Youth to Youth Guide to the GED

Edited byEve Tuck and Tasos Neofotistos

The Youth to Youth

Guide to the GED

®

GED

The Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®Edited by Eve Tuck and Tasos NeofotistosApril, 2013

Contributing AuthorsJovon Smith, Travion K. Joseph, Maria Bacha, John Powell, and Joni Schwartz

Contributing ResearchersThe Collective of Researchers on Educational Disappointment and Desire (CREDD) — Maria Bacha, Jovanne Allen, Alexis Morales, Jamila Thompson, Sarah Quinter, Jodi-Ann Gayle, Crystal Orama, and Eve Tuck

Additional Content Provided ByAdvocates for Children of New YorkCampaign for Tomorrow’s Workforce

Guide DesignChristina Ree

Writing Workshop TranscriptionAmie Worley, Katherine Espinosa- NuñezJune Omura

Copy EditingKatherine Espinosa-Nuñez

Interview TranscriptionBeverly Tuck

SupportThe writing workshop for this guide was hosted with support from The State University of New York at New Paltz. Research for the guide was conducted with support from The Graduate Center, City University of New York. Gisela Alvarez and Christie N. Hill at Advocates for Children of New York provided important information about students’ legal rights to remain in school. Sierra Stoneman-Bell at Campaign for Tomorrow’s Workforce provided information about the new privatized GED® Testing Service.

Introduction to The Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®Jovon Smith, Travion K. Joseph , and Tasos Neofotistos .........................................................5

Creating The Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®Eve Tuck ..................................................................................................................................6

The Goals of The Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®Tasos Neofotistos, Travion K. Joseph,Jovon Smith, Joni Schwartz, John Powell and Eve Tuck ..........................................................7

Who is an Ally? Maria Bacha ...................................................................................................... 7

CREDD’s Gateways and Get-aways ProjectEve Tuck, Jovanne Allen, Maria Bacha, Alexis Morales, Sarah Quinter, Jamila Thompson and Melody Tuck ........................................................................................8

The GED®Eve Tuck ..................................................................................................................................9

GED® Changes and High School Equivalency:What’s Happening in New York?Campaign for Tomorrow’s Workforce ....................................................................................11

Testimonio: My GED® ExperienceTravion K. Joseph ..................................................................................................................15

Graffiti Wall: What can you do with a GED®? ........................................................16

Re-Valuing/ Re-Thinking the GED®CREDD ..................................................................................................................................17

Employer and College Responses: Summary of Cold CallsCREDD ..................................................................................................................................17

When did You First Learn about the GED®Interview Responses, New York City Youth ............................................................................18

What do Youth Know about the GED® before they Join A GED® Program?Joni Schwartz and John Powell .............................................................................................19

Swapping the New York Regents for the GED®CREDD ..................................................................................................................................21

What are the GED® Tests? ................................................................................... 22

GED® Application Process and Eligibility Requirements ................................. 24

Testimonio: Leaving School for a GED®Tasos Neofotistos ..................................................................................................................29

table of contents

Suggested citationTuck, E., & Neofotistos, T. (Eds.). (2013). Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®. [electronic publication].

In 2011, the GED® was trademarked by the GED Testing Service® when it became a joint for-profit company of Pearson and the American Council on Education.

Schools are Not Equally Funded CREDD ..................................................................................................................................30

Circumstances of Leaving School Interview Responses, New York City Youth ............................................................................31

Taking the More Narrow RoadJohn Powell ..........................................................................................................................33

The GED® as a Key to Unlock Doors and WindowsInterview Responses, New York City Youth ............................................................................34

Testimonio: Earning a GED® and Becoming a GED® TutorJovon Smith ..........................................................................................................................36

Beware of Being Pushed-Out of Your High SchoolInterview Responses, New York City Youth ............................................................................37

You Have the Right to Stay in School Advocates for Children .........................................................................................................38

Youth Rights to Complex PersonhoodCREDD ..................................................................................................................................39

What to Do if You Feel Like You are Being Pushed-outof Your Public High SchoolAdvocates for Children .........................................................................................................39

Frequently Asked Questions on School Pushout (New York City specific)Advocates for Children ..........................................................................................................40

The Difficulty of the GED® ExamTasos Neofotistos, Jovon Smith, Travion K. Joseph, Joni Schwartz,John Powell, and Eve Tuck ....................................................................................................42

Sometimes Hard Work is Not Enough in an Unequal SocietyMaria Bacha ..........................................................................................................................44

Advice from Youth GED® Earners to Youth Considering the GED®Interview Responses, New York City Youth ............................................................................44

Advice from A GED® EducatorJoni Schwartz ........................................................................................................................49

Policy Recommendations and YOU(th)Maria Bacha ..........................................................................................................................50

Know Your Options to Stay in School! (New York City specific)Advocates for Children ..........................................................................................................51

Last Bits of Advice from Youth GED® EarnersInterview responses, New York City Youth ............................................................................53

ConclusionTasos Neofotistos, Jovon Smith, Travion K. Joseph, Joni Schwartz, John Powell, and Eve Tuck ....................................................................................................53

Introduction to The Youth to Youth Guide tothe GED®

jovon smith, travion k. joseph , and tasos neofotistos

We are GED® earners and we are writing this guide to give readers a better sense of what the GED® is really about. This guide is intended for young people and their adult allies who want to know more about the GED®.

This guide presents information from open discussions with GED® earners and features personal experiences from people who have earned a GED®. We use personal experiences because we believe it is better to learn about the GED® from people who have actually earned it, understand it, and have been through it. We feel that this perspective is often missing and needs to be available to the public.

This guide includes quotes and experiences from young GED® graduates and some who did so by attending a GED® program. Inside are youth perspectives on what the GED® really means and where you can go with it. We include stories about why some youth got a GED® instead of a high school diploma, how they heard about it, and the differences between the GED® and a high school diploma; how the GED® is an alternative, but not really an equivalent to the high school diploma. We provide some views on the GED® exam itself, its structure, and the fact that it is mostly comprised of reading comprehension. We also talk about how to prepare for the GED® exam, what to expect, and the actions to take if you fail the GED® test. We hope this guide helps people, especially youth, who are thinking about pursuing the GED® be better informed before making this important life decision.

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CrEATING ThE YouTh To YouTh GuIDE To ThE GED®

eve tuck

Some estimate that in the United States, 1 in 7 secondary school completion credentials is a GED®. In cities like New York City, this number has grown in the past decades to be 1 in 4. The GED® has an important role in U.S. schools as an alternative to a high school diploma, but it is not an equal alternative. Rather, GED® earners can experience diminished returns when compared to high school diploma earners in post-secondary school access and completion, job placement, life-long earnings, health, and incarceration rates.

Between 2006 and 2008, the Collective of Researchers on Educational Disappointment and Desire (CREDD) conducted the Gateways and Get-aways Project, which carefully investigated the relationships between federal, state, and local education policies, the use and over-use of the General Education Development (GED®) credential, and school push-out in New York City. Findings from that project showed how accountability policies such as mandatory exit exams, mayoral control, and No Child Left Behind produce the conditions in

which schools overtly and covertly encourage under-performing students to drop out under the auspices of the GED®. CREDD conducted the project in New York City, as participatory action research. As part of the project we talked with hundreds of in-school and out-of-school youth across the city, in interviews, focus groups, and surveys.

One of the main purposes of the The Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®, is to share findings from the

Gateways and Get-aways Project with youth who are considering leaving school to pursue a GED®. In interviews with youth GED® earners and seekers, CREDD asked “What do you know now that you wished you had known prior to exiting school?” and “What would you say to another young person who is in your shoes?” The answers to these questions are included in this guide. Youth interview participants often reported that they did not know that they would have to wait up to a year after leaving school to sit for the GED® exam. This information, had they known it, may have swayed their decisions to exit school.

To create the guide, Tasos Neofotistos and I hosted a writing workshop for GED® earners and GED® instructors at SUNY New Paltz in November 2010. The participants wrote parts of the guide, and talked through other parts, which were recorded by our talented transcribers. The GED® earners completed their GED® credentials as youth, and now attend four-year colleges. The GED® earners and instructors are contributing authors of the guide, and helped to make decisions about which information to include, which data from the Gateways and Get-aways Project to include, and the design and flavor of the guide. Thus, the other main purpose of this guide is to present first-person narratives, or testimonios, by youth GED® earners now in college, and experienced and caring GED® instructors.

This information may have swayed their decisions to exit school.

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ThE GoAlS of ThE YouTh To YouTh GuIDE To ThE GED®

contributing authors This guide shares findings from CREDD’s Gateways and Get-aways Study and other important information about the GED® for youth who are interested in pursuing the GED®. The youth GED® earners and seekers we met often have told us that they did not have the information they needed to make an informed decision about pursuing a GED®. This guide will bring this information to your fingertips. One of our hopes is to try to interrupt the stigma of the GED®. Many people regard the pursuit of a GED® as a mistake, but it is clear that the GED® is a very good choice for some young people, especially when they are attending inadequate schools, or when they have already officially left school. Youth GED® earners told us that they were unaware of the wide variety of value that society places on the GED®.

Truly, our aim is not to either convince you to go for a GED® or to stay in school. Only you can decide that, in consultation with trusted elders, teachers, friends, and family members. But we want you to have an informed understanding of the GED® and a real sense of the truths about the GED®. We know that much of what you hear about the GED® is conflicting and contradictory advice. For example, the New York State Education Department issues a high school equivalency diploma to candidates who pass all five subsets of the GED® exam, but many employers, colleges, and others do not regard the GED® as truly equivalent to the high school diploma. The views that we provide here are not simple, and don’t always agree with one another—however, they always acknowledge that pursuing a GED® is an important and complex decision. We invite you to talk about what you read here with allies who have your back. We hope that this guide and the conversations it will inspire can help you to make wise educational decisions.

Who IS AN AllY?maria bacha

We recommend that you read this guide and talk about it with your friends and an ADULT ALLY. Who is an adult ally? Be on the look-out for these three qualities:

Someone who has my best interests, both now and in the 1)

future, at heartSomeone who listens to me and takes my experiences 2)

seriouslySomeone who will support me in speaking for myself3)

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CrEDD’S GATEWAYS AND GET-AWAYS ProjECTEve Tuck, Jovanne Allen, Maria Bacha, Alexis Morales, Sarah Quinter, Jamila Thompson and Melody Tuck [from (2008). PAR praxes for now and future change. In J. Cammarota and M. Fine (Eds.), Revolutionizing education: Youth participatory action research in motion (pp. 49-83). New York: Routledge.]

The Collective of Researchers on Educational Disappointment and Desire (CREDD) came together in early 2006 to be a space for youth participatory action research on education in New York City. We are united by our disappointment in the New York City Public school system, and our desire to affect political and educational change in school policies and practices. CREDD researchers are lower and working class, ethnically diverse, live all over the city, and represent a wide range of educational experiences, although many identify as being pushed-out from our former schools, and all of us have felt unwelcome at school. We have developed a critique of a school system that was never intended for us in the first place. Our group defines itself against racism, sexism, homophobia, ageism, the criminalization of poor people, and push out practices in New York City public high schools. We are in favor of schooling that is rigorous, accessible, and free.

CREDD’s approach to participatory action research (PAR) holds that those upon whose backs research has historically been carried on are instead researched alongside. In our work, PAR has been a way for young men and women who are

marginalized by race and ethnicity, class, gender, and sexuality to demand not only access to the conversations, policies, theories and spaces to which we/they have been systematically denied, but better yet, demand that our research inform and inspire these efforts. CREDD’s approach to PAR is concerned with what knowing is and where knowing comes from, believing that it is often those at the bottom of social hierarchies who know the most about social oppression, but also, the radical possibilities toward redressing domination.

Further, CREDD understands PAR as politic- an embedded and outloud critique of colonization, racism, misogyny, homophobia and heterosexism, classism, and xenophobia in our society, in our research sites, amongst our research collective, and within the larger and historical research community- rather than a fixed set of methods. At the same time, CREDD takes method seriously, crafting each instrument to be interactive and pedagogical, drawing from qualitative and quantitative traditions, and growing our own legacy of hybridized methods utilizing visual arts, theater, and schoolyard games. We believe that the increase in numbers of youth GED® earners in New York City, even in the face of a possibly diminished value of the GED®, can be linked to what it feels like to be in high school. To really understand this link, we needed to do participatory action research. Our collective, which includes youth GED® earners, designed the Gateways and Get-aways project to privilege the experiences of youth GED® earners and seekers in order to challenge mainstream

Many youth are misinformed about the GED® process.

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attitudes toward the GED® as being an empty credential, and to understand the lived rather than perceived value of the GED®. Seeking out the lived value helped us see how federal mandates (like Race to the Top and No Child Left Behind) and state mandates exit exams (like the New York Regents) put pressure on schools to push out students who won't do well on standardized tests. Youth of color and poor youth (many who don’t feel like school was made for them anyway) are explicitly and implicitly pushed out and pushed towards the GED®. Many youth are misinformed about the GED® process and mistakenly think that they will be swapping one set of tests for another without having to attend four years of high school. Our participatory action research on the GED® has taught us that the value of the GED® lies less in it being a gateway to higher education and employment and more in being a get away from inhospitable high schools.

The GED®

eve tuck

The GED® is offered throughout the United States and its territories, and Canada, and is sponsored by the GED® Testing Service of the higher education lobbyist group, the American Council on Education (ACE). Sometimes people are surprised to learn that the GED® is not offered by the government, but rather, like the SAT, is a privately run exam corroborated by private and public institutions. Institutions of higher education, employers, and the military are not compelled by anything beyond public perception to view the GED® as an equivalent or legitimate alternative to the high school diploma.

For us, PAr means that:There is transparency on all matters of the 1)

researchThe research questions are co-constructed2)

The project design and design of research 3)

methods are collaboratively negotiated and co-constructedAnalysis is co-constructed4)

The products of the research are dynamic, 5)

interactive, and are prepared and disseminated in collaboration.

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On March 15, 2011, the ACE issued a press release announcing that it will collaborate with Pearson, a producer of textbooks and other learning materials, to revise the GED® exams in order to align with the Common Core State Standards. The collaboration will take place under the umbrella of a new “public-private business,” that will operate under the old banner of the GED® Testing Service, and will feature a national test preparation program. This decision has many implications which will continue to shape the lives of youth and adults, including the reconfirmation of the GED® as the alternative to the high school diploma in the United States, and the expanding influence of Pearson in both credentializing and test preparation.

A series of five parts testing proficiency in mathematics, reading, science, social science, and writing, the GED® is administered by official GED® testing sites that are overseen by provincial, state, or territorial governments. Each year, the exam is administered by the ACE to a set of graduating high school seniors in order to establish the passing score. In order to pass the GED® exam, the GED® candidate must meet or achieve a higher score than the top 60% of high school diploma earners on each of the five parts. The first GED® exam was crafted in 1942 as a credential for veterans. The GED®, based on the Iowa Test of Educational Development, was crafted by the ACE for university use as a major tool for evaluating the 2.2 million veterans who entered higher education under the GI bill.

Over the years, the exam has seen many revisions, one of the most historic and impacting occurring in 2002. The ACE revised the exam to reflect contemporary

issues of citizenship and include a more extensive written essay component. The revision ignited concerns from educators about how an extensive written essay might exclude speakers of first languages other than English and international candidates from earning a GED®. The 2002 revision of the GED® can be read as an attempt to better align GED® earners to low-wage jobs rather than higher education.

The GED® will be revised in 2014 and will include even more impactful changes, including alignment with the Common Core Standards, increased costs, and computer delivery. Like in the years prior to the 2002 revision, it is expected that there will be a surge of GED® candidates taking the tests before the 2014 revision. Please read the important information about the GED® option in New York State by the Campaign for Tomorrow’s Workforce in the next section.

[For more information on the politics of the GED®, and for a critical analysis of the role of the GED® in the New York City public school system, see Tuck, E. (2012). Urban Youth and School Pushout: Gateways, Get-aways, and the GED®. New York: Routledge.]

The GED® will now be offered in collaboration with Pearson.

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GED® Changes andhigh School Equivalency: What’s happening in New York? campaign for tomorrow’s workforce

The test of General Educational Development (GED®) has been the primary pathway to a high school equivalency (hSE) for over 25,000 New Yorkers every year. The newly-privatized GED® Testing Service (GEDTS) is launching a new version of the GED® exam in 2014, which presents significant challenges for instruction, testing, and state-wide administration. In order to allow for a more gradual transition to higher standards and a computer-based testing system, the New York State Education Department (NYSED) has taken steps to pursue hSE assessments that could serve as an alternative to the new GED®. At this time, it is unknown what assessment(s) will be used in NY to award a high school equivalency diploma in 2014.

GED® Exam: Benefits and usage in New York Since 1942, the GED® has helped millions of adults secure a meaningful high school equivalency credential that opens doors to training, careers and higher education. While a stepping stone to further advancement, attaining a high school equivalency diploma has immediate and significant impact. According to new Census data, full-time workers in 2009 who had passed the GED® earned 26% more than those without a high school diploma or the equivalent.

In New York State, every year thousands of youth leave high school before

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graduation, joining the 2.8 million adults in the state who are out of school and lack a high school diploma. Of this population, nearly 45,000 New Yorkers take the GED® exam annually, with over 25,000 passing and earning a high school equivalency diploma issued by NYSED. The most significant factor in determining student success on the GED® test is preparation, which boosts the pass rate by 22 percentage points. Pearson and GED® Changes Until 2011, the non-profit American Council on

Education (ACE) owned and operated the GED® test, contracting with states to provide access to the exam. In 2011, ACE partnered with Pearson VUE, the world’s largest testing company, remaking the GED® Testing Service (GEDTS) as a for-profit venture. GEDTS is currently redesigning the GED® exam for 2014, which will change in significant ways:

More rigorous exam with two indicators: The 1)

new GED® will draw on Common Core Standards and measure high school 2)

equivalency (as it historically has), and will also evaluate “career and college readiness”; More expensive: GEDTS’ new pricing of $120/3)

exam is significantly higher than the $84/exam cost currently incurred by the New York State Education Department (NYSED)Computer-based: The GED® will move to a 4)

computer-based test (CBT), administered only at test centers certified by Pearson, eliminating the current paper-based test format.

Implications for New York State These major changes to the GED® exam present multiple challenges for New Yorkers and the State’s adult education system, likely decreasing accessibility at the same time as increasing demand.

Decreased AccessNew York State Education Law currently prohibits charging a fee for admission to the GED® exam. This law protects test-takers, often of limited financial means, from being denied access to a high school equivalency diploma. Without an increase in state resources for testing, any increase in exam cost will decrease the number of people who can access the exam each year. In addition, as test centers will be required to have computers to administer the new exam, would-be testers that reside in communities that lack appropriate testing facilities, or who are incarcerated, will see their access to the exam further diminished. For testers who are able to secure a test seat in a downsized system, those with limited computer literacy skills will be at a disadvantage.

The most significant factor in determining student success on the GED® test is preparation

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New York State Seeking Alternative high School Equivalency Exam In response to the GED ® changes, NYSED has pursued other assessments that could be used as alternatives to the GED® to award a high school equivalency diploma (HSE). In September 2012, the NYS Board of Regents approved NYSED’s plan to develop multiple pathways to an HSE and to identify a primary HSE test vendor through a competitive process. The plan consists of five main components:

Select one state-subsidized HSE exam through 1)

a competitive RFP, which will require a paper test option and alignment with Common Core Standards within 3 years; Identify additional non-subsidized HSE 2)

assessments for state recognition via an RFQ; Provide professional development on the 3)

Common Core for adult education instructors, Target outreach to test candidates that have 4)

passed some but not all parts of the GED ®; and Raise adult education standards over a multi-5)

year period and provide educators with requisite professional development.

NYSED proposes to engage in these activities between September 2012 and January 2017, with most key elements beginning prior to the expiration of the current GED® in December 2013. According to the proposed timeline, the RFP and RFQ will be released by December 2012, a test vendor selected in 2013, and professional development offered in 2013. NYSED also suggests repealing existing law to permit charging new fees to test takers.

Increased Demand forTesting and PreparationPrior to the last GED® redesign in 2002, New York experienced a large surge in candidates signing up for the exam, as those who were close to passing rushed to complete the battery of tests before the new version was phased in. New York can expect a similar spike in demand for both GED® preparation classes and test seats in 2013.

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Transitioning the System: Key recommendations by Campaign for Tomorrow’s WorkforceSince the GED® changes were initially announced, educators, providers and advocates have come together to examine implications for students and the testing system, and convey key issues to State and City policy makers. In order to ensure a strong high school equivalency testing system for New York, the Campaign for Tomorrow’s Workforce (CTW) recommends the following framework for action:

Maintain free access toa NYS high School Equivalency Diploma. The generally low-income individuals seeking access to further training, education, or employment should not be barred from doing so by new testing fees. The State should consider a range of alternatives to sustain the annual number of diplomas – such as increasing the testing budget, implementing reasonable readiness screening, and/or prioritizing test seats for individuals who have participated in preparation programs.

Expand preparation and testing capacity. To meet the surge in demand for GED ® testing prior to 2014, and to accommodate test candidates targeted for re-testing by NYSED, additional resources are needed to maximize the number of GED® passers before the 2014 transition.

Prepare system for 2014 hSE pathways. To facilitate the transition to a new system of HSE testing, eventually computer-based and aligned to the Common Core, it is necessary to provide adequate professional development and computer resources to educators and students. The State should accelerate its timeline to ensure 2014 readiness and continuity of HSE testing.

raise public awareness. Given the brand-name recognition of the GED®, the State must take action to inform colleges, employers, and the general public, of newly established pathways to a high school equivalency. This step is critical to prevent confusion and ensure recognition so that new HSE recipients are not at a disadvantage.

Campaign for Tomorrow’s Workforce is coordinated by the Community Services Society (CSS), Neighborhood Family Services Coalition (NFSC), and United Neighborhood Houses (UNH). For more information, contact Lazar Treschan: 212-614-5396, [email protected]; Sierra Stoneman-Bell: 212-619-1666, [email protected]; or Kevin Douglas: 212-967-0322 x345, [email protected]

www.campaignfortomorrowsworkforce.org

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Testimonio: My GED® Experiencetravion k. joseph

When I was in high school, my guidance counselor told me to just leave school and get a GED®, and that was it. As a young man not knowing anything about the world, I thought, he’s the guidance counselor, and he’s probably right, so just do it. It is important that students know their rights.

I really began considering the GED® through conversations with a friend. We were in the same predicament, which was not having enough credits to graduate. I needed 25 credits to be a junior and I had 25 credits, but I needed 44 credits to graduate and I was a year behind in English. English credits were going to be the only thing I would need. I only went to English class when there were interesting readings, but for the most part school was boring. I needed my classes to be more interactive. I didn’t think about the long run, I just thought in the now.

I could have stayed an extra year for the four English classes, one class per cycle. However at about the same time, I heard about a program where you can get a GED®. At that time, I was under the impression that the GED® was like a high school diploma.

I didn’t even think that deeply about the decision to leave high school. It just seemed like they didn’t want me there. If a classmate or I did something wrong, they didn’t try to fix it. They would just say “Ok, go back to class” with no consequences for my actions, so I kept doing the same thing until it was too late. Cutting class is an example. If they found me cutting class, they would just take me to my class instead of finding out why I cut class. They never tried to get to the root of the problem because it was an inconvenience for them.

When I spoke to my mother about my plans to leave school, she told me that it was my life and that if I wanted to mess it up, I had the liberty to do so. It hit home for me when I began to think about what I was going to do with my life without school.

I had to wait a year before taking the GED® test because my class needed to graduate in order for me to take the test. I was ready to take the GED® test when I left high school, but was afraid to take it right away because I heard of many people failing it. I could have done one month of the GED® program and be done, but I stayed for three months because I liked the classes.

The GED® program was better designed for me as a learner than my high school. The GED® classes were better for students like me because they began with what we already knew and went to what we didn’t know; not like high school where they always started with the assumption that students don’t know anything. For example, in English everyone had to read for a ½ hour every day, whatever we

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wanted to read. We had options. In high school there are no options, they are stricter. In high school it was more like “read these pages today and these next pages tomorrow and then in class we will talk about what you don’t know.”

I wasn’t exactly thinking that I would end up going to college when I decided to pursue the GED®. I just thought the GED® was the next step; I got it for the same reasons I would otherwise be getting a high school diploma, because I was told that I needed it. But from the beginning, the GED® teachers at my program helped me to see why I needed a GED®, and what I would be able to do afterwards. They talked about college. I hadn’t considered college before, even though my high school teachers mentioned college and the SAT exam. But in

my GED® program, I learned about why a college education would be an important thing for me to pursue. I didn’t start thinking about college until I participated in the GED® program, where my tutors spoke about these opportunities.

One of the things that frustrated me about my high school was that I knew that it was underprivileged and under-resourced, while other public schools in the city had more resources, such as high tech labs. The free GED® program I attended also did not have high tech facilities, but the whole setting, including caring teachers, compensated for what materials the GED® program didn’t have. I feel lucky to have attended this non-profit program because I wasn’t rushed to take the test. I know that some GED® programs will try to squeeze everything into a smaller time period because they would make more money that way.

Looking back, I don’t have any regrets. I sometimes think about what might have been different in my life if I had earned a high school diploma instead of a GED®, but that path is what made me who I am now.

I had to wait a year before taking the GED® test.

What can’t you do?!

Tutor/teach others to get

a GED®

Inspire people

Start your own GED® program

Go to college

Write music

Challenge ideas

Make additional income

Advocate for educational

reform

Graffiti WallWhat can you do

with a GED ?®

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The GED®Gives you a credential that may help in getting into college or >getting a jobHelps give you a sense of accomplishment and completion >Helps you feel like you have moved on in your life >May help you establish significant relationships >Is an alternative to a high school experience that is eating you alive. >But, it may not be an equal alternative.

Expectations of the GED®Quotes from CREDD's focus groups and interviews with youth GED® earners and seekers

The GED® is more difficult than I had expected it to be. >I didn’t have all of the information about the GED® process that I >needed before I made my decision.Even though it has been hard, it was the right decision for me. >However, it may not be the right decision for everyone.

re-Valuing/ re-Thinking the GED®

credd

Employer and College responses: Summary of Cold Callsfindings from credd's unannounced phone survey, or "cold calls" of employers and college admissions counselors

When we asked if employers prefer for successful applicants to have a high school diploma or GED®, 42% declined to answer, 33% indicated that they do not differentiate, and 25% indicated that they prefer a high school diploma. No one answered that they prefer a GED®.

When we asked college admissions counselors about the most important factor in a prospective student’s application, 38% answered the applicant’s transcript, 27% answered the applicant’s “whole file” and 15% answered the applicant’s high school GPA (totaling 80%). An applicant’s “whole file” includes her transcripts and GPA, SAT or ACT scores, essays and/or interviews, and extracurricular activities. These answers in singular made up the remaining 20%. Admissions offices’ reliance on these factors put GED® earners at a disadvantage: a GED® earner can be admitted on paper, but our findings reveal that it is rare for a GED® earner to be admitted to these desired schools in practice. Ninety percent of those who participated in our cold calls indicated that one per cent or less of their incoming students were GED® earners.

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WhEN DID You fIrST lEArN ABouT ThE GED®? WhAT WAS IT ThAT You lEArNED?interview responses, new york city youth

I heard about the GED® probably when I was in 11th grade and I was doing poorly in school.

They said it as equivalency to high school… But it is not true. In some cases, it’s true. But not in all cases.

That basically that if I didn’t want to finish high school or didn’t think I was going to be able to finish

high school that I could take the GED®.

A quicker way to get out of high school if you are too old or behind in school.

I was in 11th Grade and I was still in high school and no way making it up until I was like 20.

That if you were a high school dropout and you couldn’t get your high school

diploma your GED® was your next best bet.

I had a couple of family and friends take it. Some said they didn’t like it. Some did. It was a personal experience. I wanted to take it for myself.

I heard about it growing up. People said get your high school diploma, people said don’t get your, what do they call it? “The Good Enough Diploma?”

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WhAT Do YouTh KNoW ABouT ThE GED® BEforE ThEY joIN A GED® ProGrAM?joni schwartz and john powell

As GED® educators, we know that young people don’t always have accurate or complete information about the GED®, or the process of getting a GED® when they come to a program. A young person can feel as though he has no choices, and as though he does not have enough information to make the best choices for himself.

Many youth find out about the GED® or a GED® program through word-of-mouth. Most think that the GED® will be easy to pass, or that it is an easy way out of completing high school. For a few people, it isn’t too hard; they are ready to take the test and pass it. Others take the test for the first time, and don’t pass but learn through the experience of taking it, and can pass it the second time.

She told me this is another alternative since I wasn’t doing well in high school. If I wanted to get something I was going to need either to have a high school diploma or a GED®. So, I choose the GED®.

I heard a lot of other kids talking about it when I was younger. They were not happy with school. Junior high school, the teachers, not only the teachers, the gangs and stuff…

When I was younger and my brothers got the GED® because they didn’t finish high school. It’s like a diploma. They figured since they couldn’t finish they’d finish somehow.

When I was about 17. Someone said you just take that and then you don’t have to worry about anything else. And I said all right.

It is very important that you trust yourself as a learner.

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Most youth won’t pass the test on their own because they know very little about the GED® process and what it will take to be successful. This is especially true for youth who have been pushed out of their high schools. They often have unrealistic expectations for themselves, and for the new program. They may have hated their high schools, but when a GED® program doesn’t feel enough like school, they question whether the program is really preparing them for the test. They question why the GED® program doesn’t look like traditional school, even though traditional school didn’t work for them!

If you are considering a GED®, it is important that you have a good understanding of what your schooling experience was like, and how you feel about seeking a GED®. Even if you had all of the information that you needed, if you feel like you are pursuing a GED® because you could not cut it in high school, that self-perception is going to get in the way of your success with the GED®. You need to have confidence in yourself, not just information.

For this reason, it is very important that you trust yourself as a learner. Sometimes young people go away from their experiences in schools feeling like an academic failure, and start the path to a GED® with questions of whether they can really do it. Those who succeed in getting a GED® are those who feel that their life goals are still possible. You have to have a vision for yourself in which you feel that you can still achieve your goals. When you feel like your goals are possible, you are going to do the research and the work that it takes to succeed in the GED® process.

One of the most important things you can do is to be clear with yourself about why you are pursuing a GED®, and the value it will have

in your life, once you have earned it. For many people, the value of the GED® in their life, and the experience they have in pursuing it, is only as good as the program or support system they have. For most young people, the freestanding GED®, or doing it alone without a support system is a myth. Your support system doesn’t have to be a GED® program, but you will need someone in your corner to help you prepare, to encourage you, to keep you accountable and honest, and to celebrate with you when you reach your milestones and goals.

Some of the things you will want to consider in selecting a program or designing your support system is the size or number of people involved, the bridges or opportunities for next steps, the role and opportunity to do life work, or get to know yourself better in the process, the opportunities to write and think, and whether the program offers a graduation. All of these elements can make the experience of pursuing a GED® less isolating and more meaningful.

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A lot of people I know are feeling like they can’t pass the Regents so they think they can go and lickety-split get the GED®. They are sorely disappointed that they cannot pass the GED® as easily as they thought they were going to pass it.

In school, you feel like you are being pressured, you are being forced to learn. Learn this or you are not going to pass your Regents.

Think of all the times that you crammed for the test and how much of that you’ve retained. Think of test that you crammed for 3 years ago, how much of the stuff you crammed that night do you remember? You didn’t retain any of that. But it’s all about tests. … It’s nothing to cram, especially if you have the resources. You can hire a tutor, to pass the test. You can get your grades up there. But you’re not retaining anything. And what are you left with?

Now the Regents track is mandatory. That [decision] made no sense to me. They said, “You got a problem already.” And you don’t solve it… you widen the gap. And it’s really not worth it. That’s one of the things, it’s really not worth it.

Swapping the New York regents for the GED®

credd

A change in New York State law has made passing New York State Regents Exams mandatory for graduation with a high school diploma. Several participants in our interviews wondered about the impact of exit exams on high school completion, and on the appeal of pursuing a GED®. Here’s what some of the people we interviewed said:

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Note fromthe Youth to YouthGuide to the GED®: The following information applies only to residents of New York State. If you reside in another state, please go to that state's education department website for the most accurate information for you.

What are the GED® Tests?(before privatization in 2014)(From the New York State Education Department Website, Retrieved March 22, 2013. http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/about_us.html)

GED® stands for the Tests of General Educational Development. The GED® Test Battery is a national examination developed by the GED® Testing Service of the American Council on Education. ACE makes them available to adults who did not graduate from high school or whose diplomas may not be recognized by New York State. In New York State, the GED® Tests are offered in English, French and Spanish.

There are five tests in the GED® Test Battery: Language Arts – Writing >

Social Studies >

Science >

Language Arts – Reading >

and Mathematics. >

The tests take more than seven hours to complete and include a direct writing assessment. To ensure that the content and skills measured by the tests remain closely matched to contemporary high school curriculum, the tests undergo regular review.

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Test results are expressed as standard scores ranging from 200 to 800. States and jurisdictions award a high school credential to individuals who earn at least 410 on each subtest and an average standard score 450 or better across all five subtests. In addition to the five subtests mentioned above, there is a test of English proficiency (ESL Test) which is given to candidates who take the GED® Tests in Spanish or French. When candidates pass the GED® Tests in English in New York State, they receive a certificate or diploma that is regarded as equivalent to a high school diploma. Employers in private industry and government, as well as admissions offices in colleges and universities accept the GED® certificate or diploma as they would a high school diploma.

When candidates pass the GED® Tests in Spanish or French in New York State, they receive a high school equivalency diploma with a designation of Spanish or French. If they pass the ESL Test, they receive a high school equivalency diploma which is identical to those earned by candidates who pass all five subtests of the English GED®.

The GED® Tests cover the same subjects that people study in high school. The five subjects include: Language Arts Writing and Language Arts Reading (which together are equivalent to high school English), Social Studies, Science and Mathematics. Candidates are not required to know all of the information that is usually taught in high school, however, across the five tests, candidates are tested on their ability to read and process information, solve problems, and communicate effectively. Please note: For now, the GED® Testing Office in Albany is the only entity approved to issue high school equivalency diplomas in New York State. If diplomas and/or transcripts are obtained from a source other than the GED® Testing Office, they are not legitimate documents. Candidates who possess them cannot use them for any academic or vocational purposes whatsoever. (e.g. to obtain or upgrade a job, to enter a training program, to enlist in the United States Armed Forces, to enter into a post-secondary institution, college, or university, etc…).

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GED® Application Process and Eligibility requirements(From the New York State Education Department Website, Retrieved March 22, 2013.http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/app_process.html.)

The New York State Education Department requires all candidates to meet eligibility for GED® Testing in the following areas:

Age Eligibility Requirements [See also Eligibility for persons under the age of 19 only]

If you are 16 years of age on day of testing: http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/16.html

Complete Attachment A (Application for GED® Testing) 1) Provide verification of identity, residence, and age 2) Driver’s license, passport, military, or other forms of government (national or foreign) identification which show name, address, date of birth, signature and photograph are all acceptable.And you have reached maximum compulsory school attendance age. 3) A student reaches maximum compulsory school attendance age when the school year in which he or she turned 16 (or such older maximum age as the board of education of the school district may designate for required school attendance pursuant to section 3205(3) of the Education Law) has ended (June 30).

ANDBe enrolled in an Alternative High School Equivalency Preparation 4) (AHSEP) program on day of testing. Verification Form Attachment C must be completed by an official from an approved AHSEP program.

ORDemonstrate/document eligibility to take the GED® Tests by providing 5) the appropriate documentation to meet one (1) of the following criteria:

You have applied to the U.S. Armed Forces, a college, a) university or an accredited post-secondary institution.Verification Form Attachment D must be completed by b) a recruiting officer or college/university/post secondary institution admissions official.


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If you are 17 or 18 years of age on day of testing: http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/17or18.html

Complete Attachment A ( Application for GED® Testing) 1) Provide verification of identity, residence, and age 2) Driver’s license, passport, military, or other forms of government (national or foreign) identification which show name, address, date of birth, signature and photograph are all acceptable, andHave reached maximum compulsory school attendance age. A student has 3) reached maximum compulsory school attendance age when the school year in which he or she turned 16 (or such old district may designate for required school attendance pursuant to section 3205(3) of the Education Law) has ended (June 30). Demonstrate/document eligibility to take the GED® tests of the following 4) criteria:

One year has passed since you were legally able to leave school and >last enrolled in a regular full time high school program on instruction leading to a high school diploma. Verification Form Attachment B must be completed by an official of the school district you last attended. ORYou were a member of a high school class that has already >graduated. Verification Form Attachment B must be completed by an official of the school district you last attended. ORYou are enrolled in an approved Alternative High School Equivalency >Preparation (AHSEP) Program. Verification Form Attachment C must be completed by an official from an approved AHSEP program. ORYou have applied to the U.S. Armed Forces, college, university or an >accredited postsecondary institution. Verification Form Attachment D must be completed by a recruiting officer or college/university admissions official. ORYou have been a participant in a Job Corps program for at least six >(6) months. Verification Form Attachment D must be completed by a Job Corps official. ORYou are a resident confined to a narcotics addiction control >center, Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) facility, jail or Department of Correctional Services (DOCS) facility, or is a patient in a hospital in the State or county of New York. Verification Form Attachment E must be completed by an official of the facility/

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institution certifying that the applicant is confined to the facility or institution and the HSE diploma is an essential part of the rehabilitation process. ORYou are an adjudicated youth under the direction of a prison, jail, >detention center, parole or probation officer. Verification Form Attachment E must be completed by an official from the institution or facility certifying that the applicant is under the direction of the facility or institution and the HSE diploma is an essential part of the rehabilitation process. ORYou have been home schooled. >Verification Form Attachment B must be completed by an official of the school district in which the applicant resides.

If you are 17 or 18 years old, are foreign born and do not meet any of the 5) aforementioned criteria, then you must:

Complete Attachment A ( Application for GED® Testing) >ANDSubmit a notarized letter signed by a parent, guardian, sponsor or >spouse certifying that you have never attended a K-12 schools in the United States. ANDSubmit a copy of a passport or visa documenting your initial arrival >date in the United States

If you are 19 years or older on day of testing: http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/19over.html

Complete Attachment A ( Application for GED® Testing) 1) Provide verification of identity, residence, and age 2) Driver’s license, passport, military, or other forms of government (national or foreign) identification which show name, address, date of birth, signature and photograph are all acceptable.

All 16, 17 or 18 year olds must establish age eligibility each time they wish to test

NYS residency requirements The GED® Tests can be administered to any person who has lived in New York State for at least thirty (30) days prior to the test date AND

Has not graduated from an accredited high school in the United >States or its territories; ANDHas not received a high school equivalency certificate or diploma in >the United States or its territories; ANDIs not currently enrolled in a regular high school program of >instruction leading to a high school diploma; ANDHas not previously earned scores on the GED® Tests sufficient to >qualify for a high school equivalency diploma/certificate.

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Test form Eligibility requirements Each year, the GED® Testing Service offers the English GED® Tests in three (3) test forms. French and Spanish GED® Tests are offered in two (2) test forms. Candidates cannot retest on English test forms which they have taken in the previous twelve (12) months. Candidates who are testing on French or Spanish forms must alternate their two (2) test forms in the twelve (12) month period when retesting. All candidates who do not meet the requirements for the high school equivalency diploma must include a copy of their failure notice when applying to retest. Please note that GED® test candidates cannot combine English, French and Spanish test scores.

Test Date Eligibility requirements GED® candidates must wait a minimum of sixty (60) days between test sessions when retesting, and candidates may not test more than three (3)times in a twelve (12) month period after their initial test date.

Eligibility for Personsunder the Age of 19 onlyFrom Attachment A, New York State Education Department Website, Retrieved March 22, 2013. http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/documents/attch-a.pdf

You must be discharged from high school. You must also have reached “maximum compulsory school attendance age,” meaning the school year (July 1-June 30) in which you turned 16 has ended.

The eligibility form will ask that you provide documentation that you meet at least one of the following categories:

One year has passed since you were last legally able to leave high school and Fwere enrolled in a full-time high school program of instruction; ORYou were a member of a high school class that has already graduated; F ORYou are enrolled in an Approved Alternative High School Equivalency FPreparation Program; ORYou have been accepted into the U.S. Armed Forces, or you have been Faccepted into a college, university, or accredited post secondary institution; ORYou have been a member of the Job Corps for a period of at least six months; FORYour are incarcerated/institutionalized; F ORYou are an adjudicated youth under the direction of a prison, jail, detention Fcenter, parole, or probation officer; ORYou are at least 17 and have been home schooled. F

Note from the Youth to Youth Guide to the GED®: The following information applies only to residents of New York State. If you reside in another state, please go to that state’s education department website for the most accurate information for you.

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other important New York State Education Department Websites on the GED®

(As of March 22, 2013)

GED® Testing Centers and GED® Test Schedules http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/nys_map/counties.html

GED® Testing with Accommodationshttp://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/accomodations.html

Taking the GED® Tests in Spanish and Frenchhttp://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/languages.html

Information on GED® Preparation ProgramsIn New York City, your main choices are between Department of Education, Public Library, Community College, Community Based Organization or Faith-Based Organization GED® programs.

Be careful of for profit programs on-line that offer diplomas for a fee. You may think you are getting a GED®, but often you are not. Do your research before signing up for any program particularly if there is a fee. Also be wary of programs that ask you to sign for a loan for tuition promising you a GED® certificate at the end of your training. These loans can put you in debt for a long time and you may or may not get your GED®.

These websites may help you to find a program that will work for you:http://www.acces.nysed.gov/ged/nys_map/countiesprep.htmlhttp://www.gedcompass.org/

Contributing author Joni Schwartz is affiliated with this program:GED® Program at Bethlehem Assembly ChurchValley Stream, New York, 11580 (516)-561-6150.


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Testimonio: leaving School for a GED®

tasos neofotistos

When I was in high school, the GED® was a part of the common culture; it was a known thing that if you wanted to, you could get your GED®. I could see that the GED® was really marketed to people in the city.

I started to think about it as an option for me when my principal recommended I should leave school to get a GED®. I saw my principal as an adult, telling me that this would be my best option. I was in advanced placement and honors classes. I wasn’t missing school. I never missed a day except for expulsions and suspensions. I was getting in a lot of fights, and a way to avoid those circumstances was to listen to her. She was tired of seeing me in there, in her office, and tired of seeing kids get hurt. She was saying, “you’ve gotta get out of here.” The school wanted the incidences of violence out of the papers, so they stressed “zero tolerance.” I felt that they saw me as a magnet for violence; that it was easier to get rid of me than to deal with it. Because, I kept coming back. At the end, it was just not a good fit. My principal was telling me, “if you do want to go to college—community college—why wait two more years and possibly get hurt? Why not go now?”

The attraction was that getting my GED® would be a fresh start. My high school transcript wouldn’t count. Before recommending the GED®, they recommended alternative school, like BOCES, or private school—but from the perspective of the other kids at my school, I felt that would have been seen as a cop-out. I believed people might think I was afraid to go to school. The GED® was appealing because I could leave the whole high school thing behind. A fresh start.

As far as the people around me, I knew a lot of dropouts, about half of my friends. From a class of 560 students who started, maybe 380 students ended up graduating. When many of my friends dropped out at the same time, it became a physical safety issue for me to be in school. We walked the hallways together, so if no one’s got your back—it didn’t seem reasonable to stay. I was never involved in after-school sports or activities. My parents didn’t really know about all that. So by 4th grade, even for a kid who looked like he should be doing football or baseball—I was just hanging out every day with the neighborhood kids, mostly older kids who were my older brother’s friends. So, if that’s your only extracurricular activity—then, what? Kids might seem normal, but if their identity is so thin, that if you just scratch it, it cracks—then, what? I could do school, but dropping out was just as viable an option. The GED® seemed like the best of both worlds: you could drop out, hang with friends, and with the GED® still have a path in life.

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Schools are Not Equally fundedcredd

As you reflect on your school experiences, and consider pursuing a GED®, it is important to remember that there is a big difference in the experience of attending a school that has enough money to meet student needs, and attending a school that doesn’t have the money to meet student needs. There is a great deal of inequity in school resources, and attending an under-resourced school can be a factor in your decision to stay or go, especially because families and youth who don’t have a lot of money usually go to schools that also don’t have a lot of money. Schools that don’t have a lot of money are more likely to have classes and teachers that focus mostly on passing standardized tests. Even though this reality may shape your experiences in schooling, and inform your decision to complete high school or not, staying or leaving will not help to change this injustice. Demanding fair school funding and engaging in political action for satisfactory school resources will make the difference for students now, and in the future.

For me, high school was just dangerous. I was scared of getting cut or of getting jumped, to say the least. It was never a safe and supporting environment for me to learn in. Just showing up was a major, major risk. Just people knowing I was in the building. The GED® was a way out of that for me at age 16.

All along, the possibility of eventually going to college was the major appeal, because I did have good grades. I liked the thought of being somewhere where students want to be.

When I decided to leave school, I got a lot of phone calls from teachers and students saying, don’t flush your life down the toilet. They didn’t see it how I saw it—they saw it as a total mistake. But two years later, when I was 18, I was a junior in college, as opposed to in a hospital with stitches.

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Circumstances of leaving Schoolinterview responses, new york city youth

In CREDD’s interviews with New York City youth who had earned or were seeking a GED®, we asked them to tell us about the circumstances surrounding their not completing school. They had a lot to say:

There were sometimes I felt like people at my school didn’t care about me. So I would think to myself, why should I care? They’re not out to help me. So why should I even be here? It made me feel like I didn’t want to be around this. There’s no point in being around this.

Half of the time I never did homework. Never turned in school projects. I always felt like my first learning came from the streets.

What the GED®

Provided Meinterview participant

The GED® was the first thing I ever finished from start to finish. The only thing I ever finished. Especially, having to do with school. It was the catalyst, if you will, to my academic success. That’s the one that wet my whistle, so to speak. I really believed that I had a chance to make it. And I did. I really did. From finishing my GED® I went to starting and thriving in my academic career.

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In a sense I did feel pushed out, because when I was behind in my credits and I was looking for ways to acquire some credits in a timely manner that I wouldn’t have to do a lot of overtime there weren’t a lot of opportunities. I think nowadays they create less and less opportunities. By not having opportunities like night school, that’s actually pushing a student out.

I felt pushed out when they told me, “You’re nothing, you’re stupid. You shouldn’t be here. You’re just wasting your time.” That just makes me feel like I’m being pushed out. In the back of your mind you just think that the people you come to for support are basically pushing you out.

I was too old to be in my grade and that’s why I decided to take the GED®.

I was 18 and in 10th grade. It wasn’t realistic for me to think that I would graduate when I’m 22.

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Taking the MoreNarrow roadjohn powell

You’re traveling along the path of life with many of your friends and peers. You reach a fork in the road and see two paths, one wide and one narrow. You watch as most of the people, without even thinking, take the wide road. The narrow road, however, is less traveled and the few taking it seem slightly embarrassed. You know, almost instinctively that taking the wide road will not get you to where you want to go, and though the narrow road seems less desirable, you know that this road, for you, will lead to success.

Should you not take the narrow road? Your educational road will also have forks in it. At times, you may be made to believe that the common path is the correct path. I believe that the correct path is the path that leads you to success. If for you, the GED® is that path, then taking it doesn’t only affect you. When you reach your goal, you can go back to that fork and put a sign there saying “Common isn’t Always Correct.”

On your travels you will have successes and failures. You don’t always have the opportunity to influence these successes or failures so when you do, you should take full advantage. As a GED® educator, I have had the opportunity to meet many successful people who have left their footprints on the narrow road. I hope to see yours there, too.

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The GED® as a Key to unlock Doors and Windowsinterview responses, new york city youth

In CREDD’s interviews with New York City youth who had earned or were seeking a GED®, we asked about the windows or doors that were opened and closed in life, by pursuing the GED® credential instead of a high school diploma, and instead of no credential. We learned that windows and doors are a useful way to think about the lived value of the GED® credential.

With the GED®, there are good outcomes and there are bad ones, but I think the good outweigh the bad. People see me and I’m pretty smart. I got the GED® so they will think that the GED® must not be that bad. That’s a good opportunity. I want to do films. That’s why I want to go to Brooklyn College. With a GED® I couldn’t start my first semester at a four-year college, so I’ll wait a year and attend a two-year community college, and transfer. Going to Brooklyn College is easy to do once you are already in the CUNY system. So it doesn’t’ matter. It could happen that you want a job and the job doesn’t accept the GED®. You’re going to be kind of upset. Even though you got a great score on the GED®, you are going to have to work extra hard to prove yourself because it’s not a high school diploma.

As a GED® holder, the windows that are open are that I can continue my education, go to college, move forward, get better paying jobs, you know. The GED® is like a minimum requirement in most places. I think what holds some people back is that you’re not eligible for some scholarships that you would be eligible for as a high school student, because you have a GED®. To get into colleges when you come in with a GED® they look at a GED® score, if you have below certain score, some of the senior colleges won’t accept you so you have to go to community college and make the transition later.

Now that I am in college, people don’t look back on my GED®. They look at my college credit.

Here is what our interview participants told us:

I have a lot of doors opened. They’re really not closed. It’s just opened me to more things, more adventures in life.

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If you are going to go the college route, the GED can be indispensible. I think it opens certain doors. It’s like if I give you a key ring full of keys and just give it to you and you don’t know that one of the keys on the ring opens the door to the bank around the block, it does you no good. You would still just be sitting there with some keys. But if you know it, and you get that key ring, you’ll try every door, and you’re going to find some good things. So the GED can definitely be a good thing.

Definitely ask me what impact earning a GED® has had on my life. It has been so much better for me to be able to go to school at night and get my GED®. I couldn’t get my high school diploma. I figured my GED® would be better. I am a mother of two beautiful children. My son is 6 months and my daughter is 2.

The GED® opens doors for people. They have a good backbone in life. They can get a good job. But they might still feel like they want their high school diploma.

Earning a GED® was much better for me than being in high school. It enabled me to get out into the workforce a little faster since I was able to get some type of accreditation. With my two kids, I needed to get a job.

I come from a poor family. I had to go straight to work. My GED® was one thing I knew I had to get before I can get a job or anything like that and at least have potential employers give me the benefit of the doubt.

With a GED®, I can’t go straight to a four-year university. But I never wanted to knock on that door anyway. I wanted to go to CUNY and I don’t want to bury myself in student loan debts and things like that.

Being a GED® holder there are a lot of doors open for me right now. If I had the time to do it, there are a lot of programs I could go to, two-year colleges, stuff like that which I couldn’t go to without a GED®. Now I can go to college if I wanted to. There are a lot of opportunities there for me because I have that GED®,which I’m not taking advantage of and I should be taking advantage of.

It’s all based upon where you look. Whatever door you look at could be closed or open depending on what kind of attitude you take to it.

The GED® has given me a second chance.

After earning my GED®, I’m on my way to get my bachelor’s degree and then I want to get my master’s degree. I’m working full time at this little firm. I make sure my kids eat, sleep, and get some clothes.

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I felt the sincerity of the tutors and the staff at the GED® program

Testimonio: Earning a GED® and becoming a GED® Tutorjovon smith

I was in 11th grade when I dropped out. High school was alright. For several personal reasons, I felt like I needed to get a job. I left school and started working with my uncle in a real estate office answering phones and cleaning up. I liked the work and the real estate business but never considered going into that business before. Then my grandma asked me to get my GED®, for her.

My friend introduced me to the Learning Center, a GED® program. The thing that really made me appreciate this particular program was the timing 9 am to noon, 3 days a week. That really appealed to me. Plus, most of the learning took place in small groups.

John Powell (also a contributing author to this guide) was my tutor. We built a good relationship, and it didn’t matter that John didn’t get a GED®. He was a friend, a homeboy, not just a tutor -- somebody I could talk to. That’s what made me feel comfortable around him. I felt the sincerity of the tutors and the staff at the GED® program. At school, I never felt that they cared if I was there.

After I got my GED®, I went for my degree in business management at BMCC. At BMCC, I was able to get the same attention I got at the Learning Center I went back to the Learning Center to tutor after I got my GED®. Tutoring made me feel good. It gave me opportunity to come back and say thank you to them for that experience. I loved tutoring. I taught GED® Advanced, so the best part of it was seeing students get their GED® and having them come back and say, “Jovan, you helped me get that.”

I had twelve to fourteen students and really connect with them. They saw me and thought, “You’re young and you did this, so I can do it.” They could identify with me. Seventy-Five percent passed. In the tutoring sessions, I led the work. The students responded to that, and I didn’t just hand them work and have them take it home. We did the work together. There were more girls than boys, and many of them left school because they were pregnant and couldn’t deal with high school.

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Beware of Being Pushed-outof Your high Schoolinterview responses, new york city youth

I’ve heard stories of guidance counselors saying to students, “Oh, you should just go ahead and get your GED®. You shouldn’t waste your time in the class anymore.” There are definitely people who are being pushed, encouraged, to get their GED®.

I was told, “You’re nothing, you’re stupid.You shouldn’t be here. You’re just wasting your time.” That

just makes me feel like I’m being pushed out. In the back of your

mind, you just think that the people you come to for support

are basically pushing you out.

Some people get shoved out. People leave when they want to leave, when they’re willing; schools say you should leave and they say don’t come back.

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Advocates for Childrenof New YorkFor 40 years, Advocates for Children of New York has promoted access to the best education New York can provide for the 1.1 million students in New York City’s public schools. We work to advance systemic reform, empower families and communities, and advocate for the educational rights of individual students. Need help? Contact AFC’s Jill Chaifetz Education Helpline 1(866) 427-6033 Mondays through Thursdays, 10am to 4pm.

You hAVE ThE rIGhTTo STAY IN SChooladvocates for children

STUDENTS, KNOW YOUR RIGHTS!You have the right to attend school until the age of 21. If you turn 1) 21 during the school year, you can go to school until the end of June in that year.

If you leave school, you have the right to go back at any time until 2) you earn a diploma or turn 21.

You cannot be made to leave school because you are too old, don’t 3) have enough credits, or have poor grades.

You cannot be suspended, kicked out, or excluded from school 4) without written notice and a chance to tell your side of the story. Suspensions for more than 5 days require a full hearing. Whenever you are suspended, you have the right to get your class work and take your tests, including your Regents or RCTs. If you receive special education services, you are entitled to a suspension plan, which will include many of the services in your IEP.

You cannot be transferred to another school or GED® program 5) without you or your parent or guardian’s permission.

You cannot be kicked out, expelled, suspended or excluded from 6) school due to poor behavior or cutting class without a full hearing and chance to get instruction, school work and tests during the period of suspension.

You have the right to extra help if you need it.7)

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YouTh rIGhTS ToCoMPlEx PErSoNhooDcredd

All people have the right to be complicated1)

All people have the right to have lives and dreams that are 2) sometimes contradictory

People have the right to be the solutions to their own 3) problems and demand justice for injustices

People have the right to work and learn and exist in ways 4) that are proactive, not only reactive

People have the right to work and learn and exist in 5) wholeness

People have the right to resist or reject messages that try 6) to convince them that they are backward, ignorant, weak, and insignificant

WhAT To Do If You fEEl lIKE You ArE BEING PuShED-ouT of Your PuBlIC hIGh SChooladvocates for children

If you are being pushed out of school or already left school and want to go back, don’t wait to ask for help! Go to the Referral Center for your borough or call the Advocates for Children Jill Chaifetz Education Helpline. The helpline is open Monday-Thursday from 10:00am to 4:00pm. Call the Advocates for Children’s Education Helpline at 1-866-427-6033.

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frEquENTlY ASKED quESTIoNSoN SChool PuShouT (NEW YorK CITY SPECIfIC)advocates for children

My school told me I had been taken off the register because I was absent too much. Is this legal?

Schools can only ask students to leave (“discharge” a student) for a limited number of reasons, including a transfer to another school, full-time employment if you are over 16, or moving out of the city. A student who is over 17 can be discharged if he or she is absent for at least 20 days in a row. Cutting class does not count as an absence if you attend school for part of the day. The school must notify you and your parent in writing about your absences, the possibility of being asked to leave, and holding a planning interview with you before you can be discharged from the school.

What is a planning interview and when does one happen?

A planning interview must be scheduled before the school can discharge you. The purpose of the interview is to discuss your future, including what interventions you may need to help you succeed in school. You may also discuss other educational options, such as attending a transfer school or a GED® program. The school must inform you and your parent of your right to stay in school until you are 21 and the right to return to school if you decide to leave. The school must ask for consent from you and your parent in order to discharge you after the interview. If you want to remain in your school, don’t sign the consent, and your school must allow you to stay.

Note fromthe Youth to YouthGuide to the GED®: The following information applies only to residents of New York City.

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Can my school make me transfer because I’m pregnant?

Students who become pregnant have the right to stay in their school during their pregnancy and after giving birth. You cannot be kept out of school or school activities just because you’re pregnant. You also have the right to medical accommodations if you need them, as long as you have paperwork from your doctor. The Department of Education offers free daycare for parenting students at LYFE centers, located in some schools. You do not need to attend these schools in order to use the LYFE center.

how can I get help if I am struggling with my school work?

If you are struggling with your class work, attendance, or >controlling your behavior, you have the right to academic interventions, counseling, or attendance improvement services. In some cases, you may need to be evaluated for a disability. Speak to your guidance counselor for more information.If you have special education needs, you have the right to >services and accommodations to help you in school. This includes accommodations on tests, like your Regents exams, SATs or ACTs. You also have the right to receive all of the services on your Individualized Education Program (IEP). If those services aren’t working, or if you think you’re not in the right placement, you have the right to be re-tested to consider a different placement or other services.Students can get free tutoring, called Supplemental >Educational Services, if they attend an eligible school and receive free or reduced-price lunch. To see if you are eligible, go to http://schools.nyc.gov/RulesPolicies/NCLB/SES.

If I have been discharged from high school, how can I re-enroll?

You can re-enroll at any Enrollment Center. To locate an Enrollment Center near you and learn how to register, visit http://schools.nyc.gov/ChoicesEnrollment/NewStudents/Peak+Enrollment.html.

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The five subsets of the GED® exam are more difficult to pass than many people might expect. one of us failed the GED® by one point when taking it the first time. Now that’s pain! A lesson learned is not to take the exam cold turkey. Get ready by becoming familiar with the parts of the exam and the procedures.

The Difficulty of the GED® Examtasos neofotistos, jovon smith, travion k. joseph, joni schwartz, john powell, and eve tuck

You might consider getting a practice book, and should think about whether you want a used one (that might have someone else’s answers filled in already) or a new one. When selecting a practice book, ask a trusted friend or ally who has taken the test and which one they used to get ready. GED® books can be purchased at most major bookstores or on-line. Shop around and compare prices. Examine how the books are designed, the visuals and which one might help you study according to your own learning style. And don’t forget that people have made a business out of selling guides and are selling guides to make money. There are no shortcuts, no magic ways of getting a strong score. You are going to have to put in the work.

A GED® practice book can help you get ready for the types of questions on the test, and get you ready to sit for a long time to actually take the test. The long hours of actually taking the test can get to you if you haven’t been in a classroom in a while. Don’t waste your own time by not being prepared and being familiar with the kinds of questions that the test will use. If you are spending your time trying to decode what the test is asking, but could have learned that from doing the practice tests, that is not a good use of your test-taking time.

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Many are surprised by the intensity of writing on the exam. There is a great deal of writing in which you are expressing ideas and analyzing concepts. On the English portion, you may need to develop and argument and write persuasively, such as having to analyze the role of technology in our society, what it is today, and what it will be in the future. Be sure that you show up for the exam well-rested, and not hungry, high, or hung-over. You want to be at your best so that you can think clearly and quickly, and communicate ideas in writing.

Reading comprehension—being able to read a passage, understand what it is saying, make connections to other ideas, draw conclusions, and share all of this in writing—is perhaps the most important component of the GED®. You will use reading comprehension skills in all of the subsets, not just English, so it is worth spending time before the test brushing up on your reading. People are surprised by how much reading comprehension is needed for the science portion of the exam.

The math portion of the exam also requires a lot of reading of word problems. Another key piece of advice is to practice with a GED® calculator, but remember that on half of the test you can use the calculator, and the other half of the math portion, you cannot use a calculator.

It is important that you understand that even though the GED® is a test of different subjects, how you are tested is by reading and responding. Remember that you will be reading and thinking for the entirety of the exam, so you should exercise your reading, writing, and thinking muscles before your test date.

If you fail one of the subsets, you can retake it, but it is usually recommended that you retake all of the sections of the exam so that you can try to get the highest combined score. That score is something that is requested on college admissions forms, and sometimes by prospective employers.

When you get your exam results, whether you passed or failed some sections, sit with a trusted friend or ally and talk through the exam. Any score can be built upon, but only if you have a sense of where you need to grow; not just where your score can grow, but what you need to work on to be more prepared next time. Before you retake the exam, talking through what you felt and what you thought during the prior exam really helps to know yourself better as a thinker and reader.

Finally, remember that the difficulty of this exam varies between different people. When someone you know says the GED® was hard or easy, don’t just stop there. Ask them what about it was hard or easy, and think about whether that would be hard or easy for you. You should expect that the GED® questions will be just at the edges of your knowing—no matter what, you will need to think to do well on the test.

If youfail one of the

subsets, you can retake it.

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Sometimes hard Work is Not Enough in an unequal Societymaria bacha When considering the factors in a decision to pursue a GED®, a piece of the puzzle is the understanding that schools and society in the U.S. are unequal because life is easier for people with money, and because of inherent racism in every aspect of our lives. Because schools and society are unequal, some people’s hard work doesn’t pay off, and others hardly have to work at all to achieve their goals. One youth told us in an interview, “They spend less money per school on our schools than on their schools. It’s just a fact. Our students get less money per student than upstate schools, for instance. So right there, the deck is stacked against you.” When the deck is stacked against you, sometimes no amount of hard work will get you even with people who have the deck stacked for them.

Advice from Youth GED® Earners to Youth Considering the GED®

interview responses, new york city youth

In each of our interviews with GED® earners and seekers we asked, “Would you recommend getting a GED® to others?” The most frequent and resounding answer was, “No. unless you are in the position I was in.” here is more advice from our interview participants:

"Everything applies to different people. Usually people say the GED® is less than or good enough. But actually I think it shows more devotion to you caring about your education. Because you have one environment that wasn’t made for you and you are mature enough to move on and go get your GED® and try to make something better with your life."

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"Think before you do things. Have a plan for life. Stay focused even though there are a lot of things around you that try to throw you off. Believe in yourself."

"You can believe you can do something. A GED® is just as good as a high school diploma. You can get very, very far with it. You’re not going to get very far without it. It’s easy as far as if you keep yourself focused."

"Go back to school. Education is where it’s at. It’s the only you going to succeed in life. You’re not going to succeed by sitting on your ass, wishing it would come to you under your pillow."

"Think positive. Just because you are 20, 21 is coming around the corner, it doesn’t mean that you can’t get your dreams; you got to do it right now. Don’t give up on yourself just because after you turn a certain age, nobody is going to help you unless you are going to help yourself. The best way you can help yourself is by helping yourself. Don’t give up. If you’re in a bad situation, just remember, there’s always someone else in a worse situation. Just think about all the positives you can do. You can be a success in life. Give yourself time to do what you have to do. If you fail the GED® test the first time, take it again. Take it until you get it. Don’t just give up on yourself. Cause nobody’s going to care, but you. You’re just going to become another statistic."

"Keep making your program work for you. Put you blinders on and be a race horse to the finish."

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"Don’t let the world judge who you are. Don’t let them label you. Look within yourself and take what you can from the world. Use all the opportunities you can. Be the best person you can be everyday, no matter what the world tells you."

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"If somebody was in my shoes, I would tell them that you need to keep going to school. As far as a person like myself, I could get sidetracked sometimes by little stuff. But if somebody was in my shoes I would tell them to stay focused, keep going; don’t let anything get in your way. That’s what people say, because at the end of the day, 30 years from now, people that talk about you are the same people who want to be your friend, be just like you. The same people that you think bring you down, will idolize you and want to be who you are."

"I don’t think I would recommend getting the GED® to anybody. Because there is a stigma attached to it. A GED® program can be a tossup in terms of the kinds of exploration, the deepness you are going to get from your instruction. There is a tremendously huge stigma attached to getting a GED® no matter how well your teacher has prepared you. There’s still something about how the society views that credential that has a propensity to decrease its value. In many of the programs, you come in 2 or 3 hours, twice a week. That’s not enough. I don’t think I would recommend it to anyone. If someone is pushed out or they have to make the choice to do it, of course I would say yes, you need the GED® more than anything. If you feel that you are too old to go inside a high school classroom, you don’t feel comfortable, I would say use the GED® option and then move on. I would not encourage anybody in this day and age to be satisfied with just a GED® or a high school diploma. Or even a college degree at that. In this day and age, everybody should, all of us educators should be encouraging our students to pursue degrees beyond the baccalaureate. Or at least have a trade or something. It’s just so competitive, especially in a place like New York. You need that extra oomph. That extra something that’s going to put your resume or vita ahead of everyone else."

"Basically, I can’t give advice about this, I don’t know. Choose what you feel comfortable doing. Don’t do something you don’t feel comfortable doing. Like high school, you don’t feel comfortable in it, don’t be in it. Do whatever makes you feel comfortable. If you feel that a GED® would be a better way, that you don’t have to go through high school and stuff like that, then do that."

"If someone came to me for advice about the GED®, I would ask them if they are really serious. I would tell them how wonderful it was for me. How wonderful it could be for them. I would tell them that it was a wonderful experience and how much they could learn about themselves and others. There’s an immense world out there. And that education is one of the things that can free us. I felt freed. For those who aren’t really serious, and do a GED® for the wrong reasons, they’re still stuck. They’re still stuck in that hole, in that minority label. Which usually has a low socioeconomic status. You know what I’m saying? So, I would definitely talk to them about how it was for me and how wonderful it’s been. And the heights that they could reach. And that they could do anything that they really wanted to do. It’s true. You can."

"My advice to someone in my shoes is to find somewhere that they feel comfortable and they feel wanted and they feel that there are people around them that want to be there, who enjoy what they are doing as far as being a teacher."

"Just prove people wrong. Not just for the GED®, just for anything you do, just prove somebody wrong. That’s the best defense. Just prove them wrong. You don’t have to fight them, just prove them wrong. If they say you are stupid, prove that you are the smartest person in the school. If they say you’re not going to get a certain score on a test get the highest score. My mother taught me that. She said just prove people wrong. That’s the best thing you can do. And it seems to be working. Everything I do, people say I can’t do it, but I just prove them wrong and do it anyway, and do it better than even I hoped to do it in my mind."

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"I would definitely recommend the GED®. Because of the GED®, dropping out of high school is not the end of anyone’s life. It’s just a mistake that you might have made or something like that. Getting the GED®, getting focused, getting a good score can still get you into college if you want to, can get you a good job if you want to be a mechanic or working with your hands. It still opens doors and gives you options. If I knew that they have already dropped out of high school, I definitely would say that the GED® is a good way to go. Of course, if a student is still in school and they are thinking of dropping out, I would most likely try to convince them to stay. If they are in 11th grade, they might as well finish this stuff out and get it over with. What’s the sense? You’re here already. You have already dealt with it for two years, or one year. You might as well do it for a little bit more."

"If you have to get your GED®, get it. If you are 25 and you didn’t graduate high school get it, get it now. If you are 16 and you are a junior, stay in school. Don’t be stupid. Just stay in school. It’s not worth it just leaving school to possibly jeopardize your chances of getting employed or going to college. Because you want to stay home and you want your GED®. Don’t do it. Stay in school. If you are smart and you are in high school, stay there. What’s the point of being smart in high school and leaving to get your GED®? If you don’t have to get it, if you have the alternative to stay in school or get your GED®, stay in school. But if you have to get it, that’s more power to you, I hope you do well. I don’t regret getting my GED®, I really don’t. I wasn’t going to graduate on time anyway. I got my GED® and I’m glad I got it. But if you have the option of staying in school and getting your diploma, do that. Don’t get it because your friend has it. Don’t get your GED® because everybody else has it, and they stay home all day, that’s not good thinking. Stay in school."

"Personally, to me the GED® is not equal based on the information and the knowledge that is tested. The GED® doesn’t ask calculus questions. The GED® doesn’t require any high level mathematics after 8th or 9th grade. So, I can’t really consider the GED® to be equal to a high school education. In high school, by 12th grade you are learning much more advanced mathematical material than is tested on the GED®. Of course, this is assuming that the high school students are learning what they are supposed to be learning. Of course, we know that all high schools are not the same."

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Advice from a GED®

Educatorjoni schwartz

In my experience as a GED® educator, students often leave school for one or more of the following reasons:

Safety issues in school, both physical and emotional1) High schools can be unsafe, unhealthy environments where there are daily fights, bullying. They can be places where many teachers do not want to be. Students report being disrespected by teachers, security guards, administrators, as well as their peers.

Misplacement in special education 2) Often young people are placed in special education because of their behavior. Many young men with whom I have worked report being honor students or doing well in elementary and junior high school, but then they are placed in special education along with their friends for behavior reasons. Because they are misplaced in special education, they often find special education is too easy, and they become discouraged.

Boredom/lack of challenge in school 3) Many students report being bored and unchallenged by school work. Many say they feel that they could have done the work, but there was no real challenge.

You have several choices once you have decided to obtain a GED®. You should think carefully, talk to friends, family and people who may have gotten a GED®. Do your research. Reading this guide is a good first step!

Here are some questions that you might want to ask when making your decision to prepare for a GED®:

What do I know about the test itself? How can I find out more? >Do I know someone who passed? How did they prepare? >Do I like studying independently? Am I a disciplined self-starter? >Do I prefer studying in groups? If so, what size? >Do I like traditional or non-traditional learning environments? >Would I prefer a small-group learning setting? >Would one-on-one private tutoring work best for me? >What programs are available in my community? >How much can I afford? Do I need a free program, or can I afford to >pay for one?Where can I find a GED® practice book to assist in the preparation? >Can I borrow one? Do I need a new one?Do I want a program that offers more than a GED®? Computer >training? Employment preparation? Childcare?

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>Do I need a program that provides supportive counseling for >personal issues in my life that interfere with my studying?Do I want a community based organization, department of >education, faith-based, library-based, or college-based (continuing education) program?Is an alternative high school an option to a GED® program? >What websites can I look at to search for GED® programs in my area? >What times are the best for me to study? Days, evenings, >weekends?Do I want a mixed group of adults and teenagers, or only teenagers? >

It is most important to remember that you have choices, and you can create choices!

Here are some other ideas to think about, and you can brainstorm more:Can I create a church study group for the GED®? >Can I create a neighborhood/block Saturday morning study group for >GED® seekers?Can I speak to my child’s school principal and ask if they will give a >group of GED® seekers space to meet?Is there someone I know who has passed the GED® who can give me >or a small group moral and academic support?

Policy recommendationsand You(th)maria bacha

We can’t forget that the reason many young people pursue a GED® is because of unfair and unjust practices in schools. While the decision to pursue a GED® is very personal, we need political action to change the policies that are creating unfair and unjust schooling conditions.

Here are some policy recommendations that we can promote:

Find a way to track the numbers of students who are pushed 1) out in a school

Hold schools accountable for the students they push out2)

Stop allowing schools to include GED® earners in their 3) graduation rates

MOST IMPORTANT: Policy must allow for more ways to 4) graduate from high school than just the Regents exams.

Tell schools: Stop obsessing over test scores and give us 5) smaller classes.

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Know Your options to Stay in School! (NEW YorK CITY SPECIfIC)advocates for children

You have an absolute right to stay in school until you turn 21 or graduate, whichever comes first; however, if you are struggling in a traditional high school and want to explore other settings, there are options.

What are Transfer Schools?These schools serve older students who have been in high school for at least one year and are behind in credits. Many transfer schools can help you catch up by earning credits more quickly. They also have smaller classes and can offer more individualized attention and support services to their students.

What are Young Adult Borough Centers (YABCs)?YABCs are evening programs designed for students who can’t go to class during the day. Students must be at least 17 and a half, have 17 or more credits, and have been in high school for at least 4 years to be eligible.

What vocational or career options are available in the public schools?Co-op Tech is a technical school for students who want to learn a trade, like cooking, computer programming or electronics. Students attend their home high school for part of the day and Co-op Tech for the rest of the day. Another option is Learning to Work (LTW), a career exploration and job training program offered at many transfer high schools, YABCs, and GED® programs.

Note fromthe Youth to YouthGuide to the GED®: The following information applies only to residents of New York City.

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Where can I get help enrolling in one of these schools or programs?If you need extra support to complete your education, the Referral Centers for High School Alternatives are a good place to start. Staff at these centers can refer students to transfer schools or YABCs, help students enroll in a GED® program, if appropriate, or help you get back into a community high school. There is a Referral Center in each borough.

Bronx Referral Center @ Bronx Regional High School 1010 Reverend James A. Polite Avenue, 3rd Floor Bronx, NY 10459 (718) 842-9200

Brooklyn Referral Center @ Marcy Avenue Complex832 Marcy Avenue, Room 501ABrooklyn, NY 11216(718) 636-5770

Manhattan Referral Center @ Alternative Learning Complex 269 West 35th Street, 7th Floor New York, NY 10001 (212) 244-1274

Queens Referral Center @ Jamaica Learning Center162-02 Hillside Avenue, Room 109Jamaica, NY 11432(718) 739-2100

Staten Island Referral Center @ St. George 450 St. Marks PlaceStaten Island, NY 10301(718) 273-3225

If you can’t get through to a Referral Center, call or email the District 79 Office of Student Support Services at: (917)521-3639 or [email protected]

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last Bits of Advicefrom Youth GED® Earnersinterview responses new york city youth

Before leaving school, have a talk with a teacher that you have at least a decent relationship with and you trust. Talk about your desire to leave and get really clear that high school might not be a good answer for you.

Make sure you know the reason you are leaving high school. The problems you had in high school will not be solved just by going into a GED® program. They are still there until you address them.

Regardless of how tough the situation is, no matter how much a person will talk down to you, the only one that can reach for those stars and touch those stars is you.

Conclusiontasos neofotistos, jovon smith, travion k. joseph,joni schwartz, john powell, and eve tuck

We are GED® learners, educators, and youth advocates. By composing this guide we hope we have addressed many of the concerns, questions, and issues pertaining to the choices that you have about the GED®.

Our last message of encouragement is that you keep all your options open and weigh all your choices to make an informed decision. No matter which choice you make, it can be the closing of one chapter and the opening of a new one. Keep in mind that any path you choose will require commitment and dedication. Reach out to friends, family, and allies so that you can make your choices in community, not in isolation. Our hearts are with you as you make your next steps!

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AVAIlABlE oNlINE http://sites.newpaltz.edu/youthguideged/

The Youth to Youth

Guide tothe GED

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Youth to Youth Guide to the GED

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Transcript of Youth to Youth Guide to the GED