GED Essay Scoring Checklist

For each question, choose the appropriate answer (1–4) that best describes your essay.

Does your essay answer the question that is asked in the writing prompt?

1. No, my essay refers to the question, but it doesn’t really discuss it or develop a main idea that answers the question.
2. My essay addresses the question with a main idea, but it also includes some ideas that are not directly related to the question.
3. Yes, my essay has a main idea that is based on the question, but the main idea could be stated in a better way.
4. Yes, my essay clearly answers the question with a main idea.

Are the ideas in your essay well organized?

1. No, the ideas in my essay are mixed up in order and are hard to follow.
2. Most of the ideas in my essay are clear and easy to follow, but there are some ideas that are hard to follow.
3. Yes, the ideas in my essay are clearly organized, but some of the ideas could be organized in a better way.
4. Yes, the ideas in my essay are clearly organized and easy to follow.

Does your essay contain details or examples that support the main idea?

1. No, many of the paragraphs in my essay contain details or examples that don’t support the topic sentence, or many of the paragraphs don’t have any details or examples at all.
2. Some of the paragraphs in my essay have a topic sentence and supporting details and examples, but the details and examples could be stronger and more abundant.
3. Yes, each paragraph in my essay contains a topic sentence and details or examples, but some of the paragraphs have more details or examples than others.
4. Yes, each paragraph in my essay contains a topic sentence with specific details and examples that support the topic sentence.

Are the sentences and paragraphs in your essay grammatically correct?

1. No, the sentences and paragraphs in my essay are not worded correctly, and a majority of the sentences contain errors in grammar and spelling.
2. Some of the sentences and paragraphs in my essay are worded incorrectly, and there are a noticeable amount of errors in grammar and spelling.
3. Yes, the sentences and paragraphs in my essay are mostly worded correctly, and there are only a few small errors in grammar and spelling.
4. Yes, the sentences and paragraphs in my essay are worded correctly, and there are practically no errors in grammar or spelling.

Does your essay display a wide range of words that are used correctly?

1. No, my essay displays a very limited choice of words, which are often reused or used incorrectly.
2. My essay doesn’t display a very wide range of word choice, and there are a few words that are used incorrectly.
3. Yes, my essay displays a word choice that is appropriate to the topic but could be more complex.
4. Yes, my essay displays a wide range, in which all words are used correctly.

Review the answers that you chose for each question. Have you chosen mostly 4’s? 3’s? a combination of 2’s and 3’s? a significant amount of 1’s? Take the number that you chose most often and use it for your GED essay score. If you have an equal amount of two numbers, use the number that falls in between as your score. (Example, if you have an equal amount of 3’s and 4’s, your GED essay score would be a 3.5.)