determine how well you can use written language to explain your ideas.
In preparing your essay, you should take the following steps:

Read the DIRECTIONS and the TOPIC carefully.

Plan your essay before you write. Use scratch paper provided to make any notes. These
notes will be collected but not scored.

Before you turn in your essay, reread what you have written and make any changes that will
improve your essay.

Your essay should be long enough to develop the topic adequately.

Topic C
Today our workplaces and neighborhoods are composed of people of diverse backgrounds. For
this reason it is important for people to find ways to get along with each other.
Write an essay explaining how people of diverse backgrounds can get along better.

Part II is a test to determine how well you can use written language to explain your ideas.
In preparing your essay, you should take the following steps:

Read the DIRECTIONS and the TOPIC carefully.

Plan your essay before you write. Use scratch paper provided to make any notes. These
notes will be collected but not scored.

Before you turn in your essay, reread what you have written and make any changes that will
improve your essay.

Your essay should be long enough to develop the topic adequately.

Topic D
How do you define success?
In your essay, describe what it means to be successful. Give specific details to explain your
views. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge.
Part II is a test to determine how well you can use written language to explain your ideas.
In preparing your essay, you should take the following steps:

Read the DIRECTIONS and the TOPIC carefully.

Plan your essay before you write. Use scratch paper provided to make any notes. These
notes will be collected but not scored.

Before you turn in your essay, reread what you have written and make any changes that will
improve your essay.

Your essay should be long enough to develop the topic adequately.

Topic E
It is difficult to make changes in one's life. Do you agree with this statement?
State your view in an essay. Use your personal observations, experience, and knowledge.
Part II is a test to determine how well you can use written language to explain your ideas.
In preparing your essay, you should take the following steps:

Read the DIRECTIONS and the TOPIC carefully.

Plan your essay before you write. Use scratch paper provided to make any notes. These
notes will be collected but not scored.

Before you turn in your essay, reread what you have written and make any changes that will
improve your essay.

Your essay should be long enough to develop the topic adequately.