Chapter Outline

Study the chapter outline below. Use the page numbers below each topic to refer to the corresponding section in Contemporary's GED Language Arts, Writing. When you are finished, go to the Chapter Review Quiz or choose a different activity or chapter from the menu on the left.

What the Test Will Be Like

(See page 197)

In Part I of the Language Arts, Writing Test, you will have 75 minutes to answer 50 questions.
There is no penalty for guessing.
The questions will all be multiple choice with five answer choices.
The questions will be based on short passages, each 200–300 words long.
The passages will be business, instructional, and informational documents.
The questions will check your knowledge of organization, sentence structure, standard usage, and mechanics (punctuation, capitalization, and homonym spelling).

Common Errors

(See pages 198 and 199)

Four main skills are tested on Part I of the Language Arts, Writing Test:

Sentence structure:

complete sentences
run-ons and comma splices
wordy or repetitive sentences
coordination or subordination
modification
parallel structure

Usage:

subject-verb agreement
verb tense or form
pronoun-antecedent agreement

Mechanics:

capitalization
comma usage
spelling of homonyms, possessives, or contractions

Organization:

dividing a paragraph or combining two paragraphs
adding a topic sentence
moving or removing a sentence

Question Types

(See pages 200–202)

There are three types of questions on Part I of the Language Arts, Writing Test:

Sentence correction (45 percent of the questions)
Sentence revision (35 percent of the questions)
Construction shift (20 percent of the questions)

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