More people pass than fail GED test
July 7, 2010
The General Educational Development credential is the formal name for what everybody knows as the GED. Here's the big picture from the 2008 report of the American Council on Education, which runs the testing program:
• The GED was created in 1942 so that people who dropped out to join the military could earn a high school credential when they returned from World War II service. More than 17 million people in the United States, its territories and Canada have earned a GED since then.
• Famous GED-holders include comedian Bill Cosby, actor Michael J. Fox, gymnast Mary Lou Retton, Wendy's founder Dave Thomas and country singer Gretchen Wilson.
• The test covers five subjects (reading, writing, social studies, science and math) and takes more than seven hours to complete. Each section is worth 800 points. To pass, test-takers must earn a total of at least 2,250 points and at least 410 points on each section.
• About 73 percent of people who completed all five tests in 2008 got a passing grade. (In Ohio, the rate was 81 percent.)
• Only two people in the country got a perfect score that year -- an 18-year-old man from Washington state and a 20-year-old woman from California.
• A demographic breakdown of test-takers shows the average age is 25; 58 percent are male; 52 percent are white, 24 percent black and 19 percent Hispanic.
• Sixty percent say they're taking the tests so they can continue their education, 52 percent cite personal reasons such as being a role model and 50 percent say they want a better job.
For more information
tinyurl.com/2eodx43
American Council on Education GED Testing
tinyurl.com/2cvp45d
Ohio Department of Education GED Testing
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