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QUICK
LINKS:
TASC Connect hours and locations and other help
General information about the test
Online resources Including skill review and practice
Recursos en espaņol
Website
of the Month
Click below for a wonderful, friendly introduction to algebra - math you are probably doing every day!
Math is Fun!
Good news
for test retakers!
If you took the GED test between 2002 and 2013 and passed any of the 5 subject tests, your passing scores will count until the end of 2015!
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New feature - video of the month!
Click here for a fabulous, encouraging video on how to answer reading questions.
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Practice Tests
and Sample Questions
As you get closer to taking the TASC, it will be important to take practice tests and answer sample questions. Practice tests will let you know where you need to focus your studying, give you experience with the test format, and help you develop test-taking skills. Also, you will become more comfortable and relaxed when taking the test, which will help improve your score!
Sample Question from a Practice Test in Social Studies:
Look at the chart and answer the question that follows.
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Organization
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Functions
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United Nations (UN)
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An international organization established to maintain global peace and to promote social progress and human rights
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North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
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A military and political alliance of countries in Europe and North America formed to counter Soviet expansion by agreeing to act together in the defense of all member nations
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Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)
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A group of mostly Arab nations that sell oil to other nations and work together to regulate the price and supply of oil
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European Union (EU)
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A group of European nations established to coordinate monetary and economic policies
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World Trade Organization (WTO)
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An international organization dealing with the rules of trade among nations
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1 Which of these organizations was formed to prevent a common threat?
A NATO
B OPEC
C EU
D WTO
Certainly, it would help us answer this question if we had some prior knowledge of these organizations. Studying and reviewing basic history and social studies will help develop your background knowledge.
However, what if we're not familiar with these organizations? We can still answer this question correctly by applying our reading skills. We can also use test-taking skills to eliminate answers, so if we have to guess, we can narrow down the options to make it more likely that we will guess correctly.
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Make sure you understand the question. It's asking about which organization was formed to prevent a common threat? What do they mean by threat - usually something harmful. So we need to figure out, by looking at the chart, which organization has something to do with preventing something harmful. The question also mentions, "common" which in this case could mean happening often or it could also mean "shared" as in what we have in common.
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Understand how to read a chart. Look at the headings. In this chart, there are two headings. One is organizations and the other is functions. So the chart is telling us the function (or purpose) of each organization.
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Use only the information needed for the specific question. Charts, tables, and graphs have a lot of information, but you will usually not need all of the information to answer the question. Save time and confusion by focusing only on what you need. In this case, the United Nations (UN) is not given as a possible answer, so there is no need to study the function of the United Nations.
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Eliminate answers. Three of the organizations, OPEC, EU, and WTO have as their function something related to economics or trade. The only other remaining answer is NATO whose function is to "act together in defense of all member nations." Even though it doesn't specifically say, "prevent a common threat," there are many ways to say something similar. Good reading skills will help you to restate an idea using different words. For this particular question, NATO is the best answer.
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Important reminder - Even if you're not sure of a specific answer, use your reading and test-taking skills to eliminate unlikely choices!
Click here for more social studies sample questions.
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Writing an Essay - the importance of paragraphs
One of the keys to writing a good essay is to organize your ideas into paragraphs. A paragraph is a collection of sentences that focus on a main idea. A good paragraph should have the following components:
- A topic sentence which introduces the main idea (focus) of the paragraph. It tells the reader what the paragraph is about. A topic sentence is often the first sentence in a paragraph, but it can be anywhere in the paragraph as well, depending on the style of the writer.
- Supporting details which develop and give more information about the main idea in the topic sentence. The supporting details can be examples, anecdotes, facts, and further explanation.
Here is an example of a well-written paragraph by John Langan about his terrible job at an apple factory.*
First of all, the job made enormous demands on my strength and energy. For ten hours a night, I took cartons that rolled down a metal track and stacked them onto wooden skids in a tractor-trailer. Each carton contained twelve heavy cans or bottles of apple juice. A carton shot down the track about every fifteen seconds. I once figured out that I was lifting an average of twelve tons of apple juice every night. When a truck was almost filled, I or my partner had to drag fourteen bulky wooden skids into the empty trailer nearby and then set up added sections of the heavy metal track so that we could start routing cartons to the back of the empty van. While one of us did that, the other performed the stacking work of two men.
The first sentence is the topic sentence introducing the main idea that the job was very physically demanding. The sentences following the topic sentence explain how the job was physically demanding, giving many vivid examples.
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Can you spot the sentence that doesn't fit in the paragraph below?
Community colleges are wonderful choices for learning. They are often the most affordable option. Also, many students have families and other responsibilities, and attending a local college is a better fit for their needs since they can continue to live at home. Professors at big universities often conduct important research. Classes at community colleges tend to be small, making it easier for students to participate in the learning process.
Answer: The sentence about professors doing research doesn't fit because the paragraph should focus on the benefits of community college not universities.
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Organizing Paragraphs
It's helpful to compare the organization of an essay to the way a supermarket is organized. Just like a paragraph in an essay, each aisle in a supermarket has a specific focus, for example, pet supplies in one aisle, dairy products in another. If there were no system of organization, and all products were mixed together, it would be very difficult for shoppers to find an item. The topic sentence in a paragraph is like the sign hanging above the aisle which tells shoppers which items can be found in that aisle.
Readers of an essay are like the shoppers in a supermarket. Your writing should be well-organized so that it's easy for your readers to follow and understand. For example, if you're writing about the joys of summer - one paragraph could be about the fruits available during the summer season, and another paragraph could be about outdoor sports in warm weather. If you mix the two different ideas together in the same paragraph, it will be difficult for your reader to follow and to figure out your main idea.
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For more help with paragraphs and essay writing, click on the following links:
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If you ...
- have a question
- want feedback on an essay
- think of a great idea to help other students
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Lisa Kahn - TASC Connect! - Westchester Library System - 914-231-3264
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