Tips for passing the GED test: Social Studies Section

The GED social studies test measures your cognitive skills and reading comprehension through a series of multiple choice questions.You are tested on your ability to understand different concepts and topics in five different subjects: including U.S history, global history, geography, civics and government and economics. Four different thinking skills are tested in these sections,
including evaluation, application, analysis and comprehension.

History accounts for 40 percent of the social studies section of the GED. To prepare yourself for this section, review important events and concepts in both global and United States history. Practice summarizing the information that you read and pay attention to key facts. The history section of the test primarily focuses on your comprehension and evaluation skills. Focus on studying historical events and their consequences to strengthen your comprehension skills. This test does not require memorization of dates, but instead requires a general understanding of the effect of major events in both U.S and global history.

The geography portion of the social studies GED test accounts for 15 percent of the questions. Rather than focusing on specific states and capitals, you should strengthen your analysis skills and reading comprehension. A geography question might consist of having you look at a map and use the key to analyse the answer to a question. You will also be asked to read a paragraph pertaining to geography and draw rational conclusions based on what you read

Civics and Government questions account for 25% of the social studies GED test. Each test will contain a document to read and analyze such as the Declaration of Independence, or the U.S Constitution. Questions in this section will require foreknowledge of vocabulary such as the word democracy, to correctly answer questions. You will also be presented with information in the form of a paragraph or a political drawing, and you will be required to infer the meaning.

Economics questions account for 20 percent of the social studies GED test. The economics portion of the test will include graphs and charts which you will use to analyze data and answer questions. An example of such a question would be a graph with data on forecasts and actual economic growth over the span of 10 years, in this case you would be asked to use the graph given to determine whether the forecasts have overestimated, underestimated, or been correct between certain years.

The social studies GED test consists of 50 questions to be completed within 70 minutes. The questions are multiple choice, so start by eliminating answers you know to be false. If you are unsure of an answer, mark it and come back to it later. Don't spend too much time on any one question, and review all of your work before turning it in. You are graded only on the number of answers you answered correctly, so do not leave anything blank. Make a guess after eliminating the answers you know to be incorrect, as a last resort.