Field Noteswritten for this archive, November 11, 2026
The GED essay: writing the extended response
When eLEARN Virginia opened in 2007, the GED essay was a single prompt on a familiar topic, written by hand. Learners were asked to explain something from their own experience. That test was retired at the end of 2013. Since January 2014 the GED has been taken on a computer, one of the shifts the Institute’s 2009 summit on technology in adult education saw coming, and its essay has a different job: read two short passages that disagree, decide which argument is better supported, and explain why.
Many adults find the new essay harder at first, mostly because it asks for a kind of reading they have not been taught. National surveys suggest that comparing and weighing two texts is exactly where many adult readers stall; the figures are in Adult literacy in Virginia, then and now. Once that clicks, though, the task is very learnable. It rewards a plan more than talent.
The task in plain terms
The extended response sits inside the Reasoning Through Language Arts (RLA) test, which runs 150 minutes in total, including a 10-minute break between the second and third sections. You get 45 minutes for the essay itself. The screen shows two passages, usually an article and a response to it, or two letters, or two opinion pieces, on a public question: should a city ban something, should a program be funded, is a new technology a good idea.
The instruction asks you to analyze both positions and argue which one is better supported. Read that phrase twice. You are not being asked whether you agree. You might privately think both writers are wrong. Your job is to judge the arguments as arguments: the evidence they use, how well it fits their claim, and what they leave out.
How it is scored
The essay is scored on three traits. Each one is worth up to two points before the GED weights the result into your RLA score.
| Trait | What the scorer is looking for |
|---|---|
| 1. Creation of arguments and use of evidence | A clear claim about which side is better supported, backed by specific evidence quoted or described from the passages, with some explanation of why that evidence is strong or weak |
| 2. Development of ideas and organizational structure | A logical order, paragraphs that each do one job, transitions that connect them, ideas that are explained rather than just listed |
| 3. Clarity and command of standard English | Sentences that are clear and varied, correct usage, spelling and punctuation good enough not to get in the way |
Notice what is missing. Nobody is scoring creativity, vocabulary for its own sake, or a perfect opening line. A plain, well-organized essay that cites the passages accurately does well.
A plan for the 45 minutes
Most tutors teach a split close to this one:
- Read and mark (8–10 minutes). Read both passages once for the gist. On the second pass, note each writer’s main claim and the two or three pieces of support each one uses. Is it statistics, expert testimony, a personal story, a prediction? Is a number given with its source, or just asserted?
- Decide and outline (3–5 minutes). Pick the side whose evidence is stronger. Jot down three reasons in the order you will use them. One reason can be a weakness in the other side.
- Write (25 minutes). Introduction, body paragraphs, conclusion.
- Review (3–5 minutes). Read it through. Fix missing words, wrong word forms, run-on sentences. Do not count on the computer to catch spelling for you.
People who skip step 2 usually run out of time in step 3, because they work out what they think while typing and end up circling.
A structure that works
Introduction
Two to four sentences. Name the issue, name both positions in a phrase each, and state which is better supported. That last sentence is your claim and carries the whole essay. An example of the shape: “Both writers discuss whether the county should extend library hours. The author of the first article supports the change with usage figures and a librarian’s account, while the second writer relies mainly on predictions about cost. The first argument is better supported.” For more ways to open without wasting words, this guide to writing an essay introduction has useful examples; the GED version should stay on the short end.
Body paragraphs
Two or three paragraphs, each built around one reason. A reliable pattern inside each paragraph:
- Point: what this paragraph shows (“The first writer gives concrete evidence.”)
- Evidence: a short quotation or close paraphrase from the passage, with a signal of where it comes from (“She reports that evening visits rose by a third during the trial.”)
- Explanation: why that evidence matters for the argument (“Because the figure comes from an actual trial, it shows what happened rather than what might happen.”)
- Contrast, if useful: what the other side offers on the same point, and why it is weaker.
One body paragraph can focus entirely on the other side’s weakness: an unsupported claim, a number with no source, an appeal to fear, a source with a stake in the outcome.
Conclusion
Two or three sentences that restate the claim in fresh words and pull the reasons together. Do not introduce a new argument, and do not suddenly give your personal view of the issue.
Words that do the work
Scorers look for evidence that you are analyzing, not summarizing. A small set of verbs and phrases helps:
- The author claims / argues / asserts / predicts…
- To support this, she cites / points to / relies on…
- This evidence is convincing because… / This claim is weak because…
- However, the second writer does not explain…
- In contrast, … / On the other hand, … / As a result, …
It also helps to know the common types of support and the common faults. Statistics, expert opinion, examples and personal experience are the usual kinds of evidence; vague generalizations, emotional appeals without facts, and predictions presented as certainties are the usual weaknesses. The building blocks of an argument, claim, reasons, evidence and the answer to the other side, are laid out clearly in this guide to the persuasive essay. The GED essay turns that kit around: instead of building your own argument from nothing, you test two finished ones against it.
Practising without burning out
- Read opinion pieces with a pencil. Any newspaper letters page will do. For each letter, write one line: what is the claim, and what is the evidence? Five minutes a day builds the reading habit the essay needs.
- Work from old prompts. The GED Testing Service publishes sample prompts and scored example responses. Studying a response that scored 2 on each trait next to one that scored 1 teaches more than any rule list.
- Type, don’t hand-write. The test is on a computer. Learners who practise on paper and switch on test day lose time to the keyboard.
- Time yourself early. Do one full 45-minute response in the first weeks, even if it goes badly. Knowing what 45 minutes feels like changes how you plan.
- Get one reader. A teacher, a tutor or a patient friend who will mark where they got lost. You need to know where the essay stops making sense to someone else.
Scores and what comes next
Each GED subject is scored from 100 to 200, and 145 passes. Scores from 165 are labelled College Ready, and 175 and above College Ready + Credit, which some colleges accept for course credit. The essay is a meaningful part of the RLA score, so a strong response can carry a test where the reading questions went only moderately well.
For many adults the essay is the first time anyone has asked them to argue on paper. It is worth treating as more than a hurdle. The same moves, stating a claim, choosing evidence, explaining it, answering the other side, run through every college paper and most workplace reports. What happens after the credential is the subject of the next note, From GED to career pathway.
Sources named in this note
- GED Testing Service, test specifications and extended response scoring rubric for Reasoning Through Language Arts (current edition, introduced 2014; Social Studies extended response removed 2016).
- The Institute’s 2007 press page on eLEARN Virginia, written for the earlier GED series.
Questions readers ask
How long is the GED essay?
You get 45 minutes for the extended response inside the Reasoning Through Language Arts test. There is no required length. What counts is a clear claim, evidence from both passages and an organized explanation, which is hard to fit into a single paragraph.
Do I give my own opinion on the GED essay?
Not about the issue itself. The prompt asks which of the two passages makes the better-supported argument. You take a position on that question and back it up with evidence from the passages.
How is the GED essay scored?
On three traits, each worth up to two points before weighting. Trait 1 is creating an argument and using evidence, Trait 2 is developing ideas and organizing them, and Trait 3 is clarity and command of standard English.
How was the old 2002 GED essay different?
It also allowed 45 minutes, but it asked for an essay on a familiar topic and was written by hand. Two readers scored it from 1 to 4, and candidates needed at least a 2 to pass the writing test.
Is there still an essay on the Social Studies test?
No. The Social Studies extended response was removed in March 2016. The only essay left on the GED is the one in Reasoning Through Language Arts.