W.Va. GED Policies Revised

MOUNDSVILLE - In West Virginia alone, 25.4 percent of the adult population is without a high school diploma or lacking skills to function effectively in the workplace, according to State Profiles of the Adult Education Target Population.

To change these statistics, state legislation has modified General Educational Development Testing, or GED.

The new changes went into effect July 1 as candidates will now be required to pass a pre-test before actually taking the GED. A once required $50 fee has also been waived.

Linda Berlin, coordinator of adult education for Marshall County Schools, said several people throughout the state will be impacted by these changes.

"This change with the GED is very big," Berlin said. "The biggest thing with this is GED testing will be free to all candidates taking the test. Another big thing is they have to pass the GED Official Practice Test - OPT - in order to take the test."

Each year more than 1,000 dropouts ages 16-18 do not acquire their GED diplomas. The new policy eliminates the waiting period for 18-year-olds and requires 16- and 17-year-olds to be withdrawn from school for at least one month before testing.

"Sixteen and 17-year-olds have never been able to take the test right after dropping out of school and it used to be cumbersome for them," Berlin said. "Unfortunately we are not going to be able to make every kid stay in school, but these changes will really allow people to move on with their lives. Hopefully in the future they can get better jobs or a better education."

Berlin said another major change with the GED involves its name.

"GED used to stand for General Education Development certificate," Berlin said. "Now it's the GED diploma. They have been trying to get that for awhile. I am so glad that happened because I feel it means more to the candidate. It's a diploma and it holds more weight as far as getting a job is concerned."

For people interested in taking the GED they must qualify by first passing the OPT with a minimum score of 410 on each subject area to reach a total of 2,250.

Debra Kimbler, state GED administrator, said once students pass the OPT they can register for the GED using an online registration process called the GEDWizard. West Virginia is the first state to implement the GEDWizard in conjunction with the Oklahoma Scoring Services.

Berlin said this registration process is not to be confused with taking the actual GED online, as the GED is not administered by a computer in any state.

If the GED candidate is unable to pass the practice test, free adult basic education classes are located throughout West Virginia. Instructors then work with candidates to meet individual needs and to improve skills necessary to pass the GED tests.

"We have a wonderful center here located in the former Moundsville Penitentiary," Berlin said. "There is a small building inside and it has everything they would need including state of the art technology. For those who have already graduated and need to brush up on their skills, they can come to classes to prep for college tests. It's the same for workers who need job keeping or seeking skills."

Member Comments

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Georgetwin
07-08-08 10:17 AM »Report Abuse	LTRRTL, my Grandma was a WV School Teacher in the 1920's. She told me on warm days, she was the ONLY ONE wearing shoes.
givemeabreak
07-07-08 10:07 PM »Report Abuse	Being that this article is about educaton, I offer this: ***********voicesforpeace****/
bekbekket
07-07-08 6:51 PM »Report Abuse	And when someone jokes about our hillbilly status, everybody's widdle feelwings get hurt.
bekbekket
07-07-08 6:50 PM »Report Abuse	From the mouth (well, fingers) of the great eToothman... there is no accountability in our schools anymore. NCLB ATTEMPTS to do that, but needs tweeked. It is a good plan. As teachers, we need to be held accountable for the education of our youths. Until that happens, it will remain status quo.
PCGS70
07-07-08 6:47 PM »Report Abuse	No wonder WV people are stereotyped as stupid hill billys. It's all true!
LTRRTL
07-07-08 6:27 PM »Report Abuse	Georgetwin - They have shoes?
Georgetwin
07-07-08 12:48 PM »Report Abuse	CTMountaineer, many of them have a hard time tying their shoes.
USMCDeathPimp
07-07-08 12:01 PM »Report Abuse	"Open for Business" Parents and teachers are pathetic in this state for not holding these "young adults" responsible enough to even graduate from high school.
CTMountaineer
07-07-08 12:00 PM »Report Abuse	I agree with you. It seems to run in families too. Go wo WVDOE and you see the same family name more than once, and often the same family name as the father who used to hang out there, or the uncle. They pay those clowns big bucks largely to sit on their butts and act important. Many of them would have a hard time making it in the real world.
Georgetwin
07-07-08 11:45 AM »Report Abuse	CT, GOOD teachers stick out like a Sore Thumb. BAD Teachers run The Teachers Unions and The DOE's. I have seen it firsthand EVERYWHERE!
CTMountaineer
07-07-08 11:18 AM »Report Abuse	I agree that there are problems with DOE's everywhere, but some are not as bad as others. A major problem is the fact that they are dominated by "Educational Administrators", who by and large are people who lacked the skills to be good teachers and ended up pushing pencils by default. The DOE in West Virginia has more than its share of these bozos.
Georgetwin
07-07-08 10:53 AM »Report Abuse	BBekket, CT, Cory, DOE’s EVERYEHERE are the problem with education, NOT THE CURE!
cory1978
07-07-08 9:26 AM »Report Abuse	And people wonder why our children are dropping out of school. Because their parents are dumb.
bekbekket
07-07-08 8:42 AM »Report Abuse	I like that idea CT... but unfortunately, you're right about our DOE.
CTMountaineer
07-07-08 7:01 AM »Report Abuse	They have made changes, but they need to do a lot more. One thing they should do is impliment an adult high school (evening) diploma program like they have in Connecticut. It works very well, and affords adults who only need a few credits to earn a diploma the opportunity to do so under expert guidance. They even got Federal funding for the program, so the cost is minimal to the State. Connecticut's use of a combination of GED and Adult Diploma programs has resulted in thousands of adults getting the skill set necessary to have a meaningful career. However, since WVDOE is better known for nepotism and cronism than innovation... don't look for any positive results any time soon.

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